background

Plaster isn't waterproof. It'll dissolve and send your KH into the stratosphere.

Aside from that, no.

i've made a huge amount of backgrounds for my tanks and friends tanks .....i first started with cement which is great when you start off but there are a few draw backs ....
one depending on the size of your tank it is very very very heavy..and you have to cure it in water for at least 7 weeks so it takes a while ....

i've tried it with plaster which is not as heavy as cement.....but you need to coat it in epoxy resin or the plaster will leak into your tank making it into a milk bath....

best way i've found is to make them out of two part foam ....the stuff you get at hardware stores to fill in gaps ......you spray it and it expands to foam....great stuff.....once its cured it takes about a day to cure properly you can mold it with a knife to the shape or shapes you want then just colour it and give it a few coats of epoxy resin and silicon it to your tank .......realllly good stuff to use for back grounds.....

I'm still searching for the perfect thing to use to build a rockscape for the loaches.

Right now I'm using rocks. They work well, but they're a little hard to customize.

I was going to build a base out of foam and then cover that with a coat of concrete, possibly reinforced with a modeling mesh. I'd been looking at quick-curing concrete and at grout, liking its texture and wide color assortments. Except that concrete is made with lime, and lime will tend to drive up the pH. And I don't want to do that.

I was thinking that a good coat of epoxy or some other type of waterproofing might help mitigate this, but I haven't found anything conclusive on that. Haven't run any trials yet, still researching a few other avenues. The epoxy and plaster route could work, just seems like it'd easy to have it go wrong. Some area neclected or damaged could start to undermine it. If you really want to go that route I'd run a few trials first.

Other folks have done backs with foam, either styro or the expanding stuff, and sprinkled sand on a few successive epoxy coats. Works.

I also was reading something the other day that gypsum (plaster) would drive up your GH and make your tank look like chowder, but not effect KH.

DIY 3/D rock background

I just finished a 3/D styrofoam and cement background for my 110 Cichild tank, here is the link if you want to check it out, let me know what you think!
http://www.catfishheaven.net/day1.html

Did you put up that step by step intructions thing? That is pretty cool, and really helpful for whoever wants to do somehting like that. Good job!

Sure did!

Andy
Yep, I posted all that on my site to help out anyone that might want to give it a try. It was really pretty easy to do and I tink it turned out well.. I have three Tetras in it now cycling getting ready for the Cichlids.

Corax! Look!

I like the idea!! Looks great!
But, on a planted tank, the efforts may be hidden...

Now about those alien faces??


This graphic looks like the 'left face'...


That pic is from the website posted here. I shoulda enlarged it some, but I did not edit those 'rocks' at all.

The face on the right looks like the Mars Face. The left one looks, well, just scary.....

The pic may show up better if you link to the website yourself.
Click the link and scroll down.

Link:
Alien Rock Background

(this could get more comments in GCC -- Chit Chat Forum)

Just so you know!

80gJoe

Looked at it a million times and never seen them faces, you must have a vivid imagination.