# about washing rocks...



## breeze905 (Feb 1, 2009)

so i bought these lava rocks for my tank and decided to let them soak and scrub them so that all the brittlest pieces will break off during the wash instead of in my tank...

here in lies the problem...

well i used a bucket that used to have laundry detergent in it... the bucket hadn't had detergent in it for a long time.. maybe a year... i also washed out the bucket with vinegar and hot water solutiona and scrubbed the sides to get it clean. well i soaked the rocks and scrubbed them and got a surprisingly large amount of debris from the rocks... so i thought i'd let them soak a lil longer... well today i came home from work and pulled the rocks out and just before i put them in the tank i decided to take a quick smell. I think I can smell a faint trace of detergent on them! I emptied the bucket.. refilled it up with hot water to see if it would still smell... well it sorta does i think. i left the rocks in there again to soak. Now I'm left with this dilema of wether or not these rocks can even go in my aquarium... I'm about to fill it up again with more hot water and soak the rocks till 10 ish tonight and put them in the tank. Anyone have any suggestions?


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## Jackson (Jan 30, 2009)

For starters use another bucket. I would never use stuff that had cleaning solutions of any type. I would not use that bucket again. 

Use a new or different bucket one that is to use only for your fish. Soak the rocks for a week or so. Change the water once a day. After a week fill the bucket with water( from your tank ) and put a few fish that you dont mind giving up in the bucket. give them a day or so and see if they die. If not the rocks should be fine. You are going to have to put an air stone for the fish to live but most fish can live in a bucket if done right for most of their lives.

Or you can soak them for a week and toss them in. if the fish die then you know what caused it. I would not try this one.


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## breeze905 (Feb 1, 2009)

Thanks again Jackson. I believe you helped me out before on another one of my threads asking for advice and help. It is greatly appreciated. So I brought home a different bucket... one that was actually used in the food industry for mayo... but the thing is the mayo is in a bag which is inside the bucket... i figure this bucket is safe to use. I came home and washed it with a hot water/salt & vinegar solution and honestly... i smelt the bucket and it smells exactly like the water from out the tap... there is a slight smell.. not a bad one or nothing. so... i have taken the rocks out of the other (detergent) bucket and put them in hot water in the new bucket. i'll be doing water changes everyday for a week and we'll see what happens. I'm just gonna use the detergent bucket as my water change bucket... seeing as that's waste water anyway... that would be alright... right?


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## planter (Jun 9, 2008)

I wouldn't do that. The fish may die of stress or shock without any heaters or filters running in the bucket leading you to belive that the rocks were the cause. 

You really don't need to kill any fish to test the rocks. Just keep rinsing the rocks well and scrub them down really hard with a new brush. let them sit in test to see if they still smell.


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## breeze905 (Feb 1, 2009)

Well honestly i didn't plan on putting any fish in the bucket with the rocks either... i planned on soaking the stuff out of the rocks for a while and when I felt it was safe i'd put them in to the tank... the rocks don't smell much like detergent but i can smell it a lil so yeah... basically i'll soak em until i can't smell em no more... then i'll soak em for another few days and maybe even a week after the smell is gone just to make sure... i figure i change the water once or twice daily and the rocks should be detergent free after a week or two.


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## ka NUK (Dec 19, 2008)

I use new buckets only, and label them for "Aquarium only". When I catch someone abducting these buckets for nefarious purposes, a great calamity ensues.  

About that lava rock: It has two important properties. One is that it is VERY porous. This makes it very good for growing bacterial colonies. (I use it in the large filter for my pond). These pores may also make it very difficult to clean out any contaminants. Err on the side of safety when soaking / leaching out the detergent. The other property is that lava rock is very brittle and sharp. Some examples are sharp enough to injure fish. You're on the right track with scrubbing off the fine bits, but I would also keep an eye out for any scratches or sores. If the fish exhibit those I'd lose the lava rock.

my $0.02

ka NUK


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## Chris S (Dec 19, 2007)

Buy a brand new bucket, then do what you are saying. A new bucket is cheaper than all new fish and a contaminated aquarium.

Detergent is not the easiest thing to just "soak" away.

Not sure of the size of the rocks you are using, but if they are small enough you can put them in some boiling water, then move them to the new bucket.

You can also add a bit of vinegar to the bucket while you soak them to help clean them up. Make sure you rinse it off though.

What kind of fish are you keeping? Keep in mind lava rocks will cause a rise in your pH (good for most african cichlids, of course, bad for most other fish).


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## breeze905 (Feb 1, 2009)

> What kind of fish are you keeping? Keep in mind lava rocks will cause a rise in your pH (good for most african cichlids, of course, bad for most other fish). -Chris S


Everything i've read about lava rocks says the exact opposite... Raise ph? The only effect i've heard of lava rock having on ph is actually lowering it. BUT from my understanding most if not all store bought lava rock will NOT affect ph levels at all. In fact.. i did a lil bit of research before i went out and bought these rocks and i had come to the conclusion that i wanted these particular rocks because they were easily identifiable, lightweight and i kinda liked the contrast of red and green... red being the rocks and the green being the plants that i plan on planting soon...



> Detergent is not the easiest thing to just "soak" away.
> 
> Not sure of the size of the rocks you are using, but if they are small enough you can put them in some boiling water, then move them to the new bucket. -Chris S


Yes this is an excellent idea... i guess soaking them in hot water that turns cold while i'm not home probably won't be as effective as boiling them. So when i get home today that's the plan.. i think i'll boil these rocks for a good 20 minutes. i have a feeling that this will do the trick. I'm a boil them for 20 minutes this morning.. then again tomorrow... (maybe even twice today as i wanted these things in my tank!) after each boil i'm a put them into the bucket with the air pump pumping bubbles up from underneath the rocks to hopefully aerate the contaminates out of the porous rocks.



> The other property is that lava rock is very brittle and sharp. Some examples are sharp enough to injure fish. You're on the right track with scrubbing off the fine bits, but I would also keep an eye out for any scratches or sores. If the fish exhibit those I'd lose the lava rock. -ka NUK


You know when i was scrubbing them to get the loose particles off i was thinking to myself that they were kinda sharp and that the fish could get hurt but i figure i wanted java moss so if i just let the moss grow on these rocks it should provide some cushioning and padding for the fish not to scratch themselves up... true?

Thank you everyone for your input on the situation.. it is greatly appreciated!


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## Chris S (Dec 19, 2007)

Hrm, you got me doubting myself on the lava rock, and now when I try to corroborate my evidence, I can find none!

So be it, I am mistaken!


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## breeze905 (Feb 1, 2009)

lol @ Chris S. No problem. With the wealth of information we get about our hobby i think it is easy to "mistake" some things... luckily we live in the information age where we can go online and look up just about anything. I still appreciate your feedback on my situation so thank you Chris.


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## breeze905 (Feb 1, 2009)

So i thought i'd give this thread a lil update... hasen't been long since my last post but... i boiled the rocks... The smell is gone... i boiled them for about twenty minutes. After the boil i smelt them and the smell was gone. I put some hot water in the bucket and even the boiled water with the rocks and let them sit with an air tube pushing air into the water from underneath the rocks in the bucket. it has been sitting like this since about 8 last night. so for over twelve hours and presto... i take the rocks out and try and find any hint of the smell and nothing.

Boiling the rocks... best idea ever.... i'm gonna give it another boil and another let's say 6 hours of aeration... and i'm pretty sure their ready to go... but!

Some interesting news... i will be aquiring some fish today! two of them are goldfish... now i don't like goldfish and the owners of the fish who are basically related to me say they don't care what i do wit em even if i flush em! LOL! they just want to get rid of the stuff... so i figure why not... i'm a put the goldfish in the bucket with the rocks and see what happens...  origionally i wasn't gonna use "test" fish... but somehow fate has set a different path.  

i'm also getting a free filter i beleive.. just a hob which is all i use anyway. but now i'll have a spare.. i might as well run it on the tank too i figure and have it basically prepped for a next tank... MTS? uh ohhhh.... And some extra fish so a couple of ferns from what it sounds like...  good times!


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## breeze905 (Feb 1, 2009)

another update... well i've boiled the rocks a few times... the last few times tho they were in the same pot as some driftwood that i'm also trying to boil the tannins out of...

I also never got the fish yet from my friend so i don't have test fish.

But... i'm pretty darn sure that the rocks are detergent free now. Here's a quick question before i put these rocks in my aquarium... if i boiled the wood with the rocks... and the rocks now smell like wood... the tannins that were released into the water... would they have got into the rocks? Am i gonna have to boil the rocks again to get the tannins out that it may have soaked up from the wood? Thanks for reading and any input is greatly appreciated.


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## ameekplec. (May 1, 2008)

Chances are because of the porosity of the lava rock, they still have some residual water from the boiling pot in there.

I don't know why everyone likes to boil their wood - the tannins are good for your tank, and will eventually mostly leach out with water changes - but to each his/her own.

As for the sharpness of the rock, fish will be fine with it. Some soft-bellied (scaleless) fish may have some problems, but you rarely if ever hear of fish slashing themselves open on rocks. I'm pretty sure they know if something is sharp when they rest on it 

If in future you want to remove impurities from something, I'd recommend carbon in a HOB or a canister filter. It will absorb anything that becomes leached into the water.


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## JamesG (Feb 27, 2007)

ameekplec. said:


> I don't know why everyone likes to boil their wood - the tannins are good for your tank, and will eventually mostly leach out with water changes - but to each his/her own.


I agree completely. I used to boil some small bits when I was new to the hobby and scared but once I got pieces too large to boil I said to hell with it and everything was fine. Also I now recall my lectures in botany on tannins and the myriad of anti-herbivory compounds which are in there. No sense destroying them.


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## Chris S (Dec 19, 2007)

I actually like the yellow tint the water gets...too bad some of my wood is pretty old now, no more leeching =(


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