marble chips safe?

[wckdkl0wn]

I picked up a bag of marble chips the other day while at lowes. I washed them up really well and they look beautiful for the bottom of a tank. But now that I think more about it. Are they safe?

 

[cr8on]

I would say yes, one of my LFS's sells marble chips as substrate. They do affect the water chemistry though in a similar way to coral sand.

 

[wckdkl0wn]

I rinsed half a bag in a 5 gallon bucket and it took like 30 rinsing to get the water to be clear.

 

[cr8on]

Doesn't surprise me, coral sand also takes a long time to rinse out properly.

 

[wckdkl0wn]

Wonder what parameters will change if I use it.

 

[andyjs]

Well, it's basically compressed limestone, so it will likely bring up hardness and pH to some degree