egg crate help

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Misskiwi67

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Dec 19, 2002
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I have read several times that you should put egg crate under the rockwork when setting up a new cichlid tank. I have the sand, I have the rocks, but where do I get egg crate???

I went to Menards, the local "everything in one store hardware store" and they had foam insulation, and told me that using the egg crate used for bedding will probably leach chemicals into the water. I was also told that if I were to use this foam, not only would chemicals leach into the water, but the fish would tear it up and eat it once all the gravel was moved around.

What is egg crate usually used for so the people know what I'm talking about??? Where do YOU go to buy it, so I don't get told I'm an idiot by three different people. I trust the overwhelming majority of people here, but I just had too many people tell me I was out of my mind today. Two hardware store workers AND the petstore owner was just more than I could handle. Anyone want to boost my confidence and tell me what to do? I just really want to get this tank done RIGHT.
 
There is an "egg-crate" style flourescent light diffuser that is recommended as a DIY material in the book Saltwater Aquariums: Beginner to Breeder by Martin Moe Jr. The material in question is available in 2'x4' sheets as a cover for commercial lighting fixtures.

I don't actually know if this is the egg-crate you're supposed to be using, but it seems a reasonable guess.

Look for it at Home Depot or such-like and ask if they have any broken sheets :)

Good luck!
 
I did a search, and read every single post that came up. Light diffuser egg crate came up several times as well, so maybe you're right. The people thought I was crazy because I was descibing the wrong thing.

Can I get a confirmation that this is correct? And can I get a detailed description so I can help the people at the hardware store help me. :)
 
The light diffuser material is what I use - in many DIY fish tank applications. It is much like three-dimensional form of graph paper (1/2" squares) made of white plastic. I'm never without sheets of the material - Cichlid tank dividers, staging for live rock, holding material for unrooted stem plants in substrate-free veggie filters, in black form (more expensive and only from plastic suppliers) it is great for living back wall cover stuffed with Java Moss, building over-engineered RFUGs, building plenums, and of course, to spread the stresses when building elaborate rock walls for mbuna.
 
I can't confirm that this is the material you're supposed to be using, but I can describe it.

It consists of a grid of intersecting strips of translucent white plastic. The individual strips are 1/16 to 1/8 inch in thickness and about 1/2 an inch in depth (forming the thickness of the sheet as a whole). The spaces formed by the intersecting strips are about 1/2 inch squares.

Go to the lighting department to start your search.
 
I found mine at Home Hardware. I had to ask for it because it was hidden away in an obsure part of the store. I asked for Lighting Grate, I think egg crate would confuse people.
Then I cut it with wire cutters. Hide the sharp edge where you cut in the back part of the tank or somewhere where the fish are unlikely to dig it up. Make sure to place rocks and stack them so they don't fall BEFORE you add the sand as to be sure nothing is supported by the sand.

:)
 
Success!!! I found some. I asked for light diffuser grid, and the guy gave me a funny look, so I said egg crate, and then he suddenly knew what I was talking about. Funny how the same two words mean so many different things to different people. Thanks for all the help everyone!!!!
 
i remember egg crate being realy expensive so i used the bottom of a kellys bakery container which was exactly the same as eggcrate the problem was getting it without etting caught lol
 
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