Foam stuff for the "rock work" look????

[Reefmaiden]

I used the black pond foam on my 50 gallon tank (approx 36" x 20" x 15" wide - I'm guessing at the measurements) and it worked fine. Its been set up for over a year and a half now and no problems with it pulling away or taking up too much room. I think the black stuff doesn't puff up as much as the yellow stuff. Everyone that sees my tank loves the way I have "rock" all the way up the back - you cannot tell the difference between the live rock and the pond foam after a few months.

I liked it so much my boyfriend and I used the black pond foam in his 375 gallon tank we are in the process of setting up.

 

[rsteagall]

Time will tell..

Again, this stuff definitely breaks down under UV light. I'd be scared to do this until I saw someone else successfully have it in their tank for 2+ years.

 

[sidewinder770]

Here is a link to a picture of reefmaidens current tank that has been up for almost 2 years with the foam in it (It's also pictured in the first few pages of this thread but figured I'd save people the trouble of finding it). It is lighted by 2x 250w DE pendants and hasn't broken down yet (a liitle too much light for this size tank but it does well). In the same thread (page 2) is some pictures of the black pond foam in our new 375. -

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=522988&perpage=25&pagenumber=3

 

[gatohoser]

50g (tall) are usually 36x18x18 (or 17 depending on manufacturer) and that would work with what I had said.

Carl,
You must have no room in front of your rocks or just not have much rock in the tank for that to work and I think most reefers don't want to sacrifice either of those. Sounds cool though!

 

[joroscoe]

how much foam

how much foam

reefmaiden,
how much handi-foam do u think i would need for a 29g? i noticed that they come in 12 oz bottles. also, i am sorry if this has already been explained, but could you please tell me whether YOU PERSONALLY just applied the foam to the glass or did you apply it to an eggcrate or something. altho i have read the entire thread and people are saying NOT to apply it to the glass, I can't tell whether they are just talking about the GREAT-STUFF product or the HANDI-FOAM too. thank you very much for your help and congratulations on a spectacular aquascape!

 

[sidewinder770]

joroscoe-
We (Reefmaiden and I) used about 12 cans of foam on the back of our 375. That comes to about a can of foam per 1.5 SF. It depends on how "thick" you put it on and how you want it to look. We applied it directly to the acyrlic on both the 50G and the 375 and have never had a problem with it peeling off- not sure if glass is different but I wouldn't think so. The Handi-foam sets up pretty quickly (you only have about 5 minutes to work with it before it "skins" over too much) and is fully cured in about 24 hours. It's messy and sticky and be sure to wear gloves of some sort when you put it on. You only have a few minutes to work with it and you have to do it at the right time in the curing process to come out correctly- once you spray it on wait about 2 minutes, then you can work with it for about 2-3 more minutes before it becomes to tacky- if you do it too soon it flattens out. Hope that helps.

 

[AnnArborBuck]

To put the foam directly on the back of your tank you can take some small pieces of glass and silicone them to the back of the tank so they stick out. This tabs will hold the foam in place in vertically, so the foam won't be able to come up and float. This works really well and was described in a link on one of the first pages of this thread.

 

[joroscoe]

Thank you very much for your advice guys! I am gonna do that to my new 29 and am thinking of also doing a bare bottom mod where you mix the sand with Famowood hi-gloss epoxy (i read about it in another thread). I'll kick the flow up then with no sand to worry about and do an sps tank. The only thing I have to worry about is the evap rate cuz i bought a canopy from someone with close to 600 watts in it (2 175 mh and 4 actinic pc)!

 

[Carl_in_Florida]

i did the bb with the fake sand bottom using pipe glue.

 

[H20ENG]

Clear pvc cement???

 

[TheCoralReef731]

So where do you get the pond foam? l found great stuff at a supermarket, but they had three kinds; big gaps, gaps and cracks, and windows and doors. Which one would wourk best?

 

[sidewinder770]

The pond foam is called "handi foam". It's made for ponds so it's fish safe as well. We got ours from customaquatic.com but you can also get it from drsfostersmith.com. I'm sure there are other places as well.

 

[alphaferret]

been lookin at this for 2 days

i got a lil helping hint for you- some others had hinted at this also

incorporate 4 algae cleaning magnets(non floating better) into the eggrate before you great stuff it-when its ready the mags will help in keeping it in place

also had thought about this for the guy who wanted to make branches
again incorporate a magnet and you can have your branch wherever yuo want it

have not tried this but thought it might be a good idea

 

[Cody Ray]

I like this idea, should help me create a nice sea slope in my 20 gallon!

 

[sunny03]

Let have an update of your tank pic using the foam wall

 

[orlenz]

some of these look really god, I like the idea, but i think I will play it safe and do the same thing, but use oystercrete instead.

 

[docjay]

Here's mine with the rock in place. Now I just have to wait for the coraline algae and the mounted corals to grow in!

Jay

 

[bigbeatzz]

Jay>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>THAT LOOKS SWEEEEEEET!

 

[docjay]

Thanks Big!

 

[RedEyeReef]

docjay,

Nice Job, I love the 3D look.