The Ultimate DIY Rocks!

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<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8712462#post8712462 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by tankslave
Its the kind of stucco/mix you use. Some mixes have this styrofoam-like stuff mixed in. Stick with the more sandy kind, and it should be OK. Also, if it cracks easily, you need to adjust the amount of water you use. Either its too water or too dry. Just takes some trial and error. You can also add some nylon fibers specifically for concrete reinforcement which you can mix in.
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I used portland cement not the stucco stuff. You rocks are very cool looking!
 
Seems like the stucco is the way to go... (looks natural and nice and white) definitely looks like it is going well. Seems like you can really build some really large reefscapes using some really big trashcans with this stuff.

Peace,
John
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8715056#post8715056 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by thisisme
tankslave do you add anything to the mix besides water and did you cure it? if so how long and how thank you
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Nope, just straight stucco mix. I played around with the mix/water ratio. I havnt cured it yet, so we'll see how that goes. I'll probably stick it in a rubbermaid bin with RO/DI water for a few weeks and see if anything leaches out.

Thanks for all the comments! :) It was really Whisperer's doing! I pretty much gave up on doing anything with cement related till I saw what he did. Yea, the stucco mix seems to be good recipe straight out of the bag!
 
Has ayone come up with a neutral buffer we could add to the rock curing water? At 6 weeks I have put my rocks in my 180g tank with fresh water but I'm adding 1 tablespoon of muriatic acid every morning and evening to keep the PH neutral. It would be nice to have something solid I could throw in there to act as a buffer.

Rob
 
Good question ROR ... I've been following this thread for a while and I don't believe I read where anyone has tested and listed their results.

Adding muriatic acid is the only thing I can think of doing to help speed the process. I imagine if the water is too acidic it can begin to break down or weaken the rock. I don't know this for a fact, but I've 'acid etched' MANY poured concrete floors and the % of acid to water is important.

For instance, too much acid for instance will turn a patio block into a pile of sand. I've done this.

I have NEVER made my own rock or tried this with the acid ... I'm just throwing out a thought here ... or maybe more of a precaution.
 
I suppose you could add one of those buffer solutions they sell for your tank. Will check my pH later...

Are you guys saying you added the rocks to your tank and you have to add acid to keep the pH down?? what pH are you getting? Maybe just keeping argonite in a bottle of water would raise the pH just as well. I suspect that once the rocks are in a tank, the pH will be ok. I mean, we add kalk to our tanks, which has a pH of 12, and the tank hardly gets above 8.4.

This would be a good question for Randy Holmes Farley...
 
My tank isn't set up yet, I'm just using it to neutralize the rocks. I was curing them in garbage cans, but didn't seem to be getting anywhere, even with water changes.
 
Ror, go back to page 1 of the second half of this thread and look for the cement wall thread link posted. The user of that thread used yeast to help cure.
 
Alright, i have been following this thread for a long time now, i even made my own rocks! I used 1 part portland type 2 cement to 2 parts aroganite, 1 part rock salt. I made these rocks almost two months ago, yet the PH is still upwards of 9.5... I have the rocks in a garbage can, filled with water, and a little bit of vinegar, i change this water every day, but nothing seems to get the PH lower, i even tried 2 weeks of the "yeast" Trick, but that wont work either. I was wondering if anyone knows of something to quicken this process.... Thanks
 
TheHuff, I suspect that your rocks are pretty think. Did you allow the cement to hydrate OUT of water for a couple of weeks before you started to soak it in water? Also, in my opinion, putting the rocks in moving water, perhaps with an airstone or something will cure the rocks faster. In still water, we're only dependent of diffusion (movement of molecules from higher concentration to lower concentration) to cure the rocks. Circulating the water will definitely help in the process in my belief.
 
The rocks did sit out of water for about a week before begining the soaking process, is that not long enough, could i take them out now? The water is being moved around by a small pump, i htink a maxi 400 or something.

Has anyone tried muriatic acid, i have seen it mentioned a few times, but no one has posted there results, good or bad...
 
i'm curing a second batch of rocks myself at this time. I've noticed that after letting the cement hydrate out of water before I soak them, they do not produce that "sludge" that leaches out when I finally soaked them. I haven't tested the pH yet but the water they're in looks crystal clear after 4 days.
 
Muriatic acid will lower your PH but you will have to add it a couple of times a day.

I will be away for a couple o f weeks, so I've put mine outside to let the west coast rain go to work on them. It's almost like a river here :D
 
I am curious about the longevity of the stucco mix. As a Californian used to LOTS of stucco facades I was surprised to find that it is not found at all in the Mid-Atlantic area and according to local builders it is because it doesn't stand up to the moist weather in this area, in fact it has to be specially ordered if you want it at all. With that in mind I would be carefull about using it too extensively until there are some long term success stories.
 
I understand that muriatic acid will lower the PH, but will it speed up the time it takes to cure the rocks? That is my question, i have seen many people suggest it to speed up the process, however no one ever returns with results. Does anyone know if it will in fact speed up the process?
 
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