Can i use this?

[c2c7390]

I know the tradition on here is no rocks/gravel at the bottom of the pond

but i want to do some sort of tan gravel at the bottom because i cant see my fish

so can i use the gravel from Home Depot

theyre not painted and i cant see them leaching any chemicals into the water if i do use them

i just wanted a second opinion on them

 

[carolinaguy]

your gravel will turn black in about a month from the algae buildup. the only way to keep the material brown is to wash it off.

 

[DrDave]

Are all your fish dark? Get a few Platinums, Yamabuki's or Orengi. They will school with the others and you will be able to spot them easier.
Gravel will definetly be a place for bacteria to grow and become septic. It will as previously mentioned, decay and become black.

 

[c2c7390]

@carolinaguy
i dont get algae in my pond as it is shielded from the sun 24/7/365

@drdave
no but the ones that i want to see are. Since there is no light its hard to see even the platinum ogon, kawarimono, and tancho sanke koi that i have
i wouldnt do a thick layer only 1 pebble thick
i also stir up the the pond every week and would stir up the gravel during this weekly routine

 

[stroppy]

thinking back to when i had an aquarium that was indoors not much daylight and the gravel still went black if not cleaned often ... but the only way your going to find out if it works is to give it a try

 

[c2c7390]

was your gravel thicker than 1 pebble thick?

im going to try it
either way so back to my question. do you think these pebbles will leach anything into the water

 

[DrDave]

If they are not made for an aquarium, there is always that risk. Most rocks are ok.

 

[addy1]

Just wash it well, it is pea gravel, I bought some to start some plants, there is a lot of gravel dust, dirt in it. Plain old gravel will not leach anything into the water.

 

[c2c7390]

Just wash it well, it is pea gravel, I bought some to start some plants, there is a lot of gravel dust, dirt in it. Plain old gravel will not leach anything into the water.

aquatic plants?

 

[Pondmaster]

The pond bottom will eventually be covered with carpet algae, which is good, and has a green marbled look. Whether you put rocks on the bottom or not you will eventually have that green look so why create more problems by adding rock of any kind.

 

[j.w]

I put it onto the bottom of my bathtub pond in just a single layer thinking it would look nice and it turned yucky, yucky, yucky and I would have had to scrub each little piece of gravel to get the gunk off so I spent wasted time emptying the pond and getting it all out and now it's just a plain old bottom and it will get the nice green algae on it that the fish can eat and I can still easily get the gunk out w/o having to fight w/ that gravel...........oh boy I said that all in one breath

 

[addy1]

aquatic plants?

While setting up our bog, I started a lot of bog plants in plastic containers with a layer of pea gravel, in the spring. When we finally had the bog going I had some very nice plants growing to put in the bog.

 

[c2c7390]

I dont get algae of any kind since there is no direct sunlight just indirect that is reflected a minimum of 2 times (concrete and ceiling of the oning)

The pond bottom will eventually be covered with carpet algae, which is good, and has a green marbled look. Whether you put rocks on the bottom or not you will eventually have that green look so why create more problems by adding rock of any kind.

your gravel will turn black in about a month from the algae buildup. the only way to keep the material brown is to wash it off.

@carolinaguy
i dont get algae in my pond as it is shielded from the sun 24/7/365

 

[c2c7390]

I put it onto the bottom of my bathtub pond in just a single layer thinking it would look nice and it turned yucky, yucky, yucky and I would have had to scrub each little piece of gravel to get the gunk off so I spent wasted time emptying the pond and getting it all out and now it's just a plain old bottom and it will get the nice green algae on it that the fish can eat and I can still easily get the gunk out w/o having to fight w/ that gravel...........oh boy I said that all in one breath

was your pond getting a lot of light?

 

[j.w]

It gets afternoon sun for a few hours but it seems like there was a lot of slimy brown growth that attached itself to the little rocks. The tub had lots of lily pads on top and a lg grassy plant on the end of the tub where the sun hit first. You might be ok since you are really shady and if you keep it really clean all the time. You'll have to keep us posted