using pond foam

D

Delta_zeta

In Memoriam
I see a lot of people have used pond foam in their tanks and I'm going to attempt to do it but I'm just wondering...once it's actually ON the tank, are you SOL for getting it off in the future? Or is it possible to scrape it off?

At the moment I'm thinking of putting pond foam over egg crage and then mounting the eggcrate to the back of the tank rather than spraying it directly on.

Also, if I use it, is it impossible to cut into after it's dried? I was going to eventually add powerheads into the tank but I don't have the ones I want at the moment so I am hoping that I'll be able to cut into the foam after it's dried to "hide" the powerheads w/in it.
 
you can use egg crate but your going to have to weigh it down as it will float when you put it in water. When making your wall put in some rocks into your wall not only to weight it down put you can use it as a place to mount frags later.
 
Well, I also plan on making some caves from pondfoam so I was thinking that if I filled the PVC, that will be the legs of it, with cement first, that might be enough to hold it all down? Or am I going to need more weight than that?
 
you may have to test your peice in your tub to see if it floats or not then you can decide if you need to put more rocks on it to hold it down. and yes you can cut it after it is dried with a good nife so u dont tear it. u can break it with your fingers if u try hard enough. its neat stuff. im using it in my build acrose my calflo overflow and its atached to diy live rock that goes up to the overflow.
 
well i went ahead and did it today. I cut two pieces of eggcrate to fit along the back (the overflow comes inward quite a bit) in two sections. I sprinkled it w/ crushed coral and even though it looks "ok" and I'm sure it'll look better once it's covered in algae, in hindsight, I should have also put sand over it as it was drying.

I'm actually amazed at how little the can produced though. It took me 2 full cans to cover only a small area. Once I'm done w/ the major plumbing in the tank and it's indoors I'll take some photos of it.

Definitely an interesting experience w/ the foam at least. I learned something new today *laughs*
 
I was thinking of using some of it on eggcrate to build some "ledges". Then put it between some live rock pieces sticking out. Either that or use it to surround/envelope some PVC (to be used to prop up/support live rock) so it looks more natural (caves, or just to gain some height off the bottom) Then I would not have to try and bury it in live rock. Do you think it would work for either of those applications? This stuff cures and is tank ready quick right (24 hours?)
 
I was shaping/cutting my foam w/in a matter of a few hours. I was only cutting edges off though but it was all dry. I think if I had started to cut into the middle where it was thicker it might have been wet still. But from what the can says, it is setup in 24 hours yeah.

I saw someone that made caves out of pond foam just earlier today. I'll see if I can find the link for it
 
Cool, I'd like to see the caves if you can find the link. CO, huh? Beautiful state. I see your into Photography too. Been in Alaska 5 years now. Blows for egtting reef stuff, but it's awesome for taking pics. I think I have my pics linked to the red house www. thing.
 
if you scroll to the bottom of this link there is a guy that built his own rock "cave" structure. It's pretty cool looking actually.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1172753&highlight=pond+foam

Oh and CO is definitely beautiful. I'm not there right now though. My husband is deployed so I'm back in ID with family while he's gone so I can maintain some form of sanity. CO is ranked one of the most photographic states in the country and it's definitely true. I have some amazing photos. I've heard Alaska is pretty too though. What has you up that way?
 
Not the reef community that's for sure :( . Moved from NY "just to get it out of my system" (living in a wild place away from the city that is) - that was 5 years ago, a house, and a business ago. I won't be leaving anytime soon! It's an amazing place. On a mountain bike ride 10 mins from my house yesterday I saw some grouse, a moose, and a coyotte. It's amazing.
 
i am using a mix that is 80% real LR and 20% foam - pictures dont do it justice - you cant tell the foam from the rock after i epoxy coated the foam and covered it in LR rubble and sand.

pic shows the first bit and the egg crate shows where i will work my way round - it will all be freestanding and easy to remove in sections.

IMG_3667.jpg


IMG_3666.jpg
 
That looks sweet - can't wait to see it when it's done. Question, why are you "epoxy coating it"? I didn't think that was needed.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10494144#post10494144 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by IPT
That looks sweet - can't wait to see it when it's done. Question, why are you "epoxy coating it"? I didn't think that was needed.
Click to expand...

I think I read elsewhere that epoxy coating just allows you to put more rock and sand chunks over the foam and it holds better. (don't quote me if I'm wrong though...I can't seem to find the thread anymore)
 
Sections are made outside the tank - the whole point is that each section can be removed if needed...i will also build 3 towers in the same way - i can create height in my rock features that would be impossible with normal rock stacked up. For example, my weir is 27" high (tank is 31" total) yet the rock will only be 6" deep at the base. A normal rock wall of 27" height would be well over 24" wide and use up all the floor space.

The epoxy is for two reasons - i heard that UV light can cause the foam to go brittle over time and i wanted to protect it...and i wanted it covered in sand to ook more real.

pic below shows the section before the epoxy was applied - and the back/base of the same bit......no muck will get stuck under here as it will sit flush.

IMG_3627.jpg


IMG_3628.jpg
 
This looks fairly inexpensive to experiment with (as long as you are building sperate structures outside the tank). I like the idea of adding height to the rock wall while reducing the base foot print. I think I might give it a try =)
 
Tiggsy - I really like how your rock looks. Where did you find instructions on what you are doing? Also, how are you getting the eggcrate to hold it's 90degree when you're putting the foam on it? Have you water tested it yet to see how much it floats?
 
Twiggsy - please post more as you progress. I would like to see the towers.

As for putting sand on it, isn't that stuff pretty tacky before it cures?
 
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