Foam & Live Rock commbo
- Thread starter Tiggsy
- Start date
elvn
New member
Are you certain that the modern plastics eggcrate is not brittle like regular white eggcrate?
You can get seven sheets of the black modern plastics eggcrate for $112 which covers the minimum order. Maybe you could split it with someone. If I went this route I would check my local reef club for group or split order, and maybe even my LFS about it since I know the owner.
You can get seven sheets of the black modern plastics eggcrate for $112 which covers the minimum order. Maybe you could split it with someone. If I went this route I would check my local reef club for group or split order, and maybe even my LFS about it since I know the owner.
erics3000
Active member
Well I dont know if the black is stronger but I just made the overflow cover for my 300 and it is really weak. It wasn't so bad on the one I mage for my nano because it was a box to hide the central overflow. The one I started making tonight for my other tank is just to cover a side over flow and it is weak. I hope to beef it up with some resin and fiberglass.
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11609281#post11609281 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Hella
Hiya derick2724,
Yes Home Depot has it I just picked up some for my foam rock combo
Not done yet, but you get the idea of how its going to look.
Thanks for the great idea Tiggsy.
Hella
looks great!
are you going to cover the foam in some epoxy? it looks so much better than normal rock stacking because (when its done) the joins between the rocks look substantially and realistic. That aquascape without the foam may balance (with rods, etc) but in the wild the join points between rocks are too small, it would topple over! Looks so much better when the large join points end up making the structure look like one interconnection lump instead of lots of small bits.
blend the foam to the rock with resin and sand and it will transform the look.
just a thought - are you going with sand? if so you may want to add some foam under the rocks - it stops sand collecting under rocks and gathering muck.....coat it with epoxy and sand and you cant see the join between sand bed and rock....it just emerges from the sea bed 
of course...if you're goiing BB then dont worry.
of course...if you're goiing BB then dont worry.
I'm sorry if this sounds like I'm trying to put you down or anything, I do love the idea and the way it looks, but doesn't this process just kills the live rocks, and make your whole setup just a very expensive decoration, couldn't you have achieved the same thing by using PVC pillars without killing the rocks, I mean if you are going to kill the life rocks then didn't yo just make your own rocks by mixing crushed corals with Portland cement then you can shape it to witch ever way to want!!
It doesnt kill the rock as the rock is reefbones to start with and thus needs to "become" live anyway (hence i have a sump full of live rock). You could do the cement option but it takes ages and(IMO) looks like cement...this looks like rock - because it is! And no matter what people tell you the cement (no matter WHAt its mixed with) wont have a porous structure like real rock and reef bones. I made loads of the stuff in 2006 and it all went it the bin - it just looks rubbish and i question its filtration value. This looks great and it will (over time) become REAL live rock.
As for expensive decoration.....of course it is! My fish tank is one giant decoration - i am not an eco warrior, i dont name my fish or even worry that much about conservation......i have decorated my house with a fish tank - and anything i can do to make it look better, i will
As for expensive decoration.....of course it is! My fish tank is one giant decoration - i am not an eco warrior, i dont name my fish or even worry that much about conservation......i have decorated my house with a fish tank - and anything i can do to make it look better, i will
same stuff isnt it? epoxy resin? Mine was called "finishing resin".
it looks like runny treacle, goes on easy with a kids paint brush just do a little section 2" X 2", sprinkle with sand/gravel then do another bit. As yours in in the tank be prepared to either leave the spare sand in (fine if you are having sand anyway) or vacuum it out as when you sprinkle about 5% sticks. I did mine in the kids sand pit (not their sand though 
) so i could scoop up the waste and re-sprinkle!
it looks like runny treacle, goes on easy with a kids paint brush
just do a little section 2" X 2", sprinkle with sand/gravel then do another bit. As yours in in the tank be prepared to either leave the spare sand in (fine if you are having sand anyway) or vacuum it out as when you sprinkle about 5% sticks. I did mine in the kids sand pit (not their sand though ) so i could scoop up the waste and re-sprinkle!
a1amap
New member
I doubt your conclusion on the rock not becoming live. I used a 50/50 mix of cement and live rock. I had the early pieces that the recipe was incorrect. Some started to crack. Not all but some of my early try. I pulled the rock that crumbled and broke it apart. I found tiny spaghetti worms, sponges, and other small things in the rock. This rock was in the tank for 1+ years. I used some rock salt so I had a decent amount of holes but I think it was not needed. Concrete is by nature porous. It will wick water in pretty quick.The veins that are left from the water after the concrete cures make great pathways deep into the rock. It may not be as good as real live rock but IMO equal to any base rock or reefbones. i coated the concrete with aragonite sand and after 6 months most could not tell the difference between real and DIY.
Jester
Member
a1amap, thats a good way to think about it... thats the big issue with concrete outside... expansion and contraction due to water infiltration... even on building, masonry has to be waterproofed on onside of the face to keep water from weeping iniside and allowing mold to grow... like you said, it may not be as porous as "real" live rock, but it'll still be porous...
I'm sure concrete absorbs - i just dont belive its on a par with real reef bones.
That aside - the "look" was more important to me - i'm sure cement can be made to look like a traditional stack of live rock but i wanted a more natural look - there is no way i could have used concrete to make the structure i have.
mine looks like reef - concrete tanks look like a stack of rock......i appreciate thats the norm for a reef tank, but its not what i was after.
That aside - the "look" was more important to me - i'm sure cement can be made to look like a traditional stack of live rock but i wanted a more natural look - there is no way i could have used concrete to make the structure i have.
mine looks like reef - concrete tanks look like a stack of rock......i appreciate thats the norm for a reef tank, but its not what i was after.
I'm sure concrete absorbs - i just dont belive its on a par with real reef bones.
That aside - the "look" was more important to me - i'm sure cement can be made to look like a traditional stack of live rock but i wanted a more natural look - there is no way i could have used concrete to make the structure i have.
mine looks like reef - concrete tanks look like a stack of rock......i appreciate thats the norm for a reef tank, but its not what i was after.
That aside - the "look" was more important to me - i'm sure cement can be made to look like a traditional stack of live rock but i wanted a more natural look - there is no way i could have used concrete to make the structure i have.
mine looks like reef - concrete tanks look like a stack of rock......i appreciate thats the norm for a reef tank, but its not what i was after.
