T Cotton Posted January 18, 2021 Share Posted January 18, 2021 Hello all. I work at a quarry and we’ve processed some rock down into gravel and pea gravel. It has interesting colours in it and I’m wondering if I could use it I’m some future aquarium set ups. Can anyone shed light on how I can condition the gravel so it would be safe to use ?? Is boiling it enough ?? thanks everyone in advance for your input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrozenFins Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 A thourough rinse should do it, boiling wont hurt either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FishyJames Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 I used gravel from a gravel yard. I boiled it just to be safe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanked Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 Quarries near me don't allow visitors so I've been using big box store pea gravel for years without issue. Boiling is an option, But giving it a thorough rinse is a must. The extra fine particles could cloud the water, and/or result in a tightly packed substrate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkG Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 Crushed rock will be sharper than the more rounded natural gravels, this might or might not be an issue. Or maybe you tumble it as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick L Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 Over all safety all depends on what the rock is made out of. If it's a rock with heavy metals then it may have some negative affects long term. Also everything I've seen online warns to check for pyrite as it can leach copper and acids into the tank. But as long as its inert rock rinsed and boiled you should be ok. That being said it being sharp is really more of an issue if the fish you want to use it with are the kind that dig or live on the bottom. Somewhat rough gravel shouldn't be much of an issue for middle and top dwelling fish or things like shrimp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockMongler Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 Biggest thing I would worry about would be sulfides in the rocks, as these tend to contain heavy metals we want to avoid in our tanks. The most common one would be pyrite (fools gold), but for the most part anything metallic looking is probably a no go. Generally speaking though, I imagine a quarry pulling up material for aggregate should be fairly inert. Other thing to keep an eye out for would be carbonates, as they can do similar things as adding crushed coral to your tank. Which is to say, they can be bad or good, depending on what you are going for! Since you do work at a quarry, talk to your geoscientist if available, and see if they can let you know if anything would be overly reactive. You generally want inert things like silicates, or carbonates, if you are looking for making your water more alkaline and less acidic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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