LR Against the Sides of a Tank

[bladeruner143]

I was wondering if it is safe to lean pieces of LR against the sides of a glass aquarium? I've seen many pictures where it looks like people are doing this, but then again, they could have just attached the LR together with PVC pipes and put them close to the glass. Thanks for the help guys

 

[CaliforniaDreamer]

You won't be able to clean the glass next to the LR and the LR may scratch the glass. Also it is difficult to get flow behind the rockwork. Also if pests like aptasia develop in the tank they are harder to get rid of. In general it is just not a good idea but I have seen many do it with no ill effects. As a side note IMHO you should keep the rockwork away from the back also for the same reasons.

 

[bored4long]

restriction of flow is the reason I decided against doing this with my rockwork.

 

[kevin95695]

Mine rests on the back glass. May try to do it differently next time, but no problems so far. I don't even bother cleaning the back glass. Coraline city there.

 

[bladeruner143]

You don't have any worries about it cracking the glass Kevin?

 

[Twisted]

My tank is a standard 55 gallon so I don't have much room between the front and back of the glass so my rock work is leaning against the back glass.
I also allowed it to go up against the sides, which as mentioned makes it impossible to clean, so the sides are algae covered, as well as the back.
And also as mentioned it does make apatasia and such that much harder to deal with.
I actually have not had a problem with scratching though.

Oh and another tip! don't, however good it sounds, DON'T ever try to hide your power heads by burying them in the rock work.
I didn't have a problem for two years, but now the screens are getting plugged up and it's trying to make them run hotter which heats my tank. Now I have to tear apart half my wall to take them back out.

 

[kevin95695]

No cracking, but my stack is super stable too. The weight is really bearing down, not back. I'd be more worried about some form of avalanche creating an impact.