Gravel problem

[Oople]

Hi all,

My black gravel is turning white. I got it around 2 years ago from Petco and started out all black. A few times when topping off water or picking out algae, I’ve picked out a piece of gravel that was showing white and figured I just didn’t notice it before. But now I’m noticing a lot of them are like that gravel. Has this happened to anyone else? Is this just what gravel does or is it a sign that something else is going on?

[Vorteil]

Looks like it's painted gravel and the paint is starting to chip off or wear away. I've always used crushed coral or lava.

[Varanus]

Yup, I got similar or even the same kind of gravel for one of my freshwater tanks to make a sand/gravel mix for the substrate, and much of the surface gravel has turned white over the years.

[Oople]

Thanks for the confirmation. I think I’ll check Petco for some natural black substrate.