clever ideas for tank decoration
Ira H. Nydick
I wish to add some more objects to my tank to provide shelter
for the fish, but balk at paying the high prices fish stores
charge for rocks and wood. Does anybody have any suggestions
for commonly available items which are safe to put in the
tank and won't leach dangerous chemicals? Also, what kind of
rock and wood are safe to use? Thanks.
--
Ira Nydick
MANE Department UCLA lab phone: (310)206-0898
Peter Konshak
> Hi,
> I wish to add some more objects to my tank to provide shelter
> for the fish, but balk at paying the high prices fish stores
> charge for rocks and wood. Does anybody have any suggestions
> for commonly available items which are safe to put in the
> tank and won't leach dangerous chemicals? Also, what kind of
> rock and wood are safe to use? Thanks.
I like to use coconuts. I cut 'em in half, scrape all the stuff out, and
then boil them for awhile. They probably leach some sort of chemicals
into the water, but I've never had any problems with them.
Peter
------------------------------
Peter Konshak
pkon...@fiat.gslis.utexas.edu
------------------------------
George Richards
>
>Hi,
>
>I wish to add some more objects to my tank to provide shelter
>for the fish, but balk at paying the high prices fish stores
>charge for rocks and wood. Does anybody have any suggestions
>for commonly available items which are safe to put in the
>tank and won't leach dangerous chemicals? Also, what kind of
>rock and wood are safe to use? Thanks.
>
>--
a new tank I though of using bricks - basically baked clay.
They'd make easy caves, walls etc.
Has anyone tried them?
I know bricks will break down with salt but should be very
stable in freahwater. After all many brick buildings are still
standing after a hundred years.
--- George
Paul Rene Borloz
: I wish to add some more objects to my tank to provide shelter
: for the fish, but balk at paying the high prices fish stores
: charge for rocks and wood.
My girlfriend and I go to the local landscape supply dealers. Not
always, but sometimes, we find nice pices of rock - we like the mexican
lava rock - for cheap. We once found a large piece for 12 cents a
pound! The people at the yard were kind enough to lend me a small
sledge hammer... viola! Cheap decorations!
Good luck and happy hunting!
--
Paul (pbo...@oboe.aix.calpoly.edu)
drb...@ibm.net
>Ira H. Nydick (hiny...@breeze.seas.ucla.edu) wrote:
> snip...
>: I wish to add some more objects to my tank to provide shelter
>: for the fish, but balk at paying the high prices fish stores
>: charge for rocks and wood.
> snip...
>
>My girlfriend and I go to the local landscape supply dealers. Not
>always, but sometimes, we find nice pices of rock - we like the mexican
>lava rock - for cheap. We once found a large piece for 12 cents a
>pound! The people at the yard were kind enough to lend me a small
>sledge hammer... viola! Cheap decorations!
I agree, however depending upon what type of fish you keep I
have heard that the lava rock can cut some larger fish (I've never had
trouble with my cichlids). I also Use Cobblestone (sp?) This one dealer
sold me about 100# of cobblestone and small (1-2" dia) rocks for $4.
My favorite is petrified wood, I got lucky a friend of mine collects it
himself, I got that free. One type of rock which is also useful are the
large flat ones. You can find them at landscape supplies also.
As far as leaching minerals into the water, you might have to
expiriment, I have cichlids which like hard water so I don't worry about
it. If your fish like soft water you should check the hardness of the water
for the fish few weeks after adding a new type of rock to see if it is
leaching into the water. :)
Good Luck ---===> DB
Jen Kulak
> for the fish, but balk at paying the high prices fish stores
> charge for rocks and wood. Does anybody have any suggestions
> for commonly available items which are safe to put in the
> tank and won't leach dangerous chemicals? Also, what kind of
> rock and wood are safe to use? Thanks.
If you want an easy test to see if a rock is going to increase the
hardness of your water, try dripping vinegar on it (if you can find
"concentrated vinegar" in a store, all the better). The acetic acid in
vinegar will react with the calcium carbonate (limestone) in a rock and
bubble after about a minute. I've found that rock that don't look like
limestone can still bubble--they sometimes have ribbons of limestone in
them. If you have access to a biology/chemistry lab, see if you can
borrow some dilute acetic acid--does the same job.
Jen
aaron dunning
I like to steal round, fist sized rocks from landscaped mall
parking lots. Not exactly legal, I guess, but really cheap. I just soak
them in water with a little bleach and give them a good scrubbing. Be
careful not to use rocks with mettalic flakes in them, as they can leach
metals into the water. IMHO, a pile of round granite looks far more
natural than lava rock, and it doesn't have the sharp edges to scratch
the fish.
-Boxhedd
Janet Wilson
writes:
>
> Msg-ID: <3co0la$r...@Owl.nstn.ca>
> References: <D0rzy...@seas.ucla.edu>
> Posted: 14 Dec 1994 19:55:22 -0400
>
> Org. : Nova Scotia Technology Network
> >
> >I wish to add some more objects to my tank to provide shelter
> >for the fish, but balk at paying the high prices fish stores
> >charge for rocks and wood. Does anybody have any suggestions
> >for commonly available items which are safe to put in the
> >tank and won't leach dangerous chemicals? Also, what kind of
> >rock and wood are safe to use? Thanks.
> >
> >--
> a new tank I though of using bricks - basically baked clay.
> They'd make easy caves, walls etc.
>
> Has anyone tried them?
>
> I know bricks will break down with salt but should be very
> stable in freahwater. After all many brick buildings are still
> standing after a hundred years.
>
> --- George
>
I used broken flowerpots once and there seemed to be no ill effects
--
--:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---
The above comments attributable to: Janet_...@mindlink.bc.ca
--:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---:---
Casey Forest
he made a "broken castle". It has lots of holes and stuff for the
fish to swim in and out of. In addition, we have been told that
our dempseys need a "flat rock" to lay eggs on, so hopefully this
will satisfy them. If you or anyone you know is taking a ceramics
class, you could probably have something nifty made that meets
your specific tastes.
Brenda Feltham
- Brenda
Dave "George"
I my tank I use clay flower pots, which are basically made of brick.
The fish love them, and people who have seen my tanks like the idea.
The pots come in a large range of sizes, and the bottoms of the
pots can be broken out so the fish can swim through :)
that's my two cents worth.
dave "george"
Mark Hebets
and I switched to clay pots. For the kind of volume a brick takes,
seems you'd be better off getting nice-looking rocks.
Don't limit yourself to the std conical flowerpot. Take a look at
a 4-inch strawberry pot, for a little variety. I have a clay
Aztec mask in one tank. Just stick to clean unglazed red clay.
I've also used red clay floor tile. Great stuff, you can pave the
bottom of a bare-bottom tank with a red floor. Be careful,
though. I would stay away from most of the Mexican saltillo tile,
unless you're really sure there's nothing to leach out.
Alisa Dean
>though. I would stay away from most of the Mexican saltillo tile,
>unless you're really sure there's nothing to leach out.
>
>
>Mark
>mark_...@radian.com
I've heard that a lot of pottery from Mexico has lead in it,
especially those that are glazed, but including unglazed
stuff.
If you don't care how "unnatural" it looks, I remember
seeing a beautiful tank that used glass bricks. The person
had them on their sides so the fish could swim into them.
It was certainly unusual.
Alisa
Alisa
James L. Paul
hiny...@breeze.seas.ucla.edu (Ira H. Nydick) wrote:
>I wish to add some more objects to my tank to provide shelter
>for the fish, but balk at paying the high prices fish stores
>charge for rocks and wood. Does anybody have any suggestions
>for commonly available items which are safe to put in the
>tank and won't leach dangerous chemicals? Also, what kind of
>rock and wood are safe to use? Thanks.
Speaking of rocks leaching into water...
I think a large split geode would look great, with the polished
cut and cavern of crystals. Will there be any problem with this
in a freshwater setup? What would be the effect on the water?
--
James L. Paul Software Engineer
Voice: 607.776.3070 | Fax: 607.776.1309 | AppleLink: D1231
Internet: ja...@netcom.com | FTP: ftp.netcom.com ~pub/ja/james
Alisa Dean
>
>In article <D0rzy...@seas.ucla.edu>,
>hiny...@breeze.seas.ucla.edu (Ira H. Nydick) wrote:
>
>>I wish to add some more objects to my tank to provide shelter
>>for the fish, but balk at paying the high prices fish stores
>>charge for rocks and wood. Does anybody have any suggestions
>>for commonly available items which are safe to put in the
>>tank and won't leach dangerous chemicals? Also, what kind of
>>rock and wood are safe to use? Thanks.
>
>Speaking of rocks leaching into water...
>
>I think a large split geode would look great, with the polished
>cut and cavern of crystals. Will there be any problem with this
>in a freshwater setup? What would be the effect on the water?
>
If the water is a low PH, the geode will gradually dissolve and
harden the water. If the water is a high PH (such as for African
cichlids), the geode will probably be fine. I probably wouldn't
Now, it sounds like a pretty idea, except for the probability
of your fish slicing themselves on the edges and points of
the crystals as they run for shelter.....
Alisa
dd
David Slater
amethyst that do not react at all with water, at least in regards to
making the water alkaline or hard. To be real sure you can always
do the vinegar test on anything you want to put in your tank.
The only thing I am not sure of would be what other funky stuff
may be in the geo such as sulpher and who knows what else.
I am not a geo-type person so I would not know, since rocks are not
my life.
-Dave
Daniel L. Lovall
I don't think that the water will be affected by the geode. The geode
might be affected by the water, though. A friend of mine had a
beautiful blue geode in her aquarium and the blue color leached out. Not
completely, but the effect was noticible after a few months. Maybe
if you stuck with an "earthy" color geode it would be OK.
Dan
Craig Bingman
Daniel L. Lovall <lov...@london.physics.purdue.edu> wrote:
>I don't think that the water will be affected by the geode. The geode
>might be affected by the water, though. A friend of mine had a
>beautiful blue geode in her aquarium and the blue color leached out.
The beautiful blue geode your friend had was dyed blue. I have no idea
what blue dye is used. They offend my asethetics, but whatever floats
your boat, I guess...
Craig
Kaufman
Sexton had friends with a 150 gallon tank decorated with Barbie doll
body parts. Perhaps he'll comment...
Matt
--
"It was fun." |copyright 1995, ma...@summit.novell.com. All rights
|reserved. Permission for reproduction by USENET and like
"Oh. My." |free facilities explicitly allowed. No other reproduction
|rights are granted or implied.
Richard Sexton
Kaufman <ma...@summit.novell.com> wrote:
>
>Sexton had friends with a 150 gallon tank decorated with Barbie doll
>body parts. Perhaps he'll comment...
It wasn't pretty.
--
``It's too dark to put the keys in my ignition''
Richard J. Sexton / VRx Network Services, Inc. / ric...@panchax.gryphon.com
Celeste Fowler
They're made out of ABS plastic, which I think is pretty inert. I made
a little destroyed town for my fish (Legoland after heavy flooding and
mass destruction theme). They have two semi-demolished buildings and a
graveyard, complete with a little plastic ghost. Have to warn you tho --
I just set my tank up and got 5 black neons. Three promptly died, but
did show some improvement (prior to dying, that is) after I took them
out of the tank and gave them some new water. Although it's probably
something else, toxic stuff leaching from the lego has not been ruled out.
BTW the remaining two are back in the tank with the lego and seem to
be doing fine (I did a full water change before putting them back in).
-Celeste
cel...@sgi.com
WRIGHT HUNTLEY
Fowler) writes:
It always amazes me that people get totally psyched about essentially
inert metals like lead anchors in tanks, but totally disregard the
potentially lethal plasticizers given off by almost any softened
(plasticized) organic compound.
Smell Tygon (TM) tubing sometime. Those plasticizers are even given off
as vapors! The plastic plants pushed on novices may be just as bad,
requiring much more frequent water changes, or more trips back to the
store to replace fish.
Your second water change, no doubt reduced the high initial
concentrations, and any more leaching could be at a drastically reduced
rate. I would bet on plasticizers as your prime problem. A good long
soaking can reduce the effect dramatically as the surface gets leached.
--
=======================================================================
"The first (and key) step to liberty is to be a good neighbor."
WH
=======================================================================
Quinn C. Horn
:
: Your second water change, no doubt reduced the high initial
: concentrations, and any more leaching could be at a drastically reduced
: rate. I would bet on plasticizers as your prime problem. A good long
: soaking can reduce the effect dramatically as the surface gets leached.
: --
Would boiling the plastic for a period of time before introducing it into
the tank prevent this influx of plasticizers into the water?
Quinn
--
Quinn C. Horn
Graduate Student in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering
Michigan Technological University
WRIGHT HUNTLEY
Probably, since solubility usually goes up with temp.
George Booth
> Sexton had friends with a 150 gallon tank decorated with Barbie doll
> body parts. Perhaps he'll comment...
One of our bigger tanks has a reconstructed cat skeleton. The fish
love to swim in and around the rib cage. Sweet revenge for all the
terrorizing the cat did in its ninth life.
George Booth
> Would boiling the plastic for a period of time before introducing it into
> the tank prevent this influx of plasticizers into the water?
> Quinn C. Horn
> Graduate Student in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering
> Michigan Technological University
Guess they don't consider plastic a "material" at Mich Tech, huh?
Some plastics tend to deform at temps above 160 F. Not a good idea to
boil them, as boiling takes place at around 210 F, depending on altitude.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
George Booth "Nothing in the world is more dangerous
bo...@hplvec.lvld.hp.com than sincere ignorance and conscientious
Freshwater Plant Tank Technology stupidity" - Martin Luther King, Jr.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
hpbsl75
I "made" some rocks with caves and holes in them for my fresh-
water tank by gluing together smaller bits of rock with the
silicone sealant made for aquariums.
I found a piece of some kind of gray sedimentary rock that could
be separated into layers, about 1/4 inch thick, using a screw-
driver. I got three of these pieces, approximately circular and
about four inches in diameter. I then about a dozen smaller
rocks that were approximately cubical and about one inch on a
side. I put glued four of five of the cubical pieces on the edges
of the circular pieces and glued another circular piece on top,
etc.
Attempt at ascii graphics: (where XXXXXXX = silicone sealant)
|----------------------------------------|
|----------------------------------------|
XXXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
|-------| |-------| |-------|
| | | | | |
| | | | | |
|-------| |-------| |-------|
XXXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
|----------------------------------------|
|----------------------------------------|
XXXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
|-------| |-------| |-------|
| | | | | |
| | | | | |
|-------| |-------| |-------|
XXXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
|----------------------------------------|
|----------------------------------------|
XXXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
|-------| |-------| |-------|
| | | | | |
| | | | | |
|-------| |-------| |-------|
Anyway, this first attempt ended up being somewhat boringly
regular, but the fish still loved it. They loved to swim
through the little caves and the shyer fish liked to just
hide inside.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Tom Wheless twhe...@hpdmd48.boi.hp.com
Boise Printer Division
Hewlett-Packard Co.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Celeste Fowler
Anyway, I guess I should have stated in my last post that I did soak
the lego in water for a week before putting it in the tank. The packaging
recommends washing it in water cooler than 104 farenheit, so I don't
think boiling it would be a good idea (although "Surrealistic Plastic
Mess" might be an interesting tank theme...) I didn't put any metal
or rubber lego pieces in the tank. In my scientific tests <joke> the
plastic was determined to have no noticeable smell or taste.
My two neons seem to be doing very well. I've been doing a 2 gallon water
change (10 gallon tank) every week since might not have cycled completely.
They've been very interested in mating (at least, the male has) which would
seem to me to indicate they're doing well (BTW what do neon eggs look like?).
If I continue to have problems I'll take all the plastic out and go for
something more conventional.
-Celeste
PS Lest you all think I'm heartless and cruel as well as incompetent, I
feel really really badly about those three that died.
John Twilley
I like the Lego idea, and wonder if boiling discolors the plastic.
(I balance Vermont granite chunks -- they are solid and
regular-shaped.)
Jack.
--
Jack Twilley (Nautilus) | "Shake gently before enjoying."
twil...@ecsuc.ctstateu.edu | -- Minute Maid Fruit Punch and me
naut...@f611.n320.z1.fidonet.org | "Subtle as a stomach pump." -- me
GAT c+++ d++ e+ f? g+ h++ !l m n--- p++ r-@ s+/- t-@ u+++(-) w+++ y+
Anne Hull Seales
> One of our bigger tanks has a reconstructed cat skeleton. The fish
> love to swim in and around the rib cage. Sweet revenge for all the
> terrorizing the cat did in its ninth life.
>
I've thought about using bones in a tank... did you do any special
treatment before putting the bones in the water (sealing, for one)?
Have access to carrion beetles? Or use some other defleshing method?
(Maybe they should add a "road kill in large puddle" chapter to
"how to imitate nature in your fishtank" picture books... my gourami
would probably prefer the flesh left on though ;-).
Anne
lau...@mom.spie.org
twil...@amdahl.ctstateu.edu (John Twilley) writes:
> Xref: netnews.nwnet.net rec.aquaria:51525 alt.aquaria:33500
sci.aquaria:12279
My son brought home clam shells from the beach, just the normal white scallop
shaped things you see all over. I boiled them for about 15 minutes and then
used them to make little "caves". They are starting to get odd looking lime
green and pink spots. I have them in a 29 gal. that I started after Christmas
(guess what Santa brought :-) and at the moment only have 3 goldfish (1 died)
and some sort of plant the store said goldfish like to eat (they do).
I have been worrying off and on as I have read this newsgroup about whether
the shells were a good idea or not. I'm sure someone knows - please let me
know too!
Thanks.
********************************
* Ms. Laurel Kirkman, SPIE *
* e-mail: lau...@spie.org *
* phone: 206/676-3290 *
* fax: 206/647-1445 *
********************************
Grant Gussie
>>
> I have been worrying off and on as I have read this newsgroup about whether
> the shells were a good idea or not. I'm sure someone knows - please let me
> know too!
>
Shells are calcitic and therefore slowly dissolve in the water, making it
hard and alkaline. This is not a major worry with goldfish, since they are
very adaptable to different water chemistries...but still shells can not be
recommended for them. Sorry.
--
internet email: grant....@phys.utas.edu.au
www home page: http://reber.phys.utas.edu.au/~gussie/