TheOtherDB
New member
Okay, so, a year in the making thus far ...
I work as, among other things, an automation technician for a company that builds concrete batching/blending plants. Something I didn't know until I started working there a couple of years back is that, chemically, concrete is similar to live rock or coral reef skeletons (limestone, calcium carbonate).
Imagine my shock!
So, not so new news, I found a plethora of content - blogs, DIY videos, yada, yada - out there, but it was new and exciting to me.
Last spring I launched into making my own reef rock.
The recipe is simple: coral sand and cement - crushed shells or coral to further enhance structure/texture if you have it. I've never really measured ratios, I've just kind of winged it until I had goo that looked like it would do what I wanted ... be stiff enough (slump) to hold up to some random shape, and allow me to keep gaping holes in the overall piece while not breaking apart into crumbs when hardened. NOTE: More cement is better.
I kept the finished "first batch" in fresh water that was changed out periodically until pH settled into something that was not pegged at purple.
About 3-4 months ago, I moved the rocks into spent reef tank water that I siphoned from my 34 gallon RedSea during water changes to further simmer (a figure of speech, no heat was applied ... k, now the lawyers are happy) the hand made rocks.
Today! Today, I have moved these rocks, after about 9 months from their birth, to a heated, filtered, honest to goodness, surrounded by glass so I can see it all happen, tank!
Is that awesome, or what? :celeb1:
Okay, I'm better now.
I have plans to let things stew a bit, then slowly, monitoring chemistry carefully, introduce some rock from a living tank. Stew some more. Taking one step at a time, adding maybe some zoas ... a small fish ... then ... ?
I know, half of you are yawning. But to me, coming from some old school reefing that dates back to the 80s where live rock came from Florida or Fiji at $14 a pound, this is pretty cool stuff, and I am excited to see how it all turns out.
Home made live rock ... geeeg! Who knew?
I work as, among other things, an automation technician for a company that builds concrete batching/blending plants. Something I didn't know until I started working there a couple of years back is that, chemically, concrete is similar to live rock or coral reef skeletons (limestone, calcium carbonate).
Imagine my shock!
So, not so new news, I found a plethora of content - blogs, DIY videos, yada, yada - out there, but it was new and exciting to me.
Last spring I launched into making my own reef rock.
The recipe is simple: coral sand and cement - crushed shells or coral to further enhance structure/texture if you have it. I've never really measured ratios, I've just kind of winged it until I had goo that looked like it would do what I wanted ... be stiff enough (slump) to hold up to some random shape, and allow me to keep gaping holes in the overall piece while not breaking apart into crumbs when hardened. NOTE: More cement is better.
I kept the finished "first batch" in fresh water that was changed out periodically until pH settled into something that was not pegged at purple.
About 3-4 months ago, I moved the rocks into spent reef tank water that I siphoned from my 34 gallon RedSea during water changes to further simmer (a figure of speech, no heat was applied ... k, now the lawyers are happy) the hand made rocks.
Today! Today, I have moved these rocks, after about 9 months from their birth, to a heated, filtered, honest to goodness, surrounded by glass so I can see it all happen, tank!
Is that awesome, or what? :celeb1:
Okay, I'm better now.
I have plans to let things stew a bit, then slowly, monitoring chemistry carefully, introduce some rock from a living tank. Stew some more. Taking one step at a time, adding maybe some zoas ... a small fish ... then ... ?
I know, half of you are yawning. But to me, coming from some old school reefing that dates back to the 80s where live rock came from Florida or Fiji at $14 a pound, this is pretty cool stuff, and I am excited to see how it all turns out.
Home made live rock ... geeeg! Who knew?
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