# Is this rock safe for aquarium use?



## hkenneth (Aug 21, 2012)

Hi,

I recently picked up 2 rocks from a stream in the local park and wanna put it in my cichlid tank. But when I examined it carefully at home, I found that there are some metallic look small flats covering the rocks. Is that mica? And is that safe for aquarium use? Thanks!

Kenny


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## WhiteGloveAquatics (Sep 3, 2009)

what kind of cichlids? if it fizzes with vinegar it will raise Ph if it doesnt it will either lower it or be inert.

Id be concerned with the metallics in there, does a magnet stick to it at all with even the slightest connection?


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## NeonShark666 (Dec 13, 2010)

Mica should be safe. To avoid leaching out any metals it's best to keep your ph above 7.5. It's best to avoid any rock that has blue, green or orange in them. These colors indicate heavy metals.


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## hkenneth (Aug 21, 2012)

WhiteGloveAquatics said:


> what kind of cichlids? if it fizzes with vinegar it will raise Ph if it doesnt it will either lower it or be inert.
> 
> Id be concerned with the metallics in there, does a magnet stick to it at all with even the slightest connection?


Malawi cichlids and pH of my water is around 7.8 (even with a driftwood in it). The rock doesn't fizze with vinegar. The metallic color flats are really thin and can be easily scrapped off using a knife. The scrapped off flats are sort of transparent. I don't have any magnet at hand so cannot tell, though I guess there won't be any magnetic elements in it. The rock itself is just normal grey color, with some moss on it (as you can see in the above pictures).


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## hkenneth (Aug 21, 2012)

NeonShark666 said:


> Mica should be safe. To avoid leaching out any metals it's best to keep your ph above 7.5. It's best to avoid any rock that has blue, green or orange in them. These colors indicate heavy metals.


I am not sure if these are truly mica or something else?


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## Fixer (Jul 29, 2012)

I do not have any experience with ingenious rocks in aquariums but I can tell you it is most likely not mica because of the weak cleavage. It is hard to tell from the photos but I think you are looking at feldspar which is an alkaline mineral and should raise the pH. It is an extremely hard mineral though and would not cause rapid changes in water stability and since your tank is a cichlid aquarium it should not be an issue.


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## hkenneth (Aug 21, 2012)

Fixer said:


> I do not have any experience with ingenious rocks in aquariums but I can tell you it is most likely not mica because of the weak cleavage. It is hard to tell from the photos but I think you are looking at feldspar which is an alkaline mineral and should raise the pH. It is an extremely hard mineral though and would not cause rapid changes in water stability and since your tank is a cichlid aquarium it should not be an issue.


It does not look very much like feldspar for me. The rock itself is not transparent, only the tiny flats are, when scrapped off from the rock.

I think the rock might be a phyllite, covered with sericites.


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## WhiteGloveAquatics (Sep 3, 2009)

might be a form of shale too, does it peel?


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## gar1948 (Jan 25, 2012)

I wouldn't take a chance with those rocks. Pay the price and buy from LFS and not run the risk of killing fish, throwing water parameters out of whack and having to drain the whole tank. Just my opinion


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## snootn (Aug 21, 2012)

Wise answer to not take any chances by putting a rock of unnown material in the chiclid tank. Better safe than very sorry!


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## hkenneth (Aug 21, 2012)

gar1948 said:


> I wouldn't take a chance with those rocks. Pay the price and buy from LFS and not run the risk of killing fish, throwing water parameters out of whack and having to drain the whole tank. Just my opinion


The problem is the LFS in my place don't have any great looking rocks so I ended up looking for some myself (some Texas holy stones are great but too big for my tank). I actually would like to have seiryu stones but it is not easy to get them in the US


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## hkenneth (Aug 21, 2012)

WhiteGloveAquatics said:


> might be a form of shale too, does it peel?


No, it doesn't peel. Pretty solid.


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## hkenneth (Aug 21, 2012)

Anyway, I think I would stick with the small zebra rocks I have since my cichlids are only 1.5 inches so they should work for a while. Does anyone know if we can bring stones from other countries? I'm gonna go to China at the end of the year and I know they have a great number of seiryu stones in the market.


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