Aragocrete Rocks
- Thread starter robharold
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74nautique
New member
I found how to make them at www.garf.org I've made a batch of rocks and have them curring in a bucket of water now but they don't look that great, maybe I need to practice. I couldn't find the same cement they used either (at Lowes or Home Depot) and had to increase the amount of cement for the rock to stay together, I might try a diffrent cement.
robharold aragocrete rocks can look the same or better than any LR bought. The nice thing is you can make to specification (such as if you need a cave that is XxYxZ you can make it. The downside is the curing time which can be weeks to months depending on the type of portland cement you used.
Just do a googles earch on aragocrete rocks. garf.com is a good resource and there has been plenty of threads that have covered this just do the following
copy and paste the following "site:reefcentral.com aragocrete" (without quotes) to google.com and plenty of information will pop up.
74nautique: get the correct portland cement and don't measure exactly with water. The water should be added as needed. And practice makes perfect ...
Just do a googles earch on aragocrete rocks. garf.com is a good resource and there has been plenty of threads that have covered this just do the following
copy and paste the following "site:reefcentral.com aragocrete" (without quotes) to google.com and plenty of information will pop up.
74nautique: get the correct portland cement and don't measure exactly with water. The water should be added as needed. And practice makes perfect ...
74nautique
New member
Thanks, I can't get the Portland here all they have is Quickcrete (it being a Georga company).
coyoteseven
New member
74nautique... you may want to look again at the bags. Quickrete is just a brand name made by the Bonsal company (which BTW, is also the most widely known brand name in the US for concrete products... go figure
). Portland cement is the most often used generic name for the grey or white powder only that is usually sold in 94# bags. On the bag, it will say portland cement (usually type I or type II) and won't have any sand and/or rock in the mix.
Quickrete also makes many types of premixed conrete items such as mortar mix, concrete mix (portland/sand/stone), sand mix (portland/sand), stucco mix, etc.
Robharold (and anybody else that may be interested), here is an old thread that may help out:
How Do I Make It
I made agrocrete rocks using Portland type III, crushed coral and crushed oyster shell. Makes very pourus rocks. even starfish take residence. here's my recipe using a 20 oz solo plastic cup:
1 cup Portland Type III cement
1 cup rinsed crushed oyster shells
1 cup rinsed crushed coral
the reason I mentioned rinsed is that CC and COS have a lot of "dust" in them which makes mixture looser binding.
add water until it is thick and moldable. then fill a bucket with crushed coral and experiment with shapes.
I made about 100lbs or rock in a few weeks. then soaked it in vinegar to lower PH, then in cold tap water for a month, then in saltwater for a month, then rinsed and scrubbed and set out to dry in the sun.
hope this helps.
1 cup Portland Type III cement
1 cup rinsed crushed oyster shells
1 cup rinsed crushed coral
the reason I mentioned rinsed is that CC and COS have a lot of "dust" in them which makes mixture looser binding.
add water until it is thick and moldable. then fill a bucket with crushed coral and experiment with shapes.
I made about 100lbs or rock in a few weeks. then soaked it in vinegar to lower PH, then in cold tap water for a month, then in saltwater for a month, then rinsed and scrubbed and set out to dry in the sun.
hope this helps.
RobinsonFam1
New member
i made some rocks using just a portland cement and sand with some sea shells from the beach.
to get it to cure quickly put the rocks in a large rubbermaid tub full of water with about 1/2 way full of rock and packed in. put powerheads and pumps in there with mucho aeration. i cured about 100# in 2-3 weeks. with the aeration and lots of flow i had to change the water about every 2-3 days. you will see the crust form on the water and edges of the tub.
lastly i took the rocks out, scrubbed them with a stainless brush to remove all the loose stuff and the one more week in the tub.
to get it to cure quickly put the rocks in a large rubbermaid tub full of water with about 1/2 way full of rock and packed in. put powerheads and pumps in there with mucho aeration. i cured about 100# in 2-3 weeks. with the aeration and lots of flow i had to change the water about every 2-3 days. you will see the crust form on the water and edges of the tub.
lastly i took the rocks out, scrubbed them with a stainless brush to remove all the loose stuff and the one more week in the tub.
sales weasel
New member
I also made Aragacrete rocks using Portland cement from Home Depot. I can't remember which "Type" (I, II or III) I got, but it is definitely available at HD. I also used Carib Sea aragonite. I'm going to make a few more using crushed coral. Also, if you use some plastic shavings like acrylic or PVC, you will get quicker coralline growth. You'll definitely need to let them cure for weeks or months in fresh water and you'll need to change it once a week. Once the pH drops, they're ready to go.
I have several corals glued to reef plugs made of aragacrete. They are small cone shaped plugs. If you really plan your aragacrete rock designs, you can make holes in them the same size as your aragacrete plugs. One easy way to cure the reef plugs is to place them in the supply tank of a toilet. They get rinsed with fresh water every time you flush.
I have several corals glued to reef plugs made of aragacrete. They are small cone shaped plugs. If you really plan your aragacrete rock designs, you can make holes in them the same size as your aragacrete plugs. One easy way to cure the reef plugs is to place them in the supply tank of a toilet. They get rinsed with fresh water every time you flush.
adam_not4u
Member
Is there any draw backs to using aragacrete that is going to try to raise your ph if it drops too low?
I can't think of any ill affects it might have but if you had 100lbs in your tank is there anything that can go wrong as a result of the rock.
I can't think of any ill affects it might have but if you had 100lbs in your tank is there anything that can go wrong as a result of the rock.
hckycoz
New member
rob i have made my own rocks and have them in my tank. Not a single problem, except with my girlfriend. They are VERY easy to make once you get the hang of it. My only problem with it is that i have chosen to do it in my basement and the girlfriend hates how much room it takes up. If you would like futer instructions let me know and will help out.
sales weasel
New member
You should definitely try it. I will give one more piece of advice: You definitely need to let them dry overnight covered with damp sand. This is very important or you'll have very brittle rocks. You use the sand bed as a mold and you can make tables, domes, caves, arches...etc.
