Rock to use for Caves/Hiding places ?

Cribbinator

Cribbinator

Fish are Friends, Not Food
May 26, 2004
89
0
0
Alpharetta, GA
www.thecribbs.com
Hello,

I am curious as to what type of rock is safe to use to make caves and hiding places for my fish. I've read some types of rock are harmful due to the gases and other elements that they give off. Any recommendations would be helpful.

Thanks,

James
 
Gases? Interesting...

Most rocks are safe. Some are not inert, but that's not always a bad thing. Slate, granite, petrified wood, etc are safe. Lava rock, lace rock, and coral bases are safe, but will impact the hardness of the water and raise pH.
 
If you put a carbonate containing rock, like limestone, in acidic water it will produce co2 gas. But thats not a bad thing. If your water is that acidic youve got bigger problems than the rocks disolving. Rocks dont tend to react too well with water. Thats why there are so many of them. Bet you couldnt have said that better yourself HC. :devil:
 
I put lava rock in my aquarium just last night but I boiled it and let it cool down before putting it in. Is this a correct precaution to take? Are there better ones?

I measured hardness and pH before I put it in. I'll measure hardness and pH over the coming weeks to see if there's a change.

Incindentally one of my glass catfish died (another post) I hope this is not related to the rock.
 
Depends--was this lava rock from the LFS? The rock called lava rock at LFS is not real lava. It's typically slag from ore refining, and it's clean--a quick rinse is all that's needed to remove any dust from the store.

Actual lava, from a volcano, is likely going to leach toxins and metals into the tank for many years--boiling will remove some, but not prevent problems in the long run.
 
I bought it from petco. And it was labelled lava rock. So I guess I can assume It's not actually lava rock and I'm safe since I boiled it.
 
Quite the contrary...Boiling will only reach temps of boiling point water. MANY parasites and becteria can survive 100 degrees C. Putting the rock in the oven @ 300 degrees F will destroy all!
 
Find me a parasite that can be found on a dry rock, survives boiling, and infects fish.
 
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