Rock Stand

[wrongron]

I'm not creative enough to build something from acrylic or PVC, but I do like to play with toys...

 

[Zacktosterone]

3 things

1. HAHA THATS AWESOME!!!

2. Why are you building a rock stand?. Why not just put it on the glass

3 make it out of egg crate if you must. With PVC legs

 

[wrongron]

1) Thanks - it was fun

2) Hoping for less accumulation beneath the rocks

3) Egg crate and PVC have their own issues. Just trying something different.

 

[meidinad]

Um.. I dunno... It's like seeing a Sponge Bob figure in a saltwater aquarium. Cool idea but, sorry, not at all a fan.

 

[wrongron]

More a Squidward fan?

 

[reelredfish]

That just does not seem strong to me but that is just me looking at the pic. I am sure you have put it through tests to ensure it wont come crashing down....

 

[wrongron]

It's actually surprising just how strong these can be. There's part under the sand providing some support;

I had a framework setup with yellow cross members that was strong enough to stand on but I opted to not use the yellows to keep it more open and less carnival-like.

 

[kylemm]

This is pretty darn epic. lol

 

[wrongron]

Once this has some coraline growth, it will be indistinguishable from the oil rig turned reef.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rigs-to-Reefs

 

[Mantispunch]

Amazing job

 

[tkeracer619]

As the plastic degrades from the uv exposure it will likely become weak and brittle.

Not my cup of tea but if you like it and don't mind the significant risk of tank failure then go for it.

 

[wrongron]

It was my understanding that K'nex are made from ABS. I understand that my power heads are also made from ABS. It would suck if my power heads became weak and brittle.

 

[tkeracer619]

Your power heads aren't being used to support a bunch of rock. If your power head crumbles the rocks aren't going to tumble into the glass. FWIW there have been powerheads that had bad plastic and they degraded rapidly.

 

[Zacktosterone]

Man.... Are you sure you need the rack? You really don't need one. Im pretty sure I haven't seen a single TOTM that has one. If there is I'm sure there's very few

 

[Puffyluv]

Love it!!!! Both biologically and visually - and if it is made of abs I don't think you will have an issue. Overflows are made out of it, too....and they support lots of pressure.

 

[fishgate]

I don't think structurally you will ever have an issue with that but you will get TONS of crap collect underneath so just be prepared with a power head or water jet to clean that area out frequently.

Also I am wondering are your rocks just stacked or did you attach them to each other somehow? If just stacked I do see them toppling at some point.

 

[ExploitedSanity]

That would be a perfect setup if you got a MAXSPECT Gyre. Imagine the flow! That would eliminate pretty much anything settling under there.

 

[meidinad]

More a Squidward fan?

Hahaha! From an engineering perspective it's pretty cool. And if you theme a tank around it it could be epic. But I know I couldn't do it so I just go for as natural a look as possible. I'm looking forward to following this. You've got my attention! =D

 

[Gorgok]

That crushed coral gravel will trap so much stuff compared to what would get stuck under rocks in my experience. But i guess if you are adding a ton of flow (without risk of it floating away) even that can be overcome...

 

[wrongron]

I'm appreciative of all the comments, both positive and negative. I'm not expecting to create a TOTM - would be happy with something enjoyable that fish and easy/soft corals can live as long and healthy as reasonable.

I've tried building rock lifts from PVC and was never happy with the results. K'Nex seemed interesting to me and eliminated the problems of housing pests or stagnant water and since I'd not seen it done before, thought it would be fun to share.

As for flow, I have three K3's down low with one more coming tomorrow. I have one K4 up high with another K4 also coming tomorrow. I expect to have sufficient water movement to minimize settling, but I am no expert.

Also, the rocks are not connected in any way. They are just stacked on top of each other and I'm curious what would cause them to topple?