Can You Use Slate Or Marble In African Cichlid Aquarium

However when you use rocks in your aquarium to forms caves or piles you are mixing two things that traditionally do not mesh well.

Can you use slate or marble in african cichlid aquarium. So today i went and bought some natural slate from an outdoor pond shop. I was thinking this would be perfect for building a stone wall full of caves in the new cichlid tank. A similar case is present for coral and shells which are made mainly of calcium carbonate. These are often best used in saltwater aquariums where they look more natural.

Others however choose to cultivate a more natural décor scheme. I have ram cichlids. Great if you want your water hard and alkaline for your african cichlids bad otherwise. I am going to use aquarium safe silicone to join the majority of the rocks to prevent collapses and leave some to move around when introducing new tank mates.

Moss cichlid stone ceramic aquarium rock. Perhaps the most common concern is the effect that carbonate rocks limestone coral calcareous sandstone texas holey rock etc may have by raising the ph and hardness of the tank water. Can i use limestone rock. Easy way to test is to pour a bit of vinegar on the rock.

For smaller cichlids and shell dwellers they can be kept in an aquarium of no less than a 33 gallons. Adding rockery to the aquarium is a must for african cichlids in order to provide hiding places. If you have an african rift lake cichlid tank this is clearly a benefit rather than a concern. As you can see you can make use of all these rocks in order to create a more impressive island to long aquascapes on longer aquariums.

African cichlid fish room tour duration. These guys thrive in the same water conditions making them good tankmates for that reason. I wanted to put slate rock in my tank. I collect my rocks from local rivers and beaches just give them a good wash and drop em.

I have read they like caves and flat rocks to lay their eggs on. If it fizzes and bubbles it is lime. This is another one of my do it yourself slate aquarium structures check out my other videos to see how i put it together thanks for watching. One of the ways you can add personality and a natural look to your aquarium is by the addition of rocks.

I bought some terra cotta pots to make caves with and while they work i don t love the look or how much room they take up in my tank. Calcareous rocks limestone marble and dolomite have a high calcium content and are usually not safe for use in a freshwater aquarium. They just excavated for the septic bed and pulled out a ton of slate. African cichlids needs lots of room so a large aquarium is highly recommended.

Most sandstone slate volcanic basalts and quartz type rocks are fine.