Craft store artificial plants okay in aquariums?

[Dahlia]

Are any of the craft store florist section plastic plants okay to use in an aquarium? I'd rather use the plastic ones than silk. This is for my daughter's aquarium... I need some very tall unnatural looking plastic plants and I can't seem to find any of the "pearl" or other unrealistically colored plants available in larger sizes.

 

[OrionGirl]

Check it carefully to make sure the internal wire used is completely covered, with no way for water to get into it. While the wire is unlikely to cause much of a problem if it rusts, it can pose a threat if a fish swims into it. Otherwise, make sure the 'plant' is not treated with anything--no glitter or paint, etc. Rinse very well in clean hot water, and you're good to go.

Otherwise--there are some very tall, aquarium plastic plants available--I've seen them at the LFS, and at PetCo.

 

[jamzwayne]

I tried that once.

Made a HUGE mess of my 10GAL and I think thats what caused my fish to stress.

I washed the plants very good in very hot water and let them hang dry, and took all nessacry precautions, but they didn't seem to work out. It never tested the water to see what it threw out of wack, I just got em out ASAP.

 

[Bigguppy]

It's a crap shoot. Some good, some really bad. When you measure the price breaks vs. the risk there really not an advantage to it. It can create reckless water conditions.

 

[cdawson]

If there's any metal in them I wouldn't recommend it, no amount of fabric is going to stop the water from reacting with the iron.

 

[Dahlia]

I was kind of hoping for plastic, the silk/fabric ones deteriorate too much in my experience. But I went ahead and bought some regular colored, made-for-aquarium 24" plants. Not very exciting to a kid, but she really wants some of her baby fish to survive. This weekend I'm going to be making ceramic pieces myself for her tank, which I hope she will enjoy.

All my tanks are natural looking which I am very picky about, and she always wants the tacky stuff... so I let her do that in her own tank. It's pretty fun for her.

 

[Aquatick]

Usually the smaller privately owned stores have the really tacky stuff. You may want to check the saltwater section at your LFS. Sometimes they have some pretty odd plastic plants that might suit her fancy a little better. Still though, i pity a fish in a tank with tacky plants! lol