Crushed dried coral?

[Ben]

Been a bit of talk about using shell grit in tanks to help buffer the water.
What would dried coral do in a tank? would it be the same as shell grit?

I am not completly sure but is coral a calcium or silicate compound?

If any one has answers i would love to hear them!

cheers,

Ben

[Merrilyn]

You can use crushed coral just the same as shellgrit. I believe coral is a calcium, the idea being, add calcium and salts to buffer the water, and hold your pH stable.

Obviously only use this in grow out tanks, or display tanks, not in spawning tanks.

[Ben]

Thanks Merrilyn.

I will see how i go with using coral in a grow out tank, just to see how it works compared to shell grit.

cheers,

Ben

[nicholas76]

yep its the same thing Ben.

some things you should take into consideration.

Shell grit / coral will leak out calcium whihc will give you the buffer you desire.
Ensure you use the correct amount for yoru tank. The last thing you want is to add to much and cause your hardness / ph to swing too much or even the other direction.

thats why i use KH powder.

[Ben]

Over the last week and a half, i have seen great results by using crushed coral.
It has been keeping the water very stable in between water changes.

Also i am not sure about others, but finding good quality shell grit is not the easiest thing to find!

Cheers,
Ben

[Proteus]

Coral Bone is the best option IMO.

If you get the right stuff, it wont leech any calcium into the water, rather just buffer the KH therefore assisting in pH stability.

Ever since adding Coral Bone, my tank has not any more that a .05 degree shift +/-