Rock Walls

[semper fi]

found these rock walls kinda like retaining walls that you can put in the tank to create different levels. got to figure out how to shape them. do not want just a straight wall but a little bit of a curve to it. got some bulk pebble from the lfs and figured if i mixed it with some silicone and made a paste of sort. now i just have to figure out how to hold it in the shape that i want. thought of wrapping it in wax paper and molding it around coffee cans to get the curves.

anyone with suggestions?

maggie

 

[wetwetwet]

If you got the time, just silicone one or two stones/rocks at a time leaving that to go off/set,so you're not trying to hold the whole structure together at once

 

[semper fi]

well i was going to use the smaller pebbles like the ones i have for substrate. i've seen them in the lfs by me and when i saw the price i figured i could make them for about a third of the price. if i can figure out a way that the mess won't stick to the "mold" i could also build caves and what not for the fish.

maggie

 

[wetwetwet]

Hmmm....maybe not such a good idea for small pebbles.

In that case howabout clay (so long as fish friendly?), mould it the the desired shape and push pebbles in - though I guess it will need to be fired then - got a kiln handy lol

 

[semper fi]

actually i do. got one for firing ceramics. heehee! the ones in the store look to be "glued" together with silicone or an acrylic. thought that maybe if i did not use a whole lot of silicone just enough to gett the stones sticky. am determined to figure this one out though.

maggie

 

[Great Lakes]

Maggie, make a ceramic one..

I have used tank sealer to glue some levels together before, but nothing as intense as a rock wall full of pebbles. Have to think about it for a bit. B)

 

[semper fi]

my husband has alot of scrap aluminum which is not painted on one side that he uses to trim out siding. i thought that i could curve the aluminum and coat it with a thin coat of petroleum jelly and let it dry. i thought that i could even use his brake (what he does not know won't hurt him!) to turn the edges to kep nice crisp edges. lay it down smear with petroleum jelly, coat with the silicone/pebble mixture and let dry overnight. when it is tacky dry i could remove from the aluminum mold and let dry completely. then boil it to remove any residue from the jelly.

?

maggie

 

[Great Lakes]

Maggie, here is an idea. Aquarium adhesive remains fairly flexible. What if you were to layer some of pebbles on a flat surface, and coat the topside with sealer? Make a few "sheets of these, then they shoul still be pliable when cure, and then you could tear them to any size you wanted, bend them, attach them to one another, whatever comes to mind. Then if this works well, you can sell sheets of it on the web and cut me in for a 20% creative consultants fee... B)

 

[semper fi]

do you think it would be too pliable to use as a retaining wall to creat different levels in a tank? that is how i was planning on using it. kinda as a barrier to hold stone or pebbles and create a level about 3" higher than the surface of the tank. know what i mean?

maggie

 

[Great Lakes]

If you put a couple of the sheets together, I bet it would work.

 

[semper fi]

i am going to attempt the first try tonight. will let you know how it works out.

thanks for all the help

mags