The Best Aquarium Gravel
When you have pet fish at home, it's essential to give them the type of aquarium gravel they need to live healthily in their tank. It's also important to choose a product you like the look of. To help you find the perfect fit, we've found and reviewed the best of these rocks on the market today. Consider your fish, your tank, and your home décor styles while making your choice. We're confident that the list below will lead you to the ultimate product.
What to Look For
In our research, we found that the best aquarium gravel comes from brands that have a reputation, like GloFish. Whether you choose their fluorescent or black and white options, we think you’ll find them to be long-lasting. Aside from durability and overall quality, we also considered the aesthetic. After all, gravel isn’t just gravel. If you like your gravel au natural, Galashield is a fantastic option. Since their gravel is free of dyes, it won’t tarnish or fade over time. Read on to learn more about our favorite picks.
GloFish Aquarium Gravel, Fluorescent
Bright beginnings
Bright colors are so much fun, and you can easily add them to your fish tank with this neon gravel from GloFish. It’s designed specifically for use with GloFish since the blue lights will allow for even more vivid shades to appear. However, it can be used as a normal aquarium rock for fish of almost any kind.
This mixture comes in multiple colors, including neon pink, neon blue, neon green, and a mixture of the three. If you want a calmer look, black and white shades are also available. Each bag contains five pounds of aquarium rocks, giving you enough to fill the bottom of a small fish tank or bowl.
Pros:
- Expect a colorful surprise with this addition to your tank. In addition to the rich spectrum of colors in daylight, we found that the fluorescent glow itself will change quality depending on the color of LED lighting in the tank.
- If you’re tired of endlessly rinsing your aquarium gravel before use, this could be the choice for you. We found these gravel bags contained pristine pebbles with little to no dust and only needed minimal rinsing before use.
- Don’t fret if you’ve got any gravel left over. We found that this gravel also works as a colorful top dressing for indoor plants, such as small succulents and terrariums.
Cons:
- These are small rocks, so they may not work well for the largest aquarium dwellers.
GloFish Aquarium Gravel, Black, and White
High value, low cost
This aquarium gravel is both calm and beautiful. It has black and white rocks that can easily blend in with any style. The white stones have a pearlescent glow to them, providing a subtle shimmer when placed under your fish tank’s lights.
These rocks are made by GloFish, a well-known name in the fishkeeping industry. They can be used with almost all types of fish, and their small five-pound bag is perfect for filling up the bottom of small-sized tanks. Multiple packages can be purchased to suit larger spaces as well.
Pros:
- This gravel is great for colorful fish. The black and white coloring provides an excellent backdrop to highlight the natural beauty of vividly pigmented marine life.
- If you’re having trouble lighting your tank, the white reflective pebbles in this gravel can help to achieve a bright, even spread of light.
- We found that adding white rocks to this mix can make identifying algae buildup in your tank easier.
Cons:
- The shimmering “glow” effect isn’t observable without the use of colored lights.
Galashield Natural River Rocks Polished, 2 Pound Bag
No place like home
Sometimes, the best product for your fish is the one they would have if they were living in the wild. These natural stones from Galashield make the perfect aquarium gravel for fish of all sizes and bring a beautiful natural style into your home.
These rocks come in all sorts of colors and sizes, including browns, blacks, grays, and whites. They’re larger than the average aquarium gravel at approximately 1 to 2 centimeters in diameter, so you don’t need to worry about your big fish accidentally consuming them.
Pros:
- Unlike artificially colored aquarium gravel, these pebbles won’t fade or tarnish as they don’t have any artificial coatings or dyes.
- If you’re looking for a specific size of gravel for your aquarium or want to mix and match between layers of gravel, a range of sizes from 1 to 8 centimeters will have you covered.
- We found that the smooth finish on these rocks made them exceptionally easy to clean.
Cons:
- Though larger quantities are available, the two-pound option might not be enough to fill a tank.
Oubest Glowing Fish Tank Rocks
Light up the night
These rocks are likely different than anything you’ve seen before. They glow in the dark, producing a wonderful blue glow when the lights turn off in your home. Their shiny, smooth style looks great during the daytime, too.
These rocks come in sets of 100, 200, or 500 stones. They can be used on their own or added to regular aquarium gravel for decorative purposes. They also come in different colors and shapes to completely suit your personal style.
Pros:
- If brightness is what you’re after, look no further. With a glow that can last up to 8 hours after the lights go out, these rocks were some of the brightest we could find on the market.
- If your tank already presents you with an extensive cleaning routine, these rocks could be a welcome addition. With a plastic finish, we found they were much easier to clean than their stony counterparts.
- For a durable glow-in-the-dark solution, look no further. These rocks boast an incredible light span of up to 15 years.
Cons:
- Though large and bright, these rocks come in a small package and have a higher price point than most regular aquarium gravel packs.
Do I need to clean the gravel before adding it to my aquarium?
Any new addition to your marine biosphere, whether animal, vegetable, or mineral, needs to be properly researched before its introduction. This can prevent unexpected upset which might otherwise occur through contamination of the water, which can ultimately risk the health or lives of your treasured pets. Before adding any new gravel to your aquarium, it is essential to thoroughly wash the rocks. This can be achieved by simply rinsing the gravel multiple times through clean water until no more residue and dust particles are left as water washes away. If you’re introducing new gravel to an established tank, it is advisable to add small amounts incrementally to ensure that no adverse reactions occur with the resident aquatic inhabitants.
Which rocks work best for large fish?
If you have big fish in your tank or fish that will grow with time, you may want to choose a larger stone size so they cannot accidentally consume their substrate while they eat.
How much aquarium gravel do I need?
This depends on the size of your tank, but it is typically recommended to keep one or two inches of gravel covering the entire bottom of your setup.
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