LR towers

[Capt_Cully]

I've seen where people drill LR and use acrylic rods to create unique aquascapes. Is there something solid that one uses to lock it all together. We all know 2part epoxy stick isn't strong enough.

Quick crete?

(yeah I know I'm a gas-bag, with all these threads, but I've got a lot going on!)

 

[der_wille_zur_macht]

The acrylic rod should be plenty strong enough to actually keep the rock from toppling - use the epoxy to "buttress" the junctions, you don't need to rely on it as a bonding agent. Hope this makes sense. You want the rod to be long enough to go through the whole stack, i.e. don't bother using little short pieces as pegs between each chunk of rock.

 

[Newreeflady]

I've seen where people drill LR and use acrylic rods to create unique aquascapes. Is there something solid that one uses to lock it all together. We all know 2part epoxy stick isn't strong enough.

Quick crete?

(yeah I know I'm a gas-bag, with all these threads, but I've got a lot going on!)

First, I'm sure there is something that will hold it that is being used by many. Personally, though, after creating some different structures with the rods, I let the rocks lock themselves in place. I basically used a combination of balance and rods to get the structure I wanted.

Good luck!
-A

 

[magdelan]

See if you can find Sanjay Joshi's build thread. I know that he used them in his set up and if I remember correctly, after setting the acrylic rods in place, the only thing holding the rocks together was gravity minus 1.26 give or take a couple hundreths.

Edit: Here is the link. Looks like he had some good ideas.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=730564&highlight=build&page=27

 

[jmahfouz]

zip ties work well to

 

[jacksonpt]

zip ties work well to

Maybe my experience is not the norm, but I've had TERRIBLE luck with zip ties... they get really soft/stretchy and end up doing nothing to really keep rocks in place.

Again, IME.

 

[Capt_Cully]

I failed miserably at using twist ties. Everytime I drill LR I end up breaking it. What type of drill/bit are those who've done this using?

Any opinions on Thinset or Quick Crete? I think that epoxy stick is OK for frags, but anytime I've relied on it for a job larger than a frag, i.e. mini-colony, I've been sorely disappointed. Any chemicals in the above mentioned to be leary of?

Thanks

 

[Neoz]

Cully I used a 1/2" Blue Granite - Bosch Drill bit for mine. Had a diamond tip on it and its 12" long. Cost me like $13 bucks at Lowes. Worked great. Also make sure you use some good Acrylic rod. Some of them are too weak and bend. I have several pieces left if you want them Cully. They are 3ft long and 1/2" thick. Let me know I can snap a pic for ya.

 

[Spartan]

I' ve used the quikrete a number of times. Results are great for some things, bad for others.
1. Mixed it a bit of colorscape sand. This helps with coloralline growth on it. This works well. Have also tried just patting sand on the surface while concrete still wet. This works equally well.
2. Binding LR togther. Has failed long term for me everytime. Initially holds but over 8-12 months cracks and then breaks down and often shearing forces also crack your LR which then breaks down. Thsi makes an ugly mess and your structrue fails.This has happened both with and without sand aggregate mixed in.
3. Create your own custom live rock. I do this for hard to find flat pieces or specially shaped pieces that I want to for into a specific nook or cranny or hold a colony that I want to custom build a location for. Works great BUT you must cure it fully in the air, even with the quick setting version, usually 24-48 hrs. Longer being better. This is why I think I failed with LR since you cannot cure it fully w/o the rock drying out. Further I incorporate either eggcrate to add strength like rebar for flat pieces. These had have lasted for 3 years and counting.
4. Sanjay used Thorite which I could not source locally. I compared the mixtures, which did not seem much different than the quick setting quickrete but perhaps some proprietary difference may have better long term success there - don't know.
5. That said it is easy to do. If you are interested, somewhere at I have written down the best proportion of aggregate to use.

 

[Capt_Cully]

Dave, definitely interested!

Spartan, I've begun bleaching my LR. I'm going to start fresh with it dried out, void of life. If I can construct, basically only one, signature tower, that's all I'm looking to do. The other structures will be ballanced, old school.

I'll try to keep the structure in fairly decent ballance and support that with the rods. Then "buttress" the joints, as stated above, with the media in question.

I greatly appreciate your input, as I'd hate to have everything settle in and encrust nicely, only to have a structural failure as the reef comes into it's own. I love the suggestion of using eggcrate to provide stability, like rebar.

 

[Spartan]

I forgot there's one other thing I did. I made a rough three pillar structure out of 1/2" pvc as a base (again with the reinforcing idea), cured this, and then tried using more quikrete to bond LR to the top of the three pillars. This way I had a tower that reached to the top of my 180. The pillars held but the section with the LR cracked and sheared. If I were doing that again I would use the pvc, drill small holes in it, and use zip ties to hold the LR onto the pillar structure. Use the UV resistant zip ties, never had a failure with those. Now if you're thinking I ve changed my aquascape alot over the years, you'd be right... But I love be able to build it exactly how I want it rather than being totally beholden to whatever LR shape I happen to get.

 

[Piazzon12]

I've used hydraulic cement to hold rocks together and it has held up pretty well. Also a hammer drill makes things go much easier. I used a 1/2 in. bit and 1/2in pvc rods