Diy live rock

[ebondaruk]

thats pretty cool!

 

[brainless chef]

I did the same thing here are some pics of my rocks.

 

[TomStav]

I did the same thing here are some pics of my rocks.

They look great, what recipe did you use?

 

[brainless chef]

They look great, what recipe did you use?

2 parts portland cement 1 part crushed coral substrate and just enough water to mix but not watery. Then i did 1 part corse salt and placed the mix in the molds i made in a tub with wet sand. Covered with sand and let it sit for two days to harden.

 

[jwalsh]

The idea behind the salt is to give it texture? Then after it is dry you cure it to get all the salt out?

 

[jwalsh]

Does some of the sand stick to outside of the rocks when they are dry then?

 

[TomStav]

Does some of the sand stick to outside of the rocks when they are dry then?

Nope, dries and the sand brushes off, just use damp/ moist sand when covering it.

 

[brainless chef]

The idea behind the salt is to give it texture? Then after it is dry you cure it to get all the salt out?

The salt gives it texture plus when you cure it it desintigrates leaving nice pourus rock.

 

[jwalsh]

This is awesome! It looks as good as the real thing I will have to give it a try! It doesn't sound hard at all

 

[jwalsh]

When you cure it do you cure it all in saltwater? Or fresh water and the salt disolves and creates the saltwater?

 

[brainless chef]

You have to soak it in regular water changing the water daily. What you want is to test the ph when you add the water then again a day later and it should be the same. After you reach this then you cure it in salt water. I used the water i pulled out from the water change and left it runing for a week with some of my live rock and 2 power heads.

 

[TomStav]

This is awesome! It looks as good as the real thing I will have to give it a try! It doesn't sound hard at all

It's so easy, I did all mine in 30 mins. But then you have to wait for 1-2 months to cure it. But it's worth it to have cheap, custom shapes, that don't destroy reefs.

 

[TomStav]

When you cure it do you cure it all in saltwater? Or fresh water and the salt disolves and creates the saltwater?

You cure it in tap water, changing it every other day. It's just to get out all the bad stuff from the concrete (and dissolve all of the salt). After a month or so if you leave it in the water for a few days without changing it, you test the ph and make sure it's dropped to a steady 8, then you can cure it in SW for a week and your done.

 

[jwalsh]

How long do you cure it in the saltwater for? I just want to make sure I do all this correctly because I'm adding it to a tank that is already up and running for 6 months. I just never had enough extra cash to get some extra rock. So when I saw this thread I figured it was a good safe cheap way to get some nice looking rock

 

[TomStav]

How long do you cure it in the saltwater for? I just want to make sure I do all this correctly because I'm adding it to a tank that is already up and running for 6 months. I just never had enough extra cash to get some extra rock. So when I saw this thread I figured it was a good safe cheap way to get some nice looking rock

As long as the ph has hit a steady, safe range (around 8 ) then technically you are good to go and put it in your tank. The saltwater cure is purely just a precautionary, I plan on soaking it in SW for about a week. Just use some from your partial water change and throw a heater and powerhead in there, that way bacteria etc can get a head start in the rock before you put it in your tank.

 

[Josh1158]

Thats a great idea. I used lava rocks, but that woulda ben better.

 

[jwalsh]

Thanks for the tips guys I'm going to go give it a try tomorrow ill post pics when its done

 

[brainless chef]

Yeah im on vacation and i left mine in the tank half full usint the water from the water change of my other 2 tanks. Left it runing for 11 days with the light on 2 power heads and 2 of my nice live rock in front of the flow from the power head.

 

[jwalsh]

Good idea. That will seed it. I will do that as soon as I get to that point

 

[TomStav]

You guys should post some pics up when your rocks are all finished, I'm STILL waiting for mine to cure, probably due to that massive 30lber, but the ph levels are dropping...