Custom In-Wall 150 Project
- Thread starter conda
- Start date
bheron
Active member
Hey Conda, I aquascaped in the middle of a Southdown Sandstorm and it came out pretty well! I find, if you come up with a general idea about what you want (spend time on this) you can pretty much fumble your way to something nice. For mine, I had a good idea of what I wanted, so this is what I did before putting them in the tank:
LAid out a tarp or something (it gets messy!)
Then I arranged all pieces one by one so that I could grab them quickly:
Might be overkill, but you get the point. I knew I wanted really large rocks onthe bottom to stabilize, and smaller ones to fill in the gaps. Once it was up I have yet to change it b/c it looked great when the sandstorm cleared.
Some people will drill holes and tie/attach rocks to things like PVC.
One last tip, use something for a buffer between your rocks and the glass bottom of your tank. Some people use eggcrate, but I wasnt happy with that. I cut off small pieces of PVC to use as little "stands".
Good luck!
LAid out a tarp or something (it gets messy!)
Then I arranged all pieces one by one so that I could grab them quickly:
Might be overkill, but you get the point. I knew I wanted really large rocks onthe bottom to stabilize, and smaller ones to fill in the gaps. Once it was up I have yet to change it b/c it looked great when the sandstorm cleared.
Some people will drill holes and tie/attach rocks to things like PVC.
One last tip, use something for a buffer between your rocks and the glass bottom of your tank. Some people use eggcrate, but I wasnt happy with that. I cut off small pieces of PVC to use as little "stands".
Good luck!
melev
Well-known member
When you arrange your rockwork, it should look natural and not man-made. It should not look like stacked brickwork, and you should try to avoid any straight lines. Caves, nooks & crannies, high spots and low spots.... all these things tend to look more natural. Ask your wife to help you, as they have a natural nack for this kind of thing.
melev
Well-known member
Think about it. When you are out in nature, you can immediately tell where man has been, as you'll see stuff that is stack up un-naturally, or aligned in a straight row, or made in a circle that nothing in nature would ever do...
Get your wife to join you in front of the tank, and let her tell you where each piece should go. You'll get great input and the nice thing is you can always adjust it if it doesn't look right to you.
Get your wife to join you in front of the tank, and let her tell you where each piece should go. You'll get great input and the nice thing is you can always adjust it if it doesn't look right to you.
JayS
New member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6790201#post6790201 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by asnatlas
I agree, she may not like the hobby but after this if she does help you she may like it a little more as she had input on the tank and once you get the fish and coral in there you can compliment her on a job well done as you could not have done it with out her help
I agree, my wife has gone from being indifferent to enjoying the hobby. Just got her involved a little bit.
conda
New member
Well, to tell you the truth, she is still mad at me for killing Chip--her Coral Beauty.
:uzi: :fish2:
I'm not convinced that it was me, I just think the YT drove him to suicide. When I finally found him half eaten by the crabs, she did not talk to me for two days. Maybe it was because I told her "It's only a damn fish!" But, c'mon, it is just a fish! :sad2:
So, I need to find another one once I get this aquascaping done. Then she will be happy.
BTW, my microbubbles went away and then came back after I started aquascaping and the return pump was turned off. I think bubbles are getting into the return when the Sea Swirl drains the 15 gallons from the display. I'm ordering a check valve to fix this once and for all. I know some hate check valves, but if it fails, I know my sump can handle the water.
:uzi: :fish2:
I'm not convinced that it was me, I just think the YT drove him to suicide. When I finally found him half eaten by the crabs, she did not talk to me for two days. Maybe it was because I told her "It's only a damn fish!" But, c'mon, it is just a fish! :sad2:
So, I need to find another one once I get this aquascaping done. Then she will be happy.
BTW, my microbubbles went away and then came back after I started aquascaping and the return pump was turned off. I think bubbles are getting into the return when the Sea Swirl drains the 15 gallons from the display. I'm ordering a check valve to fix this once and for all. I know some hate check valves, but if it fails, I know my sump can handle the water.
cerreta
Premium Member
Conda, don't be too quick to assume the bubbles are due to the setup. It may just be a result of changes in the surface tension of the water. You have been making lots of changes and adjusting things in the tank. Give your system a few days to adjust, and the bubbles are liekly to disappate on there own. I have made this mistake everytime I change the system plumbing design.
Where did you buy the OM? I was thinking about using an OM4 in my new 110 tall setup, but could not justify the cost. Is it really worth it?
Where did you buy the OM? I was thinking about using an OM4 in my new 110 tall setup, but could not justify the cost. Is it really worth it?
conda
New member
Your probably right. The bubbles seem to go away then come back whenever I change the rocks. I just finished my first aquascape attempt last night and the whole tank is dirty, you can barely see the rock. What I should have done is clean the rock before putting it in, but since it is a new tank I didn't bother. My CL seems to be kicking up all the dirt and not letting is settle, which is good, but takes a long time to clear since my skimmer is still not dialed in correctly.
The person who built my tank sold it to me with the CL package. I think it is worth it, like I said above, because it does not let the dirt settle, it keeps it in suspension and sends it to the sump.
In my 55, I just have a PH or two and all the bad stuff settles in the rocks causing hair algae. I'm not the type to spend hours on maintenance blowing stuff off the rockwork, so I spent the extra cash on the CL this time.
Once all the dirt clears, I'll try to take some pics of my initial aquascape attempt. I think I need to break some of the rocks I have left since there are two huge ones that just don't seem to fit. Also, I placed a couple of the small rocks in the fuge since they are too small to do anything with--it gives all those hundreds of pods a place to live anyway.
tigerarmy40
New member
I havnt read up on the last page, but did you get lights yet?
conda
New member
Here is my reply to someone that I posted on the last page:
"Thanks. I was planning on using the 60" Outer Orbit fixture, I like everything contained, but now I do not think that will work due to the metal cross braces. So, now I'm not sure what I am doing yet. Feel free to offer me some suggestions.
The only light the tank gets is the sunlight from the window and my back room 100w bulb."
conda
New member
Aquascape Attempt #1
Aquascape Attempt #1
Well, here is a pic of my first attempt to aquascape my tank. It is just the right side of the tank and I am trying to make a cove with alot of caves. I'm not doing too well. The bottom caves look nice, but I cannot seem to do anything above them that looks well.
The picture is not the greatest and the water is cloudy.
Any suggestions?
Aquascape Attempt #1
Well, here is a pic of my first attempt to aquascape my tank. It is just the right side of the tank and I am trying to make a cove with alot of caves. I'm not doing too well. The bottom caves look nice, but I cannot seem to do anything above them that looks well.
The picture is not the greatest and the water is cloudy.
Any suggestions?
conda
New member
I could not find any flat rocks, but here are a couple of pics with some changes. Ignore the rocks to the left of the cove. It's hard to see in the pic, but there is a third cave on the bottom left, it is just facing the other direction.
I've been trying to picture corals on the ledges and other areas, I think you are right when you say it will look much better when filled in. But I'm still not 100% on this yet.
Thanks for the feedback, and don't be afraid to hurt my feelings.
I've been trying to picture corals on the ledges and other areas, I think you are right when you say it will look much better when filled in. But I'm still not 100% on this yet.
Thanks for the feedback, and don't be afraid to hurt my feelings.
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