Cave Aquarium Build Journal

[IShallNtEatFish]

Make some holes in the foam, put some rocks in there, put cement over them, keep doing this till it stays down

[vexxiang]

Holes/rocks, great idea! Going to try that.

[Sk3lly]

Yea as its supposed to be a rocky cave, rocks inside it wouldnt look out of place at all

[vexxiang]

Thanks for all the ideas! So here's what I did. I made several holes in the back and just started digging out at much foam as I could. That helped a lot in my submerging test. Then I filled the cavities with rocks and patched the holes with concrete.

All this work cause a lot of cracks, chips, and holes in the front of the cave so after the back dries I'll have to go back and redo some colored crete. Another week of curing and then I'll try to submerge it again.

Whew!

[Goldfish loach boy]

Seems like a long process! But I think that all the wait will be worth it!

[venymae]

Looking forward to it!

[SgtMjr]

Does lead only cause cancer in California? I guess i better move,)

[Brookster123]

Originally Posted by SgtMjr

Does lead only cause cancer in California? I guess i better move,)

a lot if the products I come in contact with at work say "known to cause cancer in the state Of California" I say.." Good thing I'm not in Cali, I'd be a goner haha"

[KeeshyRee]

You have inspired me! Think I'm going to try to build this. Maybe not so elaborate though lol.

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[Fishies86]

Wow that's so cool!

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[bob812many]

He may have been mentioned, but Brandon Wilson on YouTube has an amazing tank build on there.

Wife got a line on a 50g upright, oh Lord what's a poor boy to do

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[vexxiang]

I think I want to grow moss on this structure. Any tips? What kind of moss should I get for a look of nice spotty carpet? Can I attach it with regular superglue?

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[FishEggs]

I think any of the mosses would look good except java.

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[vexxiang]

Another water test, and it still won't sink. Still thinking about how to salvage this thing, but I would definitely not recommend anyone use this process for creating an aquarium background/ornament.

Great stuff is way too buoyant, it won't submerge. Structure weighs about 17lbs at this point, not sure how much weight I can safely add.

Another issue I am having is that the concrete is cracking and chipping off when I manhandle it...I hope it will survive in the aquarium.

SO...if anyone is still following my madness, here's what I did next. I tried using acetone to dissolve the great foam, and that didn't do anything. Then I grabbed a chisel and chopped into the top of the cave, the overhang part, and started gutting out more foam. I then filled in the cavity with yet more concrete, and patched up all the cracks and chipped areas.

Now another week to cure again. This weekend I start on the stand.

[vexxiang]

Also I had some left over concrete last week, and I was playing around and tried to make a rock by crumbling up my used paper towels and coating them in concrete.

Don't do that.

[venymae]

UGh. I hate when I run into road blocks after so much work! Keep going, you'll get it eventually!

[vexxiang]

Framing is done on the stand. Next comes interior shelving and then an oak skin and doors, and trim.

While building I felt like my plans were overbuilt. So I skipped a couple of 2x4s in the middle, since it will be supported by 1x6 oak boards across the front. Kept the center support in the back since it will be mostly open except for the left compartment where the filter is going.

Seems sturdy and level.

[Brookster123]

You should add some jack studs on ends from top to bottom, this will take the load off just the screws, also consider attaching frane to wall studs or adding some feet under it to keep it from tipping..

[vexxiang]

Ok ill do that.

[vexxiang]

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