is it safe to put natural tufa rock in a fresh water aquarium?if not,why?
by Aquaboy on Thursday, May 20th, 2010 | 3 Comments
rock created from cattails,weeds,various plants that rotted and limestone water ran over it and created tufa rock.
i doubt it, ususally that kind of rock is full of salt and stuff, correct me if i am wrong, i probably am lol. http://www.google.ca – google it.
No, limestone will raise Ph and hardness usually to unsfe levels for most fish. If you have very soft, acidic water and you want to keep african cichlids that need very hard, alkaline water then you might be able to get away with it.
If you want, go ahead and give it a try in a separate bucket and test for Ph, GH, and KH to see if it raises to unsafe levels. Most likely it will, but it might work.
Both tufa and lava rock are very suitable for the marine aquarium, but each have various advantages and disadvantages. Tufa rock is relatively inexpensive and can help buffer the pH of the water due to its high content of calcium carbonate. However, it is fairly dense and displaces greater quantities of water.
Lava rock, on the other hand, is more expensive, does not influence pH, but is light and displaces relatively little water. A mixture of the two is often a good compromise. Other suitably inert rocks are also available, and should be considered for their cost and displacement qualities, as well as their aesthetic value.
Whichever rock is chosen, it should be arranged carefully and safely. Although many fish will enjoy swimming in and out of the rocky corridors, others will also require a fair amount of open space in which to swim.
Nearly all other natural rocks usually chosen for use in freshwater aquariums should be avoided, the only exception being slate. Many of these rocks contain harmful metals and minerals that would pollute saltwater and harm the fish.
Fishkeeping and conservation have become closer allies, and this is beginning to be reflected in the hobbyist’s choice of tank decoration. On the way out are the stark white, dead corals, and on the way in are the artificial kinds made of inert colored resins These are often made by fishermen no longer able to fish the coral reefs and surrounding water, providing them with a valuable source of income where none would otherwise exist.
Tufa” is loosely and confusingly applied. Tufa may be chemical sedimentary rock composed of calcium carbonate, which has been formed as an incrustation around lime-rich springs. Or “tufa” (“tuff”) may be a generic term for pyroclastic volcanic ash solidified into rock. This is sometimes locally called “lace rock.” Calcareous tufa will surely raise the pH. Volcanic “tuff” may not be inert either, especially in soft, acidic waters. Porous travertine has also originally been precipitated in lime springs, as tufa. Though it has been partially metamorphosed by heat and pressure, it still bears a high calcium content that renders it unsuitable in general-purpose aquaria. Quite apart from tufa, but sometimes confused with it because both are porous and because some tufa is volcanic in origin, is “lava rock,” actually a reddish volcanic pumice, the solidified froth of lava. Pumice is inert; it won’t affect the pH. Pumice is full of intricate channels; in fact some naturally-occuring pumice is even buoyant and useless in the aquarium. Pumice is aquarium-safe. In fact you may get some side benefits from using it: after it has been in place for six months or so, you may witness some slow decline in nitrate in the aquarium. This is due to de-nitrification carried on by certain bacteria, deep in recesses of lava rock, where the water is anoxic. If you pull out the rock and drain it, or worse, if you dry it, the de-nitrifying effect will be cancelled. So, treat matured lava rock as respectfully as you would a matured sponge filter. Its rather harsh and blank brick-red color is improved in time with some algal growths. If you think your fishes will scrape themselves on the rough surface of lava rock, you can cover it with Java fern, which will root into it without compromising its slowly developing de-nitrating qualities.
Now I have also been told not to use Tufa Rock, it leaches hardening salts into the water and should only be used in hardwater set ups.
Now that I have totally confused you. I’ve attached two web pages. Check em out