Jump to content

Word of Warning - Seiryu Stone


Mojie
 Share

Recommended Posts

Hey all! Just wanted to post this here in case anyone faces a similar mystery. I noticed some molting problems in my neocaradina recently in my 15 gallon planted cube. I originally chalked it up to diet because I’d been experimenting with some different foods, but stepping up their calcium didn’t help, and the losses were piling up. Then I realized my GH was through the absolute roof! I think I stopped counting at 22. My water is hard, but not that hard. I did a series of big water changes, including using some RO water and got it down, but it kept shooting back up. Last week I realized the culprit - the huge pile of seiryu stone in my tank. My best guess is that it was leeching a little calcium carbonate at first which was fine, but as the tank aged and humic substances built up, the rate of leeching accelerated rapidly. I’ve pulled the stone, am continuing the high frequency water changes  and things are already trending in the right direction. I just wanted to post this here because while I knew it could increase your hardness a bit, I had no idea how significant the changes could be and wanted to flag it for anyone else trying to save their little friends from the white ring of death! 

  • Like 2
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Good information to have. I've only used Ohko stones which are inert but have their own set of problems. I've been looking at what different types of stone I could use to replace the Ohko, but hadn't gotten to the point of looking at the qualities of the various type. This is helpful to know as a potential use for increasing kh/gh/ph. 

Edited by JJenna
grammar
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 2/13/2023 at 2:53 PM, Mojie said:

Hey all! Just wanted to post this here in case anyone faces a similar mystery. I noticed some molting problems in my neocaradina recently in my 15 gallon planted cube. I originally chalked it up to diet because I’d been experimenting with some different foods, but stepping up their calcium didn’t help, and the losses were piling up. Then I realized my GH was through the absolute roof! I think I stopped counting at 22. My water is hard, but not that hard. I did a series of big water changes, including using some RO water and got it down, but it kept shooting back up. Last week I realized the culprit - the huge pile of seiryu stone in my tank. My best guess is that it was leeching a little calcium carbonate at first which was fine, but as the tank aged and humic substances built up, the rate of leeching accelerated rapidly. I’ve pulled the stone, am continuing the high frequency water changes  and things are already trending in the right direction. I just wanted to post this here because while I knew it could increase your hardness a bit, I had no idea how significant the changes could be and wanted to flag it for anyone else trying to save their little friends from the white ring of death! 

One thing I'd extend a recommendation for when it comes to Seiryu is to purchase stone that is bigger than you think you need.  If you want small, get medium or large sizes.  If you want medium, get large or XL size.  That white marbling you can actually use vinegar or pool acid to dissolve it out.  You'll lose a good portion of the stone, and this caught me off guard at first. 

Take a few gallons of vinegar, let the rock soak for 15 minutes up to an hour if you need to.  In the circumstance in the OP, post a picture of the stone and maybe this is a viable option to slow down on the issue of that calcium release affecting your water as much.  I'll try to track down a video with before and after, but this something I did with my seiryu when I first got it.

 

Edited by nabokovfan87
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 2/13/2023 at 7:07 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

One thing I'd extend a recommendation for when it comes to Seiryu is to purchase stone that is bigger than you think you need.  If you want small, get medium or large sizes.  If you want medium, get large or XL size.  That white marbling you can actually use vinegar or pool acid to dissolve it out.  You'll lose a good portion of the stone, and this caught me off guard at first. 

Take a few gallons of vinegar, let the rock soak for 15 minutes up to an hour if you need to.  In the circumstance in the OP, post a picture of the stone and maybe this is a viable option to slow down on the issue of that calcium release affecting your water as much.  I'll try to track down a video with before and after, but this something I did with my seiryu when I first got it.

That’s a great tip for the future! This time around I’m going to just repurpose mine in a terrarium and switch to something inert for the tank - between this and a planaria outbreak my poor supreme pumpkins have been through it lately!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...