Diy Internal Background

[mattyp84]

Hey guys, after lasts nights hopeless hunt online for some styrofoam/insulation, i headed out today and pick up some cheap from a builders merchant as it was damaged on one corner, hoever it was still 4 times the size i needed, and only 4 quid, i also picked up a tube of aquarium silicon and a gun for it, thinking of starting this project tonight.

Total Spent so far

Styrofoam £4
Sealent £10
Gun £3

So my question is if anyone has tried this before and if they have any tips, or just some ideas at the moment for some nice architecture.

Im thinking of making it cover the length of the rear and 1 side of my tank, however im not sure yet how many pieces to construct this in......... aswell as i want to to be tight as i dont want any fish getting trapped, so how much room should i take off the Styrofoam lengths to accommodate the concrete finish etc ?

I may get some pics up of it at some stage if anyones interested too.

Tips and Advice VERY much welcome!

 

[adam172]

ohhh sound like a good little project good luck keep us posted and defently get pics up of each stage i would be interested i love this kind of thing!!

 

[mattyp84]

Ok so after playing around for a few hours i got this



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NOW im not really too keen on it for the following reason


it doesnt look very natural
the space for the pump kinda ruins it imo

any ideas how i can make it a more natural effect? as most of the ones ive seen look very realistic

Matt

 

[bae1994]

im currently doing this i got a wisk bent into a 1cm loop and clamped in pliers then a blow torch i marked the polystyerien and heated then carved the grooves out

so it had similar look to this

then blow torched the whole thing for a secod or two just to melt the top surface to give a rock texture

i then used stone coloured pond paint wich is 14 pounds and is safe then painted it on and it looks great

 

[chrisbassist]

I think your biggest problem is the empty space. You have a few nicely carved rocks, but massive gaps between them. Try only carving in cracks between the rocks, if that makes sense.

 

[mattyp84]

gona have another go in a hour or so, il get a pic up then, im think of moving the filter out away from the back, and placing it on the side of that tank that is flsh to a wall, aswell as maybe making another side piece around this, still not particuly looking forward to mounting this inside the tank, i have had the idea to do more jagged, squareISH rocks as this would be easier to split into 2 pieces or 3, like a jigsaw, il keep u posted, and keep the ideas coming aswell as advice - this is the first time i tried something like this!

 

[mattyp84]

Ok 2nd attempt this time ive just carved into 1 piece which i will "affix" some how to the inside rear of the tank



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Uploaded with ImageShack.us



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Looks alot more natural, ive gone over it with a "lighter" as i got no hot air gun, and my GFs a hairdresser so i dont dare touch her hair dryer even though it probably gives out more heat

and ofc i expect once its been coated with concrete it will look alot better, i may even add some raised sections, what u guys think ?

 

[mattyp84]

Ok im heading out this afternoon and was thinking i may pick up the cement, is there anything i need specialy or is Normal Cement and sand ok ?

 

[chrisbassist]

I think it's a dif type of cement. Might be good to wait for someone who knows or do some googling for others articles.

 

[mattyp84]

Ok quick update for any1 whos following this, cant seem to find any details on the exact type of cement so im gona leave that for today, gotta go out for a bit now as me and my GF have our 2nd scan today on our baby!, ive put up some more shots of how its coming on and i think its looking 1000% better than my first attempt



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Uploaded with ImageShack.us

This time aswell as cutting out groves in the orignal piece ive added differnt height bits and singed them with a lighter, im thinking of making a big ledge or possibly and kind of cave............

but maybe thats a bit adventurous

let me know ure opinions etc

 

[VickiandKev]

IF you use cement - you then need a pond-safe concrete sealer for over the top - but this can't touch the polystyrene as the sealer will melt it! Annoying and kinda the long way around, but it does create a good effect!

Otherwise, stone-coloured pond paint is a good alternative option and one I would use, if I didn't have to make it big plec-safe!

 

[mattyp84]

Hmm this is getting harder now, i though the cement/paint would be easy, but this appears expensive if i can even find it................

other people who made journals etc seem to use concete, but these are ones i seen mainly on cichlids sites, and i know they like a higher ph, so i guess the concrete doesnt make a huge difference, im looking to put this background in my tropical tank (neons, gouramis etc etc) so i really need to find a way to sort out the cement/paint, im really looking for ideas or if any1 knows a decent website for buying this sort of stuff cheaply, i dont really wana spend 20 quid on a tin of paint, seeing as im gona use hardly any of it...........

bae1994 - where can i get this paint ?? do they do small sample pots ?

 

[VickiandKev]

http/www.gardencentre.co.uk/product.asp?id=6559&sr=gbase&ad=6559

This is about the cheapest I've found it - and you could always sell what is left of the pot.

 

[mattyp84]

yer thats all i could find too, was hoping to do a few colours rather than 1 though.

other option is to cover it in concrete and let it cure some where else for a few days, would this work ?? as id i dont really wana use a concrete sealer on it as this will melt the styrofoam, and ofc i wasnt going to concrete the back...........

so i guess my question is can i just concrete it and cure it in a bath for a few days and then keep an eye on tank ph levels ??

if not what about this resin ? hows that gona work if i dont concrete EVERY side?

darn i thought this would of been easy, apart from the actual carving.....

 

[bae1994]

yep about 15 quid but youll have loads left so you could build a pond or sell the rest on

also if you wanted to make it cheaper then buy it from a store use what you need pour some gelatin from a supermarket in it leave to jelly up then return saying it was gone off

also just concrete the front and seal the front the back leave plain as the polystyerien will be fine touching water dont need to seal the back