zzfive69

Hay Guy's need your help making my new 37gal tnk. I want to put river rocks from were i live(lower louisiana) but do not know if they will work,The rocks line the river banks. The tnk will be for A.C. which i already have.Thanks

Isabella

By "A.C." you mean African Cichlids, right?

I have rocks from a river in my tanks too, and they're fine. You can have them too, only test them first to ensure they're safe for a freshwater tank. Pour a few drops of vingar over each rock. If it "fizzles" (i.e. "bubbles"), that means it has a lot of calcium in it, and that's why it's not safe for a freshwater tank. Calcium in rocks will increase your pH too much. If the rocks don't fizzle, they're safe to use. BUT: boil them first, before putting them in your tank. This is to make sure no potentially dangerous micro-organisms are getting into your tank from the rocks. Remember: When you boil the rocks, wait until the water cools off before you remove them from the pot. If you remove them right away, while they're still hot, they can explode! Be VERY careful.

Though African Cichlids like harder water than most freshwater fish. So, in this case I don't know if calcerous rocks would be dangerous. If I were you, I'd wait for another opinion in that matter as I don't know too much about African Cichlids.

COBettaCouple

exploding rocks! ..really, that is something to be careful of. i have some african cichlids but don't have rocks (rock decor) so i'm not 100% certain of which rocks are good, but they do like harder water.

Sabi

Explode?! Wow thats interesting! I'll second the vinegar thing.

Neville

i have rocks in my 10g too, they look nice, i boiled them before adding.

zzfive69

THANKS for the HELP.