Shells & their effects

Ok, so starting a thread on a Sunday afternoon, when everyone is still getting over their hangover from that wicked party last night might not be the greatest thing to get some kind of co-herant answer... but here goes...

My wife and I were at a restaurant last night in Monte Casino, and some of the people at our table ordered Oysters. The oysters had some fancy name, but the krux of the matter is that the shells were pretty huge... (The size of my hand basically).

The shape and colour of them would make for interesting "ornaments" in the tank... but I'm scared to put them in until I have confirmed that they will not alter the chemistry of the tank.

Anyone got any ideas...?

 

I saw crushed coral chacing the ph pretty high in my tank. So I guesse it would be the same for shells.

There might be different effect from different shells, but they are mostly calcium I think.

 

Well they have been cooked so i think that they will leach calcium quite easy into your tank.Saying that it will probably up the ph only to a certain point.Whether that is good or bad depends entirely on the population in the tank,like Malawis,prefer high ph?

 

Oysters are not cooked if they come from proper restaurants... If I remember correctly, they are served raw in the shell...

It will alter the chemistry of your water though. It will buffer your water to the higher side of neutral. Not a bad idea though... Interesting.

 

Slagter with all your chiclids they might just enjoy a few oysters.

Might even have more spawnings:blink1:

 

LOL!! Probably... But my cichlids are South American soft water cichlids, so the shells wont be well accepted.

 

You are quite correct Slagter. Oysters are served raw, and the proper way to serve and eat oysters is actually still alive!

So I shouldn't put them into my tank then... just thinking about the pH effect...

i.e pH get's buffered a little on the high side with the shells in. Zoom does a 30% water change, which lands up throwing in rather different pH water.