Basalt substrate in a marine aquarium

Ricardo7341

Good day. Does anyone use fine-grained 1-3mm basalt substrate in a marine aquarium? If so, what are your impressions? And if there are contraindications, what are they? Why am I asking this question: because I want a marine aquarium and I have an excess of basalt, which is used as a neutral substrate in a planted tank. After spending several hours searching for information on the use of basalt in the sea, I found nothing substantial, except for a short note from the foreigners: "you can, just rinse it thoroughly." Employees of specialized stores say "it is absolutely forbidden!" Therefore, I am interested in practical experience. Or information explaining

Cindy

Basalt contains iron - it sticks to a magnet (to a scraper). There is iron - which means it releases it into the water.

Michelle1505

They are already removing it from the herbalists... I don't even know how to get 100 kg from my herbalist without disrupting the balance.

Christine864

What did he do wrong in the herbalists?

Katie5500

As already mentioned, it attracts and eventually scratches the glass. It compacts, planting ground cover and other plants with delicate root systems is a torment for the plants and for oneself. I am much more inclined towards quartz and sea pebbles.

William1830

If we believe this, then the iron in the mineral is in oxides that do not break down under aquarium conditions. That is, there is nothing to actually release. Or does basalt still break down under aquarium conditions, releasing harmful substances?

Kristen2246

Perhaps you were "lucky," my magnet only attracts to the magnet, and even then, I just checked. The ground cover grows wonderfully in it. I have Marsilea, Hemianthus, and Cryptocoryne. The roots of the Aponogeton are as thin as a spider's web, and they also thrive and develop well in basalt. Even the Helens and Melanias easily burrow into it.

Wendy8540

In the magnetic scraper, the magnet is installed. I wrote about the preferred soils, and everything grows and lives in granite crumbs. Off-topic, there is coral crumb for the sea, if interested - write.

Melissa3200

Well, let it be that way. But here's the question: why exactly basalt in the sea? Do you want dark substrate? There is black aragonite sand. Experiments in a marine aquarium will cost more than the sand itself.

Daniel9952

In which sea is the basaltic bottom? I'm curious myself now.

Diana8604

For example, in the Black Sea, in the area of "Tsarskaya Bay." The vent of an ancient volcano is a local attraction. Basalt, in fact, is a product of volcanic activity. In any place in the world's oceans where volcanic activity has occurred or is occurring, both above and below water, the ground consists of basalt or contains it in large quantities.

Ronald

And do corals grow in these places?

Phyllis

In short: A marine aquarium is impossible without substrate extracted from the natural biocenosis of a coral reef, with its living flora, fauna, and microorganisms fully preserved. There is one opinion, and there may be others.

James1625

I can't understand whether you are interested or just asking.

James8887

For interest, I took the live Arag-Alive Hawaiian Black from Caribsea; the sand is made of volcanic lava crumbs collected in Hawaii, primarily based on basalt, not aragonite, but it is very different from our basalt - very light and porous, almost like pieces of live rock. Aesthetically, I like it; I haven't formed other impressions yet, although the Japanese probably use lava crumbs for breeding caridina for a reason, as it works like a live filter. But I repeat, this is not our basalt.

Charles

I am interested in using it in practice. However, after conducting a lengthy search on substrates for marine aquariums, I found nothing but opinions, even on foreign websites. The topic was created to gather and attempt to systematize information. You expressed the most common opinion found on the internet very well. I simply condensed it into a short formulation. There may be others, or there may not be, and we might have to conduct an experiment; I do not know yet. I suggest we observe together. If we believe the literature, all coral reefs developed on volcanic rock formations.

Anthony

It resembles volcanic tuff.

Laura7633

If they didn't find it abroad, then in this topic it's unlikely you'll be convinced; I see you're set on basalt. I think it didn't develop in just a couple of months, like in aquariums. In any case, I don't think no one has tried basalt. Apparently, there are still reasons why it is not used.

Megan

You said that, not me! There are aquariums without substrate, and there are aquariums with artificially made sand. But basalt has been and will always be dead sand for a reef. It's also silly to compare our rocky basalt with volcanic sand. I didn't formulate my opinion from the internet, but from my personal many years of experience. Over more than 20 years of professional activity in freshwater aquaristics, I have tried a lot of sand, substrate, gravel, chips, etc. I also have experience working with various sands in marine aquaristics.

Javier5186

You can use asphalt in aquaristics, but the question is - WHY? Saving on sand, you said - 100. The money is relatively small, especially in the sea... Why invent a new bicycle? For savings? Or for yet another "alternative"? There was already a similar topic here... Aren't the points you mentioned above enough to explain why basalt shouldn't be used?

Michelle

Off-topic, it seems to me that on this forum, at this link "Chat-Fludilka and others," you will be welcomed with open arms. The forum is young, and I think you should shake it up with such topics. Just don't be scared of the Admin there; he might start playing "Murka" and speaking in slang, and if he calls you "bro" or "brother," then that's it, you're considered one of them.

Stephen

Offtopic atst alom:

Larry

Off-topic I don't recommend following the link, or they might suggest planting reeds and installing a toilet tank system instead of an automatic watering system, and then embellishing it all with macrophytes from the desert...

John5528

Thank you to everyone who responded in this thread, especially for the detailed and substantive answers. I want to share a couple of links I found that helped me decide on the soil choice: Everything about DSB - translation by Valery Yartsev SILICON - ENEMY OR FRIEND? Calcium I found the answer for myself, the topic is closed.