DIY Fish Tank Ornaments - Questions...

[Saltypuppy]

Ok so I am a little tight on money but I managed to get a hold of a Ten gallon tank for the two bettas I am going to be housing. I made a divider myself and it seems it is going to work out very nicely!

But i was hoping to save some more money and be able to make a nice realistic looking tank. So I was wondering if there is anything I can get for cheap that would make an awesome tank!

I read up a bit I was going to use rocks But from the sound of it I don't know if that is safe or not. So I am looking for any advice at all really.

I Do have Aquarium safe Silicon so I can use that for something!

 

[mgamer20o0]

what do you want the tank to look like? a lot of people use silk plants from the craft stores. just have to make sure there is no metal in them.

 

[Saltypuppy]

You can use silk plants from craft Stores. That would be so much cheaper if I use coupons!!!

 

[Saltypuppy]

Does anyone know anything about rock?

 

[mgamer20o0]

go to the land scaping places to get them cheap.

 

[Saltypuppy]

Hmm Sounds like a great idea! Thanks! Do they sell slate?

 

[Saltypuppy]

Any other idea anyone has?

 

[Vircomore]

If you have any old plant pots or other old pottery that you want to break up (and make sure there were never any chemicals used on them) - you can make a cave or other hiding spots with broken plant-pots.

In general - if it's something that:

1. Won't Rust
2. Doesn't contain any harmful chemicals
3. Won't leech any chemicals into the water
4. Isn't so sharp that it could hurt the fish

It can be used in an aquarium.

 

[RaptorBro]

yup i used granite slate a tiny pot and bought a plant u could also buy a pvc pipe and glue gravel to it since you want to use ur silicone lol

 

[FishEggs]

i just grabbed some rocks outta the back yard. soaked in water for a while to see if it changed the ph at all and if it doesnt i use them.

 

[Saltypuppy]

So you can use rocks? Are river rocks ok? Like the kind you can buy at the dollar store?

 

[crimson2112]

If you put a small amount of vinegar on a rock and it doesn't start bubbling, the rock will not affect your ph. I also read that you should run hot water over a rock thoroughly and set it outside in direct sunlight to dry. That will kill any potentially harmful micro organisms.

 

[crimson2112]

you can use rocks out of your yard or a stream or river as long as you use caution and use the vinegar trick and rinse/dry the rocks. I have 2 rocks in my tank that were dug up out of the yard (petrified wood).

 

[Saltypuppy]

OK Thanks so much. I will test them with vinegar.

 

[Saltypuppy]

Yay I tested my rocks and we are in the clear! I also made tons of plants with no wire for the tank.

 

[SeverumGuy]

If you're going to use rocks, poor vinegar on them. If it starts to bubble then the rock contains metals. That is harmful to the fish so don't use them. I actually have some realistic plastic plants I got from a craft store and picked off the leaf sections and made my own plants. I had to use the aquarium silicone to make the tall ones, but they look really nice. Also, you could go to a stream or something like that and find natural driftwood. Just make sure you boil it and let it soak for as long as possible to let anything living die and to let as much tannins as possible leech out before putting it into your tank. I've done that on several occasions.

 

[Saltypuppy]

That is exactly what I did! I bought some plants that were on sale and siliconed them together and added little rocks to make a base. I tested my rocks and they don't sizzle at all. So we are set there too.

Ooo That is a great Idea for driftwood. Is there any difference between the driftwood you use for a reptile cage and the find you use for a fish tank? My friend has a piece of driftwood that she used for a short time and I was wondering if it would be safe.

 

[crimson2112]

driftwood

I've heard using the kind for reptiles isn't safe for whatever reason. You would be ok to find some natural driftwood at a lake or something but you would need to boil or rinse with hot water, let dry in direct sunlight and seal it by brushing on clear laquer of some sort.

 

[Saltypuppy]

Hmmm I wonder what the difference is.

I may have to see if I can do that. I may just buy some though... it may end up cheaper than buying laquer and putting all the time into it...

 

[corrado33]

I'd be warry of rocks from the "Craft Store". If anything, go to a river and find rocks yourself. (Then test with vinegar, soak in water for a while to make sure it doesn't change the pH etc.) People do use what's actually called "Pea Gravel" in aquariums. It comes in many sizes from smaller than a Pea, to almost normal gravel size. I read that in an aquarium aquascaping book so I trust it. Keep in mind that if you use bigger than normal substrate it's gunna make it hard to vacuum the crap (literally) out of it.

Also, just buy some driftwood. I actually bought mine from this website, and I got a few extra pieces for free.

Bob's Tropical Plants <-- Also, I believe that's MGamer's site...

When I bought it the price INCLUDED shipping, so that's why it initially looked high. Best thing I ever did. I bought a small piece pack, and got probably 7 or 8 pieces. All nice ones too. Very good variety. Hmm, looks like he doesn't sell "Packs" anymore. Too bad, still a good site.