Choosing the stone that fits your tank is, in my opinion, essentially about the contrast of color you are looking for. In my opinion, Dragon stone generate an amazing contrast of colors with dark black sand, green plants, and fish such as a black/blue/red betta (when swimming in front of the stone, its amazing how they look). The "Seiryu" is 2 syllabus. Seiryu stones are great with white sand, and green plants/moss on top, and yellow/white/orange/red fishes :)
Thank you Joanna 😇This is perfect timing ,I wanted to share with everyone! Currently at PetSmart they have buy one get one half off for the aquatic decorations and stones are part of that sale. If you buy the 25 lb box It may seem like a lot but when you do the math: 50.99 For 25 lb of stones The next box is split in half at cost for 25.50 So for 50 lb of stones you're spending $76 (+ tax of course) which translates to a tiny bit over 1. 50 a pound. That's a lot better than any aquatic store I've ever gone into and seen whatever they're charging. There's no way I could have gotten any stones yet if I hadn't taken advantage of this sale. So if they're available in your area try looking it up. And if you don't want to do two boxes of stones that's okay They also allow the sale for other decorations.
Tip: Extra discount at Petsmart might be possible depending on how your local store treats open box items. I picked up a 25lb box a couple weeks ago and paid roughly $40 (reg price here is $55). They only had 4 boxes and they were all already opened. I just grabbed the box that was the most full and asked if I could use their scale to confirm the weight. The manager said they don't do that there but offered my 25% off since it was an open box item. I weighed it when I got home, 31lbs, someone must have mixed the boxes together. Called them back about returning 6bs and was told not to worry about it. I would never tell anyone to open boxes themselves but if you come across an open box and it still seems pretty full it's worth asking to confirm the weight, you might be offered an additional discount. Side note- I was so happy about the discount I ended up spending an extra 50 bucks in plants so I guess they still got me in the end. 🙂
They are both beautiful types of stones, and I love how you use them in your scapes. I'm on a budget though and prefer to use what I can find locally, especially around local streams and rivers. I really do find some neat textures and sizes to use. Maybe one of these days I will break down and get some of the designer stones, as like I said, they are beautiful. Love your content!!
Michael you should be able to talk to a government agency I can't think of the American Name, but I do the same. There is a rock you can find in the right places Calle Mutton Stone. It is white and smooth and very dense. Not sure where you live but you probably know yourself, there is cool stuff out there.
In one of my tanks the seiyu stone keeps the TDS around 120. I use this to my advantage with my caradina shrimp. My TDS out of tap is 30-40 well water. Greatvideo. 👍
Thanks for the clarification and the tips!! Especially on the pronunciation of the Seiryu Stone. The stone work in a Aquascape is a work of art in itself!! I literally catch myself thinking about when I get more stones for hardscape what I want to create!! Until then I sure do enjoy watching how you keep growing and scapes you are creating!! I absolutely love the dragonstone. I have only had one little piece and it did deteriorate a very tiny little bit and made me a little more apprehensive about using it only! But when it comes down to creating some of the most beautiful layouts for a scape there's nothing like it 😍 It's definitely on my someday list 😂 Thank you for sharing Joanna and I hope you're having a wonderful day!!
I like the seiryu stone with darker driftwood and plants, and the dragon stone with lighter plants and driftwood. Both of them look good in a tank. 👍❤👍
Definitely love them both. Dragon stone we've used the most in our tanks (working on a seiryu stone mountain in the 125gal) because of how you can customize the size and shape. It is a pain to clean, but the results after (we found that toothpicks and a hose do wonders) are stunning sometimes with all the holes and crevices. Awesome video! Thanks Joanna!
I’m in a habit of only using Dragon stone so I decided to go out on a limb and order some Seiryu stone for my latest scape. I was worried about it effecting my Ph but I also have very hard water so that information made me feel better! Thanks Jo ❤️
Love them both. I think dragon stone has more texture but a total drag to wash. I spent almost an hour washing my stones using a bottle brush, wire brush and tooth brush...every crevice had clay in it..but once clean..man is it a beautiful stone
Thank you for the info! I’ve been afraid to try these rocks because of the possibility of a negative change to my water parameters. I will definitely give these a try. I just started the hobby in July and am loving it! I’m trying really hard to not have multiple tank syndrome😂
@@marypaigeflynn4512 yes! I started with a 20, then bought a 40 for my plants……yeah that’s it 😂 then ‘rescued’ two bettas from a friend and then you have to have a hospital tank as well….so now I have three 5g tanks. I want a 40 long next for some African dwarf frogs. I will wait till fall. I think 😂
Hi Joanna! As usual you take a simple topic and make it interesting and fun to listen to. I am a craptacular aquascaper! I tend to overuse plants and underused rocks and wood. So I've been wandering about different shops and I have been looking for more inspiration. This is your fault!!! 🤣🤣 So I found a shop that sells dwarf hair grass by the square foot, it is stored in a large tank under water! Petland carries some amazing wood! There are umpteen dozen plant people that sell good plants. I'm enjoying this process, my wife recently got into aquariums with me and she's telling me to go buy what I need, so Overcome temptation by fulfilling it! One other thing. You and Jason made me very jealous because you work together. I remember several years ago, he put a video out showing Saturday Tank day with the kids all doing tank cleanups. This was such a good thing to watch. I grew up working shoulder to shoulder with my Dad on the farm. It wasn't until years later that I realized how important this was. Any time spent with parents usually ends up to be so beneficial and that video he did still makes me smile today.
I’m so glad to hear you still remember that video. I hope one day the boys will remember those days somewhat fondly. Just enjoy looking at scapes you like and try to figure out why.
Interesting video. Never used either stone, but just bought dragon stone for a future 3ft cube aquarium so looking forward to trying my aquascaping skills with it
Thanks for the comparison video. We've never tried either type. The comparison format with graphs is a big plus for some of us visual learners. Looking forward to the next video, Jim PS: Have you ever tried dolomite? It is one of my favorites as it aids in a high pH for Multi.s, and it has rounded edges that are less likely to injure a fish.
Thank you for all these details! After watching I knew which one was right for my 10 gal with black substrate..Seiryu stone won and it’s striking in my tank and I can’t wait to buy a couple lg pieces for my not Nano tank thanks Joanna
Very helpful, Joanna. Just removed what I thought was limestone from my mbuna tank and the pH rebounded from 8.0 to the St. Louis tap water's 8.4. Excellent tip too from ShelbyRae Lane.
I've used seiryu stone more than dragon stone. I may try dragon stone in my next planted tank because of the colour variation. And maybe do dragon with red plants😊 great video, thank you Joanna
I love the look of Seiryu stone, I wish it didn't mess up the pH of a tank. If it weren't for the negative effects on water parameters I would have some of these in my tank :(
I have both, purchased dragon stone at Petco. I used flat head screwdriver and hammer to get the perfect break. 🤣 I didn't soak and just rinsed, cloudy!! Lol
Great review on the 2 rocks. I like the Dragon stone. Although I have to check my local aquarium shop for the Seiryu stone. The rocks in your tanks really look great.
I like the look of Seiryu/Mountain Stone but it seems to show algae much easier than Dragonstone. I have a tank up for about six months now and the Dragonstone has never been cleaned. There are a few spots of green algae but barely noticeable. The Seiryu needed constant scrubbing during the setup process as it would show the brown diatoms every couple of days. I ended up just breaking down the tank to start over as the algae got worse and other algae started showing up. Could have been just an individual tank issue, but from that experience I think the lighter colors of the Seiryu make it show algae much more easily.
I like the look of both, (maybe the dragon rock a little more) but ive actually just ordered 5KG of each type to decide on, i am however leaning towards the Seiryu because i also want some type of wood in my tank to sit along side of the rock, like driftwood etc, problem is, i think because the dragon rock is brown in colour it will be to much, if i use the Seiryu i will have a mix of grey/brown with a soil substrate and plants, choices choices! 😄
Home Depot and Lowes both have these stones for about half of what you would pay in a pet shop. They're available online in 44lb boxes that will be shipped to you for free.
Seiryu means “azure dragon” in Japanese. It’s actually a Chinese constellation symbol (called “qinglong” in Chinese) and also a deity (very normal because many parts of Japanese culture, like Go, koi fish, the fox spirit, and dried persimmons, to name a few, actually originated in China). It’s probably why some people refer to it as dragon stone. It’s pronounced a little bit more like how your son pronounced it, but in Japanese they don’t really pronounce r’s the way we do, it’s more similar to an “l” sound so it’s sort of like “sei-lewyu”, so kinda in-between how your son pronounced it and how you pronounce it. Anyway cool video!
Hello! I have 55 gal set up with Seiryu with many pieces having a nice white line running through. I really love the look. I have yet to try the dragon stone. Thank You for your video. :-)
Maybe prices vary according to locale, but I paid $40 for an 8 lb. bag of dragon stone at Petco. It worked out, because it was for a 10 gallon and a 2.5 gallon. Mainly, I got it because I didn't want to pay shipping for such a heavy item, but there are vendors who ship free on Amazon and charge a lot less. There's also a buy/sell/swap group on Reddit, and sometimes you'll find good buys on stone (and everything else) there, since it's mostly other hobbyists, and not people who depend on sales for their primary income.
Thanks for sharing. Took advantage of the Lowe's haul last year (wink wink) Pish, a bucket, summer time set up a kiddie pool fill with water and reinforce the neighbor's notion that you are strange as you sit outside scrubbing rocks!!
Dearest Joanna 😇 It amazes me how you and Jason always seem to be right on time for my next aquatic endeavor.. 4 days ago I just ordered my first dragonstone from PetSmart and I'm so excited!!!!!!!! I was tossing back and forth about the two types of stones and I said well because dragonstone is more porous it'll be a good opportunity for me to learn with and possibly make a mistake directly in a bucket as far as cleaning them goes. In a way thinking that if I have seiryu stone it'll be easier for me to work with with my next venture.(My whole family is so excited and they want to see what I do!)🌟☺️😁🧐💖 The other deciding factor was between the two stones the color.I love the warm tone of the dragonstone and should coordinate with my first aquascaping project. I do have one quick question And I hope it's not a stupid one. with your largest fish..to ensure that the tank doesn't break at the bottom Do you ever put any kind of a Mat or extra sand as a buffer at the bottom of the Heaviest stones so they don't have direct contact with the glass? I've watched my cichlids throw their sand around and I don't know what strength they really have but I know my Large tex cichlid ,that dude Acts like a bulldozer 😁
Hi! Not a dumb question, no dumb questions. That’s actually a great question. We have never placed anything under any of the rocks but you could place gravel in filter bags and line the bottom that way or even egg crates. ☺️
@@thesmallscape You are An angel Joanna . 😇 I hope that wouldn't be a dumb question.those are great suggestions for cushioning my new dragon stones 😇 🥰🤗 I will definitely try all of those methods. I have several tanks I want to try to aquascape with my new stones but the one I am the most concerned about was the 125 with my big fish. Going from a 5 gallon betta tank to a 125 with my rescue cichlids, There's been so much to think about and learn. I want to keep them mentally and physically happy as possible and now I feel like I'm ready to start attempting to aquascape(They are an active bunch Always on the move🚀😎 .My 7 blood parrots are hilarious !The way some of them gently pick up sand , take it halfway across a 125 gallon tank then blow out of those tiny pursed mouths 😀 They make me laugh non-stop with their mountain building😁 My fire mouth is still a juvenile He's small.However, my 3 tex cichlids ,especially the biggest one ? Yikes! She looks like she could do rearranging damage (like bull in a china shop 🙈💥☺️🤣)
I prefer dragon stone because cost wise it would be more advantageous because they are less dense and more porous compared to seiryu stone. So in essence, I can get bigger volume of the same weight and price, giving me more parts to play around with. But yeah, as stated in the video, the trade-off is that you don't get to have clear, blue water :(
Hey....what about pink granite? I ordered some and it was supposed to be here today, but it's delayed. It's going in the same tank that you, Joanna, gave me the great advice on how deep to plant my red crypt. It's been over 2 weeks and there's barely any melt. But yeah have you ever used pink granite? It's not pink pink...like pink 💗....not that color...lol
Love on the ROCKS!…ain’t no surprise, seiryu and dragon don’t tell me no lies🙂👍🏻💯⭐️ Awesome Joanna! So far I’ve only used dragon stone thanks to you and Jason with the lowes sale a yr ago! Got a 44lb box devilvered for like 50 bucks.I’m gonna superglue some Java moss on a piece today, also I give credit to you for this as well⭐️ Awesome awesome awesome! Thanks as always-jeff
I prefer Seiryu stone, for no other reason than the colour. I prefer cooler tones and it reminds me more of the outdoors here at home with our mountains.
I'm gonna do a 10 gallon dragon stone moss, anubias water fall scape. It's gonna house a betta! Inspired by you and serpa designs !!!it will be my first attempt at a waterfall
I usually get rocks in the "wild" lol. When I moved to a new house (1870) I decided to test all my rocks even some that had been in my tanks for awhile. I used the nitrate liquid and most didn't bubble. However I believe the seiryu did so I put it in my garden. It's under snow so I am not 100% sure. I think it's a good idea to check your rocks for peace of mine. I have high kh around 300 and high pH so don't know if the seiryu would have been a problem. Can you check with the professor on this? Thanks for your excellent videos.
I just got a piece of dragon stone was almost impossible to clean it haha I think in my white sand tank mountain stone is my favorite but that could change after my river tank
Petsmart had this box of dragon stone on clearance for at least a couple months now. Was tucked away in a really obscure corner. I finally picked it up and it ended up being 1$ a pound.
Seriyu stone has not been exported for years due to Japan prohibiting it. The reason people call it Ying stone is because that is what it is and it comes from the central Guangdong province in China.
I have dragon stones in 2 of my tanks. I really like the way they look. My local fish store sells them. I would like to try a planted take with these stones in my 5 gallon Betta tank. What plants would you recommend? I've never had a planted tank before.
@@thesmallscape If I can find a couple pieces thar speak to me, yes. I have something like $150 worth of the Dragon Stone (two lg pieces) in my 150H and a couple pieces of the seiryu in my 29g. I definitely like the looks of the seiryu better.
Hi Bill - yay! and welcome! Here is a link of the overview video, there are actually 4 I set up side by side ☺️ ua-cam.com/video/lueI6vK4lYs/v-deo.html
Hey u guys should do an aquascaping on a budget video!! I have 16 tanks as a hobbiest and just can't invest a few hundred dollars into aquascaping stuff
I love the look of Seiryu and used them for 2 years. But with the hard water in my area, these rocks leached something that killed my plants. When I removed them, plants lived and flourished. Do your research all
Joanne I have two questions. Do you gravel vac a planted tank? And I bought two plants from Petsmart and just the tips are brown (Anubias Congensis and Java Fern). Should I snip off the brown parts?
Great video Joanna! Believe it or not I’ve never used either. I like features of both rocks, so how to choose?! I love rocks! 🥰 I prob will be deciding and purchasing very soon because I just found a small crack in my 10gal. 😩 Time to set up a new tank and a new scape. Bad timing though because my mystery snails born back in Aug just laid 2 new clutches in there! 🐌 ...impressive your son takes Japanese! ...do your videos usually happen on Wed?? I kept second-guessing myself and I had to check multiple times what day it was today. 🤪🙃😆 I work M,W,F, and I had to make sure I wasn’t supposed to show up for work! Ha! 😆 Midlife brain! 🙃
Sorry to hear about the crack in your tank. Oh well, new scape!! 🤭😊 and um SOMEbody scheduled the release in the wrong day. I won’t mention Jason’s name though. 😂
Love them both but just used Seriou stone with black substrate? Perfect contrast. Good luck breaking off a bunch of small pieces! It's so hard! There are turquoise areas showing up on the rock, now. Hope it isn't copper. Doesn't look like algae. I'm stumped? Any ideas?
@@thesmallscape My favorite color too. This tank is on an end table in the living room and is viewed from both sides, and that beautiful color is visible from where I sit, only a few feet away. Perfect! I’m glad toxicity didn’t spring to your mind when I mentioned it.😊
I've been wanting to add these stones to my 29 gallon, but I'm almost maxed on the weight limit for my floor. Is there anything lighter aside from lava rocks I can use?
Seiryu stone is inconsistent. I will always buy it if I am hand picking it. Some is ugly though so if I am buying sight unseen, I get dragon stone. It is always the same so you know what you will get.
I set up a 10 gallon tank and used three beautiful mountain stone which I believe is the same or similar to Seiryu stone. My well water PH is 6.8. The PH in the tank kept going up and reached 8.4. As much as I loved them and they were absolutely beautiful, I decided to remove them. I put in a very large smooth rock similar to a river rock and now my pH is much lower again and more stable. Has anyone else had this issue?
@@thesmallscape you're welcome I enjoy your channel very much. Both of them. I sent a message to your other channel as well I hope I fixed my patreon membership with you guys. My bank account was compromised and I had to get a new one. You guys are 1 of only 3 aquarium/fish channels I trust for accurate information.
As for pronunciation, you were close with the English approximation so I would stick to that. 青龍 (せいりゅう) means blue dragon. If you want to get technical and sound like a Japanese pronunciation nerd. It’s 4 mora long (like syllables in Japanese) long. Se i ryu u. So the last sound is effectively longer. The Ryu sound is notoriously difficult for native English speakers to say and is half way between an l and r sound in English. The pitch rises on the first mora and then is flat. All of this is purely academic. I just wanted to say it as I have been studying Japanese for many years and trying to improve my pronunciation, so thought it would be interesting
Choosing the stone that fits your tank is, in my opinion, essentially about the contrast of color you are looking for. In my opinion, Dragon stone generate an amazing contrast of colors with dark black sand, green plants, and fish such as a black/blue/red betta (when swimming in front of the stone, its amazing how they look). The "Seiryu" is 2 syllabus. Seiryu stones are great with white sand, and green plants/moss on top, and yellow/white/orange/red fishes :)
Thank you Joanna 😇This is perfect timing ,I wanted to share with everyone!
Currently at PetSmart they have buy one get one half off for the aquatic decorations and stones are part of that sale. If you buy the 25 lb box It may seem like a lot but when you do the math:
50.99 For 25 lb of stones
The next box is split in half at cost for 25.50
So for 50 lb of stones you're spending $76 (+ tax of course) which translates to a tiny bit over 1. 50 a pound. That's a lot better than any aquatic store I've ever gone into and seen whatever they're charging. There's no way I could have gotten any stones yet if I hadn't taken advantage of this sale. So if they're available in your area try looking it up. And if you don't want to do two boxes of stones that's okay They also allow the sale for other decorations.
Thanks oinkmastersupreme! Good to know!
Oh wow, was this nice of you to share!! I didn’t get to most comments yesterday 😕. Thank you so much!!!! ☺️
Tip: Extra discount at Petsmart might be possible depending on how your local store treats open box items. I picked up a 25lb box a couple weeks ago and paid roughly $40 (reg price here is $55). They only had 4 boxes and they were all already opened. I just grabbed the box that was the most full and asked if I could use their scale to confirm the weight. The manager said they don't do that there but offered my 25% off since it was an open box item. I weighed it when I got home, 31lbs, someone must have mixed the boxes together. Called them back about returning 6bs and was told not to worry about it. I would never tell anyone to open boxes themselves but if you come across an open box and it still seems pretty full it's worth asking to confirm the weight, you might be offered an additional discount.
Side note- I was so happy about the discount I ended up spending an extra 50 bucks in plants so I guess they still got me in the end. 🙂
They're both beautiful in the aquarium. I love the texture of dragon stone, but I prefer the color of Seiryu stone. So, I'm more likely to use Seiryu.
I'd love to have more of a geologically based understanding of aquascaping rocks. Like what minerals, how it is formed or deposited, etc.
There are some good videos on UA-cam that can help you figure geology out. It is a very interesting subject.
That makes two of us!! ☺️
Good stuff Crystal thanks for sharing 🙏♥️
They are both beautiful types of stones, and I love how you use them in your scapes. I'm on a budget though and prefer to use what I can find locally, especially around local streams and rivers. I really do find some neat textures and sizes to use. Maybe one of these days I will break down and get some of the designer stones, as like I said, they are beautiful. Love your content!!
Michael you should be able to talk to a government agency I can't think of the American Name, but I do the same. There is a rock you can find in the right places Calle Mutton Stone. It is white and smooth and very dense. Not sure where you live but you probably know yourself, there is cool stuff out there.
In one of my tanks the seiyu stone keeps the TDS around 120. I use this to my advantage with my caradina shrimp. My TDS out of tap is 30-40 well water. Greatvideo. 👍
I just used dragon stone for the first time in my newest 10 gallon scape. It makes a great retaining wall for a raised substrate! :)
Great video today! I have not tried these stones yet and was glad to get some information about them!
Thanks for the clarification and the tips!! Especially on the pronunciation of the Seiryu Stone.
The stone work in a Aquascape is a work of art in itself!!
I literally catch myself thinking about when I get more stones for hardscape what I want to create!! Until then I sure do enjoy watching how you keep growing and scapes you are creating!!
I absolutely love the dragonstone. I have only had one little piece and it did deteriorate a very tiny little bit and made me a little more apprehensive about using it only! But when it comes down to creating some of the most beautiful layouts for a scape there's nothing like it 😍
It's definitely on my someday list 😂
Thank you for sharing Joanna and I hope you're having a wonderful day!!
I like the seiryu stone with darker driftwood and plants, and the dragon stone with lighter plants and driftwood. Both of them look good in a tank.
👍❤👍
Oh yes. Aptly said. ☺️
Definitely love them both. Dragon stone we've used the most in our tanks (working on a seiryu stone mountain in the 125gal) because of how you can customize the size and shape. It is a pain to clean, but the results after (we found that toothpicks and a hose do wonders) are stunning sometimes with all the holes and crevices. Awesome video! Thanks Joanna!
I’m in a habit of only using Dragon stone so I decided to go out on a limb and order some Seiryu stone for my latest scape. I was worried about it effecting my Ph but I also have very hard water so that information made me feel better! Thanks Jo ❤️
Ok great. You’ll have to let me know how it works out. Hope you like the seiryu- it is quite beautiful ☺️
Love them both. I think dragon stone has more texture but a total drag to wash. I spent almost an hour washing my stones using a bottle brush, wire brush and tooth brush...every crevice had clay in it..but once clean..man is it a beautiful stone
Yup. 😂I’m laughing with you not at you. Been there done that.
Thank you for the info! I’ve been afraid to try these rocks because of the possibility of a negative change to my water parameters. I will definitely give these a try. I just started the hobby in July and am loving it! I’m trying really hard to not have multiple tank syndrome😂
Always things to consider 👍
Glad you found this wonderful hobby and channel!! MTS is definitely a side effect 😂💪😛🌿🐟🌿💚
@@marypaigeflynn4512 yes! I started with a 20, then bought a 40 for my plants……yeah that’s it 😂 then ‘rescued’ two bettas from a friend and then you have to have a hospital tank as well….so now I have three 5g tanks. I want a 40 long next for some African dwarf frogs. I will wait till fall. I think 😂
Hi Joanna! As usual you take a simple topic and make it interesting and fun to listen to. I am a craptacular aquascaper! I tend to overuse plants and underused rocks and wood. So I've been wandering about different shops and I have been looking for more inspiration. This is your fault!!! 🤣🤣
So I found a shop that sells dwarf hair grass by the square foot, it is stored in a large tank under water! Petland carries some amazing wood! There are umpteen dozen plant people that sell good plants. I'm enjoying this process, my wife recently got into aquariums with me and she's telling me to go buy what I need, so Overcome temptation by fulfilling it!
One other thing. You and Jason made me very jealous because you work together. I remember several years ago, he put a video out showing Saturday Tank day with the kids all doing tank cleanups.
This was such a good thing to watch. I grew up working shoulder to shoulder with my Dad on the farm. It wasn't until years later that I realized how important this was. Any time spent with parents usually ends up to be so beneficial and that video he did still makes me smile today.
I’m so glad to hear you still remember that video. I hope one day the boys will remember those days somewhat fondly. Just enjoy looking at scapes you like and try to figure out why.
I used both in one of my tanks and it turned out amazing
Thanks Joanna. I have dragon stone and I'm planning on using it for my reshape on my 20 gal. Now I know to really clean in those crevices.
Ooh! Have fun! (Even the scrubbing part lol) ☺️
Interesting video. Never used either stone, but just bought dragon stone for a future 3ft cube aquarium so looking forward to trying my aquascaping skills with it
Thanks for the comparison video. We've never tried either type.
The comparison format with graphs is a big plus for some of us visual learners.
Looking forward to the next video,
Jim
PS: Have you ever tried dolomite? It is one of my favorites as it aids in a high pH for Multi.s, and it has rounded edges that are less likely to injure a fish.
Thank you for all these details! After watching I knew which one was right for my 10 gal with black substrate..Seiryu stone won and it’s striking in my tank and I can’t wait to buy a couple lg pieces for my not Nano tank thanks Joanna
i may be not be an expert scaper but dragon stone is my fav. looks so good
It’s a sweeeeet rock! ☺️
Very helpful, Joanna. Just removed what I thought was limestone from my mbuna tank and the pH rebounded from 8.0 to the St. Louis tap water's 8.4. Excellent tip too from ShelbyRae Lane.
I've used seiryu stone more than dragon stone. I may try dragon stone in my next planted tank because of the colour variation. And maybe do dragon with red plants😊 great video, thank you Joanna
Oh yes that would be beautiful! Very striking ☺️
I love the look of Seiryu stone, I wish it didn't mess up the pH of a tank. If it weren't for the negative effects on water parameters I would have some of these in my tank :(
I have both, purchased dragon stone at Petco. I used flat head screwdriver and hammer to get the perfect break. 🤣 I didn't soak and just rinsed, cloudy!! Lol
Put in about 3 weeks of thought to choose and another 3 weeks of looking to find the seiryu I wanted... No regrets, I love my rocks
I love it. I’m sure it was worth it. 😌
So happy I loaded up on dragon stone at Lowes when they sold dragon stone for 1 dollar a pound. They called it yellow rocks. :)
Great review on the 2 rocks. I like the Dragon stone. Although I have to check my local aquarium shop for the Seiryu stone. The rocks in your tanks really look great.
Thank you, Tom! ☺️
she would be a good teacher!😃
I like the look of Seiryu/Mountain Stone but it seems to show algae much easier than Dragonstone. I have a tank up for about six months now and the Dragonstone has never been cleaned. There are a few spots of green algae but barely noticeable. The Seiryu needed constant scrubbing during the setup process as it would show the brown diatoms every couple of days. I ended up just breaking down the tank to start over as the algae got worse and other algae started showing up. Could have been just an individual tank issue, but from that experience I think the lighter colors of the Seiryu make it show algae much more easily.
I like the look of both, (maybe the dragon rock a little more) but ive actually just ordered 5KG of each type to decide on, i am however leaning towards the Seiryu because i also want some type of wood in my tank to sit along side of the rock, like driftwood etc, problem is, i think because the dragon rock is brown in colour it will be to much, if i use the Seiryu i will have a mix of grey/brown with a soil substrate and plants, choices choices! 😄
Home Depot and Lowes both have these stones for about half of what you would pay in a pet shop. They're available online in 44lb boxes that will be shipped to you for free.
Seiryu means “azure dragon” in Japanese. It’s actually a Chinese constellation symbol (called “qinglong” in Chinese) and also a deity (very normal because many parts of Japanese culture, like Go, koi fish, the fox spirit, and dried persimmons, to name a few, actually originated in China). It’s probably why some people refer to it as dragon stone. It’s pronounced a little bit more like how your son pronounced it, but in Japanese they don’t really pronounce r’s the way we do, it’s more similar to an “l” sound so it’s sort of like “sei-lewyu”, so kinda in-between how your son pronounced it and how you pronounce it. Anyway cool video!
Oh my gosh, that’s so helpful. Thank you for explaining it so well. ☺️
I love the Seiryu stone. It has the rugged mountain side look.
Hello! I have 55 gal set up with Seiryu with many pieces having a nice white line running through. I really love the look. I have yet to try the dragon stone. Thank You for your video. :-)
It’s great when you get pieces that coordinate nicely with their calcite lines too. ☺️
Maybe prices vary according to locale, but I paid $40 for an 8 lb. bag of dragon stone at Petco. It worked out, because it was for a 10 gallon and a 2.5 gallon. Mainly, I got it because I didn't want to pay shipping for such a heavy item, but there are vendors who ship free on Amazon and charge a lot less. There's also a buy/sell/swap group on Reddit, and sometimes you'll find good buys on stone (and everything else) there, since it's mostly other hobbyists, and not people who depend on sales for their primary income.
Thanks for sharing. Took advantage of the Lowe's haul last year (wink wink) Pish, a bucket, summer time set up a kiddie pool fill with water and reinforce the neighbor's notion that you are strange as you sit outside scrubbing rocks!!
Ahaha!!! They’re like “she’s at it again!She is so tidy!” 😆
Both are beautiful. Have both in our aquariums.
Love all of your info and tips. Thank you so much!!
Thank YOU for watching!
I have never used either in my tank. I will have to try it sometime.
🙂
Dearest Joanna 😇
It amazes me how you and Jason always seem to be right on time for my next aquatic endeavor.. 4 days ago I just ordered my first dragonstone from PetSmart and I'm so excited!!!!!!!!
I was tossing back and forth about the two types of stones and I said well because dragonstone is more porous it'll be a good opportunity for me to learn with and possibly make a mistake directly in a bucket as far as cleaning them goes. In a way thinking that if I have seiryu stone it'll be easier for me to work with with my next venture.(My whole family is so excited and they want to see what I do!)🌟☺️😁🧐💖
The other deciding factor was between the two stones the color.I love the warm tone of the dragonstone and should coordinate with my first aquascaping project.
I do have one quick question And I hope it's not a stupid one. with your largest fish..to ensure that the tank doesn't break at the bottom Do you ever put any kind of a Mat or extra sand as a buffer at the bottom of the Heaviest stones so they don't have direct contact with the glass? I've watched my cichlids throw their sand around and I don't know what strength they really have but I know my Large tex cichlid ,that dude Acts like a bulldozer 😁
Hi! Not a dumb question, no dumb questions. That’s actually a great question. We have never placed anything under any of the rocks but you could place gravel in filter bags and line the bottom that way or even egg crates. ☺️
@@thesmallscape You are An angel Joanna . 😇 I hope that wouldn't be a dumb question.those are great suggestions for cushioning my new dragon stones 😇 🥰🤗 I will definitely try all of those methods. I have several tanks I want to try to aquascape with my new stones but the one I am the most concerned about was the 125 with my big fish.
Going from a 5 gallon betta tank to a 125 with my rescue cichlids, There's been so much to think about and learn. I want to keep them mentally and physically happy as possible and now I feel like I'm ready to start attempting to aquascape(They are an active bunch Always on the move🚀😎
.My 7 blood parrots are hilarious !The way some of them gently pick up sand , take it halfway across a 125 gallon tank then blow out of those tiny pursed mouths 😀 They make me laugh non-stop with their mountain building😁 My fire mouth is still a juvenile He's small.However, my 3 tex cichlids ,especially the biggest one ? Yikes! She looks like she could do rearranging damage (like bull in a china shop 🙈💥☺️🤣)
Have only used Seiryu stone but like the patterns through it.
Seiryu stone looks amazing. Going to have to give it a try 👌
It is quite amazing, yes. Even just one piece sitting in a bookcase. ☺️
- signed, lifelong rock collector
I prefer sponge boulders. Lava rock full of quartz geodes and crystal formation.
I prefer dragon stone because cost wise it would be more advantageous because they are less dense and more porous compared to seiryu stone.
So in essence, I can get bigger volume of the same weight and price, giving me more parts to play around with.
But yeah, as stated in the video, the trade-off is that you don't get to have clear, blue water :(
I spent almost 7 hours cleaning my ohko stone last week. Those clay pockets are no joke 😂
Love them both but I learned the hard way about the dragon stone and cleaning it well. I rinsed it but not enough 😳
Yup. That’s the worst. ☺️
Dragon Stones!! Learners' paradise 😉
Like the comparison by parameter / characteristic. Thanks
Yay!! ☺️
Hi that Betta Tank @5:15 do you have a video link?
Praise God! Your creations are wonderfully & fearfully made!
Hey....what about pink granite? I ordered some and it was supposed to be here today, but it's delayed. It's going in the same tank that you, Joanna, gave me the great advice on how deep to plant my red crypt. It's been over 2 weeks and there's barely any melt. But yeah have you ever used pink granite? It's not pink pink...like pink 💗....not that color...lol
Love on the ROCKS!…ain’t no surprise, seiryu and dragon don’t tell me no lies🙂👍🏻💯⭐️ Awesome Joanna! So far I’ve only used dragon stone thanks to you and Jason with the lowes sale a yr ago! Got a 44lb box devilvered for like 50 bucks.I’m gonna superglue some Java moss on a piece today, also I give credit to you for this as well⭐️ Awesome awesome awesome! Thanks as always-jeff
😂😂 so glad you scored some rocks from that! Fun with some moss, oh ya!
I've not tried them but I do have lace rock in my 14gal. I was thinking I'd get some for my rescape nano
😊 I like the dragon stone.
I prefer Seiryu stone, for no other reason than the colour. I prefer cooler tones and it reminds me more of the outdoors here at home with our mountains.
Great video. Thanks for sharing.
☺️!
I've bought some dragon stone and i'm picking it up tomorrow morning, this has given so many ideas to change my 120ltr tank. Thank you
So happy to hear it. Have fun!!
I'm gonna do a 10 gallon dragon stone moss, anubias water fall scape. It's gonna house a betta! Inspired by you and serpa designs !!!it will be my first attempt at a waterfall
Wow! Have fun! Honored to inspire you in any way at all. ☺️🌿
I usually get rocks in the "wild" lol. When I moved to a new house (1870) I decided to test all my rocks even some that had been in my tanks for awhile. I used the nitrate liquid and most didn't bubble. However I believe the seiryu did so I put it in my garden. It's under snow so I am not 100% sure. I think it's a good idea to check your rocks for peace of mine. I have high kh around 300 and high pH so don't know if the seiryu would have been a problem. Can you check with the professor on this? Thanks for your excellent videos.
LOVE THE DRAGON STONE.
I love the look of dragon stone however it is a bit fragile. I haven't tried the other yet but will soon 😃
That it is. ☺️
I just got a piece of dragon stone was almost impossible to clean it haha I think in my white sand tank mountain stone is my favorite but that could change after my river tank
Ooh nice - oh and a river tank. Jealous. I want to set one up too but ...need to wait for room. 🤔
Petsmart had this box of dragon stone on clearance for at least a couple months now. Was tucked away in a really obscure corner. I finally picked it up and it ended up being 1$ a pound.
Woohoo!!! What a score!
Got my first 2 pcs of black seiryu just now
Oooooohhhhhh!!! 🥳
Any tips on having loaches with dragon stone would that be safe..?
Seriyu stone has not been exported for years due to Japan prohibiting it. The reason people call it Ying stone is because that is what it is and it comes from the central Guangdong province in China.
No kidding! Is that why? Thank you for the info!
Texas Holy rock is my favorite
Lots of character with striking color. ☺️
@@thesmallscape I really like that the holes are large enough to let fish swim through also no 2 rocks are the same
I have dragon stones in 2 of my tanks. I really like the way they look. My local fish store sells them. I would like to try a planted take with these stones in my 5 gallon Betta tank. What plants would you recommend? I've never had a planted tank before.
Hi have a great week!!!
You too Nanette! ☺️
I want to keep zebra danios. Does seiryu stone harden the water. Currently my water ph is around 7
I'm on team Seiryu!!!
Noted. ...so, uh, is that what you’re using in the 14g down the line? 🤔
@@thesmallscape If I can find a couple pieces thar speak to me, yes. I have something like $150 worth of the Dragon Stone (two lg pieces) in my 150H and a couple pieces of the seiryu in my 29g. I definitely like the looks of the seiryu better.
Hey someone told that stone increased ph..with on that disturbing wster ph? Because i want to pu cardinal shrimp
New to your channel , great video. Any chance of a close up on that tank set up behind you ?
Hi Bill - yay! and welcome! Here is a link of the overview video, there are actually 4 I set up side by side ☺️ ua-cam.com/video/lueI6vK4lYs/v-deo.html
I currently have seiryu stone in one tank and dragon stone in my shrimp tank. The 3rd tank has local granite.
Nice variety 🙂
does the dragon stone with sharp edges hurt the fishes?
Hey u guys should do an aquascaping on a budget video!! I have 16 tanks as a hobbiest and just can't invest a few hundred dollars into aquascaping stuff
That would be a fun challenge actually! I like it. 🌿🙌🌿
You guys are awesome just got a 15 gallon column thanks for that video aswell! Proving to be a challenging scape
My wonderful wife just so happened to find 11 lbs of seiryu stone at a resale shop for $7!! Stealllll
Oh WOW! 🙌🙌🙌
I love the look of Seiryu and used them for 2 years.
But with the hard water in my area, these rocks leached something that killed my plants. When I removed them, plants lived and flourished.
Do your research all
What is the name of the plant the dark green moss looking one
@1:51
Joanne I have two questions. Do you gravel vac a planted tank? And I bought two plants from Petsmart and just the tips are brown (Anubias Congensis and Java Fern). Should I snip off the brown parts?
I use both in my tanks but, I do like seiryu stone more.
I've never soaked my dragon stone and I've never had a cloudy tank as a result of not soaking it.
I didn’t know Sara Palin liked to aquascape
@@Spiceisnice13 🫢
I've used dragon stone but avoid seiryu as I was told it can mess with water hardness.
Great video Joanna! Believe it or not I’ve never used either. I like features of both rocks, so how to choose?! I love rocks! 🥰 I prob will be deciding and purchasing very soon because I just found a small crack in my 10gal. 😩 Time to set up a new tank and a new scape. Bad timing though because my mystery snails born back in Aug just laid 2 new clutches in there! 🐌
...impressive your son takes Japanese!
...do your videos usually happen on Wed?? I kept second-guessing myself and I had to check multiple times what day it was today. 🤪🙃😆 I work M,W,F, and I had to make sure I wasn’t supposed to show up for work! Ha! 😆 Midlife brain! 🙃
Sorry to hear about the crack in your tank. Oh well, new scape!! 🤭😊 and um SOMEbody scheduled the release in the wrong day. I won’t mention Jason’s name though. 😂
@@thesmallscape Oh!!! Hahaha 😂
Good Morning.
Love them both but just used Seriou stone with black substrate? Perfect contrast. Good luck breaking off a bunch of small pieces! It's so hard! There are turquoise areas showing up on the rock, now. Hope it isn't copper. Doesn't look like algae. I'm stumped? Any ideas?
Yes. Perfect contrast I agree. Ooh - turquoise - wow! I’d be so excited, I probably would display out of the tank. My favorite color. ☺️💙💚
@@thesmallscape My favorite color too. This tank is on an end table in the living room and is viewed from both sides, and that beautiful color is visible from where I sit, only a few feet away. Perfect! I’m glad toxicity didn’t spring to your mind when I mentioned it.😊
I've been wanting to add these stones to my 29 gallon, but I'm almost maxed on the weight limit for my floor. Is there anything lighter aside from lava rocks I can use?
Hi Joanna. I have a question. Do you have any thoughts about Seiryu Stone Rock Acid Washed? Good thought? Bad thoughts? Thanks, a billion.
Hi Rich, I’ve seen there are videos on that but have never researched it myself...perhaps I will put that on the list..I’m curious now.
Seiryu stone is inconsistent. I will always buy it if I am hand picking it. Some is ugly though so if I am buying sight unseen, I get dragon stone. It is always the same so you know what you will get.
I set up a 10 gallon tank and used three beautiful mountain stone which I believe is the same or similar to Seiryu stone. My well water PH is 6.8. The PH in the tank kept going up and reached 8.4. As much as I loved them and they were absolutely beautiful, I decided to remove them. I put in a very large smooth rock similar to a river rock and now my pH is much lower again and more stable. Has anyone else had this issue?
I’ve heard others with the same issue. That’s unfortunate.
Blue Fin Stone? Is that shale??
@thesmallscape can I know what the sucker fish is at 0:43 of the video?
super red bristlenose pleco
@@apss5736 Ty!
What happens if you boil the rocks?
Some rocks will explode 🫢
@@thesmallscape well….now I know!Thank you.✌️😊
What about holey rock
That’s a great rock too. ☺️
What's bad about boiling rocks?
Hi! Some can explode.
@@thesmallscape 🤯😂
I go for walks on gravel roads and look for something I like.
🙌
Thank you for noticing and responding to my question? Do u have a patreon account?
My pleasure, Elizabeth. Nope, I do not ..perhaps someday or even a membership option 🤷🏻♀️☺️ - sweet of you to ask.
@@thesmallscape you're welcome I enjoy your channel very much. Both of them. I sent a message to your other channel as well I hope I fixed my patreon membership with you guys. My bank account was compromised and I had to get a new one. You guys are 1 of only 3 aquarium/fish channels I trust for accurate information.
@@elizabethwagner2190 😌!
As for pronunciation, you were close with the English approximation so I would stick to that. 青龍 (せいりゅう) means blue dragon.
If you want to get technical and sound like a Japanese pronunciation nerd. It’s 4 mora long (like syllables in Japanese) long. Se i ryu u. So the last sound is effectively longer. The Ryu sound is notoriously difficult for native English speakers to say and is half way between an l and r sound in English. The pitch rises on the first mora and then is flat.
All of this is purely academic. I just wanted to say it as I have been studying Japanese for many years and trying to improve my pronunciation, so thought it would be interesting
Thank you so much, Joseph. It IS interesting, such a lovely language and you took the time to share this (and very kindly too). Many thanks!
have you ever heard of zikler rock
Nope! But I will investigate! Ty! ☺️