Aquascaping on bare glass

[JoeZ]

Is it ok to stack rocks on a bare bottom tank vs having an 1" or 2 of sand/gravel for cushion?

 

[Tetra1990]

It can work but having some sort of sub straight will act like a shock absorber if something gets knocked over. and yes, it looks natural, helps grow plants and inhibits natural digging for certain fish.

 

[JoeZ]

I'm looking to do about a 1/2" over all but had planned on adding this after the rocks were in. I'm not so concerned with them coming down. I'm not really planning on doing too much stacking. It's the rock physically on the glass that concerns me.

 

[Tetra1990]

Rocks can easily scratch glass. Deep scratches can turn into cracks and well, you know what can come next:/

 

[Dirt Diggler]

I would try to avoid putting anything in contact with the glass that could scratch or break it. Perhaps you could put a bit of matting under the rocks to act as a buffer. Something that will absorb any shock as Tetra1990 stated.

 

[Tetra1990]

You can place egg crate down. It will keep everything from coming into direct contact with your glass.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

I have rubber door mats under the rocks in my cichlid tank. Works well. Usually its not the weight of the rocks you need to worry about but a bit of sand getting stuck between them and the glass. Cushioning is a good idea. Especially if you have fish that like to dig.

 

[Cichlid-dude]

I built my rock structure first on the bare glass then put the sand in. I would suggest more sand than 1/2 inch.