My DIY Rock/Foam Reef
- Thread starter Kannin
- Start date
Fisher2009
New member
Is this Macro rock the same as reef bones in the UK???
Fishingpcola
New member
How about some new pics Kannin.
second_decimal
Member
yes, i am wondering how everything is holding up. can you update us?
BANANAHANDS
New member
Nice looking tank! I may have to give a foam wall a try.
Michael_84
New member
I want to make some smaller structures for my existing tank, is this a problem, the tank is only a few monhs old but I have a Huge Carpet Nem. A rose BTA and a few fish, will they be harmed?
DIY Rock Formations
DIY Rock Formations
After tearing down my 210G due to Humidity issues I have decided to rebuild my 75G while wait to get my fishroom completed. I have been following this thread since it's inception. In addition to creating a "foam" back wall I have also spent some time building agrocrete rocks (see GARF website). Using a variety of different methods I think I know have a workable recipe that creates some very good looking "rock".
I am going to attempt to utilize Kannins tecniques of zipping some dead "live rock" to an eggcrate frame and then pour my agrocrete mixture into the voids. If the agrocrete is mixed to a thicker consistency it can actually be molded around the eggcrate. This allows me to build shelfs and piers. I will then use small amounts of expanding foam to fill in any gaps as is necessary. Rather than use an epoxy on the rock I will brush another agrocrete mixture onto the foam. Of course this will have to be allowed to cure (leach) for a greater lentgh of time but as with many things associated with reefing "patience is the order of the day"
In the past I have made a foam wall that I coated with a concrete mixture and then used an epoxy with sand sprinkle. There were two issues using this technique. The first being that after 2 years any "seams" in the epoxy began to peel and flake off in sheets. Although it didn't cause any issues to the live stock it was annoying fishing out pieces of epoxy. The second was I used too much foam and the whole thing was way too buoyant. I then had to silicone the complete thing to the glass aquarium. It required a ton of silicone. The issue this presented was that getting into any nooks and crannies to remove detritus or "dirt" became nearly impossible. Unless the whole wall is siliconed so that no water can get behind it, i would not recommend this.
For the new project i will build it into "sections" so that if the need arises I will be able to move the aquascape enough to clean as is necessary. Additionally after changing the purpose of that tank getting the rock wall out proved to be a task that I would not want to repeat. It require a sawzall, a hammer and chisel and a full weekend of work. Needless to say these tools and a large glass tank are not recommended in the same sentence.
If anyone is interested I will post some photos as I go.:hmm4:
DIY Rock Formations
After tearing down my 210G due to Humidity issues I have decided to rebuild my 75G while wait to get my fishroom completed. I have been following this thread since it's inception. In addition to creating a "foam" back wall I have also spent some time building agrocrete rocks (see GARF website). Using a variety of different methods I think I know have a workable recipe that creates some very good looking "rock".
I am going to attempt to utilize Kannins tecniques of zipping some dead "live rock" to an eggcrate frame and then pour my agrocrete mixture into the voids. If the agrocrete is mixed to a thicker consistency it can actually be molded around the eggcrate. This allows me to build shelfs and piers. I will then use small amounts of expanding foam to fill in any gaps as is necessary. Rather than use an epoxy on the rock I will brush another agrocrete mixture onto the foam. Of course this will have to be allowed to cure (leach) for a greater lentgh of time but as with many things associated with reefing "patience is the order of the day"
In the past I have made a foam wall that I coated with a concrete mixture and then used an epoxy with sand sprinkle. There were two issues using this technique. The first being that after 2 years any "seams" in the epoxy began to peel and flake off in sheets. Although it didn't cause any issues to the live stock it was annoying fishing out pieces of epoxy. The second was I used too much foam and the whole thing was way too buoyant. I then had to silicone the complete thing to the glass aquarium. It required a ton of silicone. The issue this presented was that getting into any nooks and crannies to remove detritus or "dirt" became nearly impossible. Unless the whole wall is siliconed so that no water can get behind it, i would not recommend this.
For the new project i will build it into "sections" so that if the need arises I will be able to move the aquascape enough to clean as is necessary. Additionally after changing the purpose of that tank getting the rock wall out proved to be a task that I would not want to repeat. It require a sawzall, a hammer and chisel and a full weekend of work. Needless to say these tools and a large glass tank are not recommended in the same sentence.
If anyone is interested I will post some photos as I go.:hmm4:
Clearly, it looks incredible. But, if the stuff you used is made of stuff similar to "great stuff" foam insulation, I would be a but nervous. I saw it used once, and, it eventually became covered in algae of hair and many other types. The live rock in that tank stayed algae free. The pet store eventually ripped it all out.
kimowen04
New member
god its beautiful
hugeinasia
New member
This looks truly awesome, one of the most unique things i've seen. Do you have any pictures of the tank set up and running now? And if you don't mind me asking, do you just mold the rock to the egg crate with foam? And then spray it with a resin, and cover it with sand?
hugeinasia
New member
Forget about the pictures, I just saw all of them later in the thread, it looks great! But if you can go into a little more detail on how you did it that would be appreciated.
Hi Kannin,
great structure and reef - in europe - austria / Germany you would pay 1500-2000 $ for these big rock
- so the best way is to diy 
- therefore this way that you chose, is the best what i´ve seen till now - congratulations
I´ve just 1 question - how did you fix it in your tank?? or is it a "stand alone"?
Thx for your information!
best regards from Austria,
Max
great structure and reef - in europe - austria / Germany you would pay 1500-2000 $ for these big rock
- so the best way is to diy - therefore this way that you chose, is the best what i´ve seen till now - congratulationsI´ve just 1 question - how did you fix it in your tank?? or is it a "stand alone"?
Thx for your information!
best regards from Austria,
Max
yousmellsfishy
New member
:hammer: :hammer: :hammer:
xcelprintingcom
New member
Kannin, none of the pictures of this build are working. I was really hoping to see them, I am starting my foam wall in the next week or two and was hoping to see the process from the start.
I've seen most the other foam builds here on RC but wanted to see yours as well, do you have a link to a photo album or something to show the process from the start and up to date?
Thanks,
jon
I've seen most the other foam builds here on RC but wanted to see yours as well, do you have a link to a photo album or something to show the process from the start and up to date?
Thanks,
jon
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xcelprintingcom
New member
Kannin?
xcelprintingcom
New member
where's the pictures?
xcelprintingcom
New member
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