Cleaning Polished Rocks From the Dollar Store

Beasty_Artemis

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So i noticed that there are nice sized bags of polished river rocks at the Dollar Store neer me, and I have been thinking about getting some for a while. Finally got a couple bags now that my table is coming into fruition. I thought I would soak them in water for a while, just in case...
Well the water was full of debris this morning! And more appears with every water change!!!
What could it be?
How do you clean polished river rocks before you can use them?
Are there some kinda that might be bad for a tortoise health?
 

Beasty_Artemis

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So I can't get a good pic of the stuff. It looks like alot of little off white flakes of gritty stuff floating in the water..

20161219_110556.jpg
 
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Beasty_Artemis

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Here is what it looks like after adding warm water instead of cold....

20161219_120631.jpg
 
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Yvonne G

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Put both hands into the water and agitate it briskly. The rocks bumping into each other should help to dislodge whatever that is. Just keep doing it until the water runs clear.

And as long as I have you here . . . do you use that bulb for the tortoise? The reflection shows a compact fluorescent bulb. Those have been known to harm the eyes. But if you mount that kind horizontally, it's ok. (but they don't provide very good UVB)
 

Beasty_Artemis

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Put both hands into the water and agitate it briskly. The rocks bumping into each other should help to dislodge whatever that is. Just keep doing it until the water runs clear.

And as long as I have you here . . . do you use that bulb for the tortoise? The reflection shows a compact fluorescent bulb. Those have been known to harm the eyes. But if you mount that kind horizontally, it's ok. (but they don't provide very good UVB)

Nope. That's my kitchen ceiling light, messing up my pics.
 

dmmj

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my concern is whether their actual rocks or artificial and whether they are toxic or not.
 

dmmj

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my main concern is whether or not they are real River Rocks and whether they are toxic or not.
 

Yvonne G

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my main concern is whether or not they are real River Rocks and whether they are toxic or not.

It's good to be concerned and wary. Afterall, they were sold at the dollar store. Maybe they're not real rocks.
 

RosemaryDW

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Could it be wax? "Real" polished rock costs too much for the dollar store; cheap ones are sometimes waxed to enhance the appearance.
 

Beasty_Artemis

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Could it be wax? "Real" polished rock costs too much for the dollar store; cheap ones are sometimes waxed to enhance the appearance.

Perhaps. It seems to come off more effectively with warm/hot water...
 

TerrapinStation

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To be safe, I would not use them in a tortoise enclosure. No doubt those are imported (China, Philippines, Malaysia?) and were probably lacquered or coated with some type of substance that is definitely not regulated by the FDA or EPA.

Even after washing, once they are exposed to high heat and humidity, it may release more "substance" in the form of vapor or leeching into the ground of your enclosure.

For our enclosure, we just got some good old natural rocks from the beach and rinsed them and added them in.
 

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