General Care Discussion :: Rocks, Chemicals, & Water

[lotsofpets]

Ok - I read every title of every topic of the 28 pages in this section and didn't see the answer to my question! I have several types of rocks in my turtle-arium, but I have not put any carbonates into the water because I thought that they may leach into the water and cause problems for the inhabitants of the container. Do you think that this is possible? Also, I do have a rock in there that has chlorite that makes up a part of the mineral composition of the rock, and put water conditioner in the water for the chlorine/ chlorimine levels. Do you think that it would affect the pH of the water? I'm giving thanks ahead of time for any possible answers and/or comments!

[steve]

Most people here opt for a bare tank or use river rocks. Any substrate you choose to try, you should make sure that:

It is aquarium safe
Clean (people like to use things they 'find')
Will not alter the hardness (unless that is your intention)
It is not abrasive
It does not create an obstruction or has the potential to be one.

What is the source of the material you want to use?

[lotsofpets]

I talked to one of my geology teachers at EKU, and found some of the answers to my questions. I am going to pass this information along to help other viewers of this site.
While any rocks containing chlorite are fine for aquariums, those that are carbonate (containing CO3) rocks ARE NOT. These include calcite and limestone (CaCO3), dolomite and dolostone (CaMg(CO3)2), and siderite (FeCO3). These are the most common carbonate rocks. These rocks can dissolve (very slowly) in the water and alter the pH of the water. This is just something to consider when putting rocks in your aquarium.

[marisa]

Assuming you don't fill the tank with them, and the pH doesn't go sky high, is this necessarily bad?

[lotsofpets]

Sorry it took so long to get back to this... The carbonate rocks will react with the water in your tank and actually release Ca+ into it. Essentially it will increase the acidity minimally, but over time it could cause a buildup of calcium in the water. I realize that our turtles need Calcium, but I am sure there is a threshold. Probably as long as you clean your aquarium VERY WELL on a regular bases (i.e. scrubbing every time glass walls, equipment, rocks, plants, etc.) no one should have any trouble with this. It would probably also depend on the amount of water, size of the tank and turtle, etc.