Making Rocks, Rocks

[TheOtherDB]

Hey, Joe ...
Yah, I'm a year or so into this project, and the rock has been in the water for about 9 months. pH is still high at 8.4. But, like Karim, my interest has been about the journey and the art more than anything else.

I'm still in the playing stage, and really haven't begun to build real, final shapes yet. But, seeing others work here has been influential. Would love to see your final result... very interesting approach.

 

[TheOtherDB]

So ... I'm about a week past the move into a more aquarium like environment. Temp is about 78 deg F, salinity is about 1.023, pH is still at 8.4, nitrates-rites and ammonia are at 0. Light is now from 6am to 9pm bent to the very red/blue end. No new photos yet ... nothings really changed. Movement is from a couple of inexpensive power heads pointed in opposite directions and I've hung a small "hang-on-the-back" filter to help remove suspended particulates. I'm going to shop for a cheap skimmer to see if that will help reduce pH, and leave the light in a spectrum that algae likes so I can bloom it, then eradicate it before I introduce more nutrients from adding fish or corals.

I might be scarce for a few days. I'm on a job in Bay City, Texas until Friday (no later, I hope), but will try to dial in to see if anyone has some words of wisdom regarding my little experiment as it moves forward. Specifically, reducing pH. I'm hoping Karim's use of air will work for my rock as well.

 

[awais98]

So ... I'm about a week past the move into a more aquarium like environment. Temp is about 78 deg F, salinity is about 1.023, pH is still at 8.4, nitrates-rites and ammonia are at 0. Light is now from 6am to 9pm bent to the very red/blue end. No new photos yet ... nothings really changed. Movement is from a couple of inexpensive power heads pointed in opposite directions and I've hung a small "hang-on-the-back" filter to help remove suspended particulates. I'm going to shop for a cheap skimmer to see if that will help reduce pH, and leave the light in a spectrum that algae likes so I can bloom it, then eradicate it before I introduce more nutrients from adding fish or corals.



I might be scarce for a few days. I'm on a job in Bay City, Texas until Friday (no later, I hope), but will try to dial in to see if anyone has some words of wisdom regarding my little experiment as it moves forward. Specifically, reducing pH. I'm hoping Karim's use of air will work for my rock as well.

For aerating, simply cheap air pump should also work, bigger the better though, Dont have to buy a skimmer for that.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[karimwassef]

In my experience, the volume of water being aerated is very small with an air pump.

Cheapest method is a water pump and a pipe.

Go up 3 to 4 feet from the water surface and let the shaft of water crash into the water. To avoid the salt creep and splashing, you can use a pipe with a T at the top for air intake.

 

[karimwassef]

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/E724E031-2FD7-4BC4-83A9-D1C3A5B464DA_zpstjc57fto.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/E724E031-2FD7-4BC4-83A9-D1C3A5B464DA_zpstjc57fto.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo E724E031-2FD7-4BC4-83A9-D1C3A5B464DA_zpstjc57fto.jpg"></a>

 

[TheOtherDB]

Sorry for the long absence. I've been traveling for work and I am just now catching up on neglected bits of my life.

Here's an update on my DIY reef rock experiment.

The concrete rocks have been in an 11 gallon salt water setup since Dec. 2016. Light is from a 24" Current LED with RGB and Cool White running at 100% for 16 hours a day. I have two circulation pumps and a small Fluval hang on the back filter. Chemistry tested this morning is:

- Salinity 1.0245
- pH 8.0
- Ammonia 0.25ppm
- Nitrite 1ppm
- Nitrate 10ppm

The tank is completely un-populated. The evidence of cycling above I believe is attributable to organic matter that had accumulated on old reef rock from a previous salt water setup decaying after drying out for a year. I opted to try to revive them with the DIY stuff. I am also seeing a diatom bloom.

Once the ammonia and nitrite reduce to 0, I plan to do a 25% water change and introduce a "seed" rock from the sump of my RedSea Reefer 170.

While materials to craft the initial rock shapes is ridiculously inexpensive, the time and labor commitment makes any sort of "cost" comparison about on an equal par with most other solutions.

For me, it has been about the education, and the option to at some point in the future, create a shape that is exactly what I "want" instead of just what I can "get" from a commercially available source.

My main take away is that I am having a TON of FUN!

 

[SFish]

I was thinking about making DIY live rock, til I realized it's months of curing in RODI with water changes, to get the pH down from 10. Did you end up having to go through that? I'm gonna be working on some casts to make 100% solids epoxy bonsai structures, like these.

I like it

 

[karimwassef]

How close should colonies be though in a rock structure?

That spacing looks fine for a drag grow out, but a 6 month old colony is 6"+. If they all stretch out 3" in all directions, they'll be burning each other.