Eason

Hi All,

The title of my post is more of a question rather than a statement, although the UK does rock somewhat. I am setting up a new tank and would appreciate any advice on what type of rocks to use and where to source them from in the UK. My tank will be planted on an african theme with fish to suit.
Thank you.

Tavel

I usually take rocks from outside because buying rocks is like buying water. You can also get them from the hardware store. I wouldn't pay the ridiculous prices for the petstore rocks...they're the same rocks just marked up because it's a pet store.

As for what type...well basically anything. Africa is very geologically diverse. The easiest to come by would probably be granite, limestone, sandstone, and greenstone. Of those, greenstone is probably the nicest for an aquarium, followed by sandstone.

If you're into geology, read this.
http://www.fortunecity.com/oasis/ske...94/geology.htm

Eason

Hi Tavel,

Thanks for your response.
My concern with rocks such as limestone is the affect they may have on my already high pH level of 7.6. I live in a limestone region so would have to travel further afield to collect different types which is not a major problem. I added a specimen of local rock to a container of water and it tested 8.0 a few days later.
Dave.

Tavel

thats odd. I have limestone in one of my tanks and the pH went up to 7.8...but slowly dropped to the normal 7.6 over a few months, I think as organics sealed in the rocks to prevent leaching.

but the other rocks should have no effect on pH, so they're free game!