Live Rock Formations

[jamis004]

Just wondering if any of you guys used any kind of system to bind/hold your liverock pieces together in their formation?

I will hopefully be getting mine in sometime next week. Just wondering. Last time I did not do anything and just wanted to know if there is a good way to do it, or if I should just not worry bout it.

Thanks
Cochrane

 

[bruffin]

Hope this helps . . .

I got some stiff acrylic rods (3/4" dia.) and cut them down to pieces about 3" long each.
Then drilled little holes in the rocks with a small drill bit.
Next, connect the rocks with the rods and use a little epoxy to fix them in place. -- put some on the rods and the parts of the rock that touch.
You'll get a nice open aquascape, not one of those "pile-o-rock" tanks.
I got these instructions from Reef Central. It looks like they did the same thing in Aquarium Designs, but I don't know.

 

[stolaas]

Thats a good idea. I like the open looking tanks, just always thought they were big peices of live rock.

 

[jamis004]

yea it does. did you just take a big drill bit and go to town so to speak?

 

[H@rry]

Most people will put the largest pieces on the bottom and then stack the smaller pieces on top. This leads to the "fruit stand" look. I like to start with the smallest pieces on the bottom in a kind of horseshoe pattern with the open side toward the front. Stack the pieces on top of this pattern from the smallest to the largest. When you finish you will have the largest pieces left to "span" the horseshoe and create caves and overhangs.

 

[edwar050]

I am with Harry on this. Also you can use pvc and eggcreate for a stand the LR can site on if using a sandbed. Rock costs alot so I tried to use as little as possible.

 

[alafish]

You can also try building your shapes out of the water. That is what I did when I set up my 120 gln. It is a hit or miss, and yes I could have a rock slide, but after a year, no problems.

Good Luck!

 

[stolaas]

I think I'll do that when I upgrade to a 180g but it is hard to do something open or big in a 55g. Just stay away from the fruit stand lol.

 

[CorallineDream]

Where's the best place to aquire some acrylic rods?

Do any of the craft shops have them or do you have to special order them?

I've got some aquascaping to do on a new tank and I don't trust the epoxy alone.

I would think that any kind of inert stiff plastic type rod would do the trick.

 

[H@rry]

What about PVC pipe?

 

[bruffin]

You can get the Acrylic rods from Hancock Fabrics or Advanced Plastics, inc. [(205) 664-1429 ].

A masonry bit is recomended, especially if the rock is dense - like the Fiji or Tonga Branch. I only drilled holes where the rods would be inserted, then connected them like Leggo Blocks.

I believe PVC would work fine. The only reason I didn't use it was because of the void inside of it. I didn't want stagnant water to become trapped inside (eventhough the rock is porous). But I'm not sure if it would matter . . .