Reef Ceramics

Thank you, Mr. Wilson! Invaluable for me.

Will start over again. It will be plain 20g long tank, holding 6 Christmas tree rocks in a row, 2 toddler clams and anemone. Open from 2 sides - near window, see-through, just like your tanks are.
The only obstacle is that the invertebrates will be waiting in the buckets, until I finish.

Really appreciate your help.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11128388#post11128388 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by saltysteven
mr wilson- i was also worried about the foam looking ugly as i too have seen some not so good looking backgrounds with foam and yea lol it does look like that animals guts. I was hoping to cover evry inch of the foam with dry dead live rock rubble. it would be an expensive experiment since niether the foam or rock is cheap.

My other idea which is more natural is this:
I want to string the rubble rock (needle and fishing line) into many strands that would hang from top to bottom and over lap eachother. The mini pillars would be attached to a bar or pole sitting on top of the tank from left to right.

This was orginally my pillar idea but i realized it woulnt be any good for accessing the inside of the tank. but it would look cool - a tank with mini pillars all over in it.

anyway what do you think of my second idea?
(It would kind of look like those hippie beads you walk through in door ways, buy much more dense)
Click to expand...

Good answers guys. I asked because I forgot, but it also proved to show who reads long posts. :)

Keep the ideas coming Steven. I'm sure the fishing line will last, even in salt water, but it sounds very labour intensive. If you have to drill holes, it's even more work and you run the risk of introducing heavy metals from the drill bit.

You might want to consider using epoxy to bond the rock to the back panel or a sheet of acrylic or polystyrene. It's a bit of a crazy craft project, but it works. Start at the top in case you lose interest part way through.

If you're trying to save money, you might want to consider using lace rock. You can get small or flat pieces and affix then to the back wall. Slate is usually nonmetallic and dirt cheap from a garden supply or building center. You could break it into small pieces and stack it up the back wall or overflow. Epoxy or even silicone will hold it together.

The most cost effective, and least labour intensive method is cement with shell or aragonite over eggcrate panels...and you don't have to wear a craft apron. :)
 
hmmmm- your really pushing this cement with shell or aragonite over eggcrate panels idea.

i really do like the idea i just thought the live rock would make a better filter and look better if done correctly but i wasnt going to drill since i have some nice small marco rock bits that all have holes in them to begin with.

and i guess i was looking to do something different.
the designs that you guys do with cement are amazing! i know i would take my time and it would probably take me for ever to do. i must rethink this cement idea.
 
By all means do something different. Live rock is a great building material to work with.
Although, I wouldn't put much value or necessity in the biological filtration capacity of a back wall panel. You just need enough surface area to discourage nuisance algae and encourage some beneficial bacteria. Smooth surfaces like foam, latex and fiberglass are harder to keep clean.
 
and when you say discourage nuisance algae how do you that?
Is it by covering up the wall with a porous surface and good water flow?
 
Nuisance algae is like any weed. It grows only where other higher organisms won't.

Nuisance algae will always grow on the glass, but it should never appear on the substrate or rock. The main reason I use concrete (or other treatments) over plumbing and back & end walls is to create fewer footholds for nuisance algae.
 
Biologically it will function well. Double check your fishing line to assure it won't get brittle and crack with long term exposure to salt water. You don't want the curtains to fall.
 
lol yea the show will really be over then!
okay well thats what ill do - black background with live curtains.
ill keep you guys posted on how this works if it does
 
If I can jump in for a minute, I would like to suggest that instead of fishing line/monofilament, that you use neoprene cord instead? It can be found at hobby stores, usually in the bead section, or you can get it as something like an eyeglass holding cord too, (if you can't locate it elsewhere), and neoprene will last a long time and be more forgiving of the saltwater, I think...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoprene
 
He Starred in "The Search for Animal Chin" and his first graphic was a rocket ship. He later adopted the Skull and Sword graphic.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11155673#post11155673 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by BeanAnimal
No sorry, that would be Mike McGill.

Anyway... I suppose we should get back to ceramics :)
Click to expand...

:lol: Too funny.
 
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