xinumaster
reef addict
It is the media use for calcium reactors. Basically, its a crushed corals.
The Ultimate DIY Rocks!
- Thread starter Travis L. Stevens
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Barto
Alleged Lounge Moron
Portland cement is the type
Quickrete is the brand
What you want is portland with NO sand or aggregate(rock/gravel) added.
Check the bag label, or ask sales staff.
You SHOULD be able to get plain portland at any masonary supply yard, builders supply center, HD, or Lowes sort of place.
Good luck
Quickrete is the brand
What you want is portland with NO sand or aggregate(rock/gravel) added.
Check the bag label, or ask sales staff.
You SHOULD be able to get plain portland at any masonary supply yard, builders supply center, HD, or Lowes sort of place.
Good luck
Barto
Alleged Lounge Moron
I must have missed that.
I'll back off advice right here, as I was not aware of problems possibly caused by brand selection.
Sorry for a few really dumb questions, but here goes:
Have you done the yellow page search, just call all the kind of places I suggested and ask what they have?
Did the quickrete the YOU used have ANY aggregate in it?
Do you still have the quickrete bag you used, if so, can you double check to see if it's portland only, or if it was mortar or concrete?
Portland (cement) is a very fine, dense powder
Mortar is a mix of cement and sand
Concrete is a mix of cement, sand and gravel
(this Q is not so dumb) Can you link or list what page(s) you described what you used and the resulting problems?
Thanks
I'll back off advice right here, as I was not aware of problems possibly caused by brand selection.
Sorry for a few really dumb questions, but here goes:
Have you done the yellow page search, just call all the kind of places I suggested and ask what they have?
Did the quickrete the YOU used have ANY aggregate in it?
Do you still have the quickrete bag you used, if so, can you double check to see if it's portland only, or if it was mortar or concrete?
Portland (cement) is a very fine, dense powder
Mortar is a mix of cement and sand
Concrete is a mix of cement, sand and gravel
(this Q is not so dumb) Can you link or list what page(s) you described what you used and the resulting problems?
Thanks
Barto
Alleged Lounge Moron
Nothing of problems on 23, this is from page 25.
The following is based on my expereince with the diy rock and building with concrete in real world construction applications.
Maybe it needed to dry more before being submerged to cure.
None of my rocks went into a soak for at least 72 hours.
24-36 resting in the salt casting mold, and another 24-36 sitting out to air & sun dry. A few went closer to a week before soaking, I did notice that some were a little crumblier than others, and I think these were the ones with the shortest air dry time.
Perhaps you started the soak, before the chemical reaction of water & cement was completed.
(this is a cross between thinking out loud and a guess)
I will try another batch and do it like you say. Hopefully things will work out this time. I did a batch a while back and they seemed to work out perfectly. And yes, I left them airdry for a week before I took them to the river.
Oops! I thought it was page 23. Anyway, thanks for the advice and I will keep you posted.
Oops! I thought it was page 23. Anyway, thanks for the advice and I will keep you posted.
Insane Reefer
New member
If it was just cement, could also be "stale" cement, cement sitting in hot humid coditions too long, that is very, very, very slowly turning hard.
Or try adding a part of sand - will give the cement something to bond to besides itself and acl. and make for tougher rock.
Or try adding a part of sand - will give the cement something to bond to besides itself and acl. and make for tougher rock.
Insane Reefer
New member
No reason ARM couldn't be used, provided it isn't attached to BSB's neck-bone, lol - however as the reactor depletes the calcium (correct??), it would not provide the benefits that CC can. But by all mean, it would make great aggregate anyway - and cheap 
Insane Reefer
New member
Yeah - it is back toward the beginning of the thread...
It does help.
It does help.
Travis L. Stevens
New member
Go back towards the fist few pages, and I have pictures already posted. Most of the time hardware stores keep the Portland Cement in the back, not with the concrete mixes. With Lowe's, it's definitely stored in the back where the lumber is.
For anyone that is wonder what I was using and want's to see the process I use, just click here. http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=7442954#post7442954
Here is a picture of all my supplies. The blue bag is the Salt and the white bag is the Portland Cement.
Travis L. Stevens
New member
Because I'm rearranging my photobucket account. Give it a little while and I should be able to update all my pictures. Depending on how busy work is, it could take the remainder of the week tops. :thumbsup: You can check my PhotoBucket Account for any pictures that you want by clicking my little, red house. Or you can follow one of these links
Travis's PhotoBucket - http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a184/TravisStevens/
Travis's PhotoBucket DIY Rock Sub-Folder - http://s11.photobucket.com/albums/a184/TravisStevens/Aquariums/DIY Rock/
Travis L. Stevens
New member
I wouldn't even try. If you've ever made Randy's Two Part before, you will see how quickly Calcium Chloride dissolves in water, and how hot it gets. If you were to mix this by hand, I would easily suspect burns caused by the heat of the chemical reaction. By the time you finish curing your rocks, it will be long gone, give absolutely no benefit (because it's gone), and be more expensive. Now, that is if it was to stay encapsulated in the cement like rock salt does. Now, I don't know what Calcium Chloride would do chemically if it mixes with Portland Cement. For all I know, it will explode with the force of a ton of TNT (though I highly doubt it :lmao: )
Travis L. Stevens
New member
oops
xinumaster
reef addict
So, does anybody know if a used ARM calcium reactor media can be used for DIY rocks?
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