Aquascaping GLUE and some "gluing" tips for your rocks!

[revhtree Verified Admin]

The other day I found THIS post on R2R and thought it could make a great QOTD discussion and also that these videos would be helpful to you. Not to mention @Tidal Gardens and @Glue Masters are both sponsors of the community here! If you want to create a beautiful and unique aquascape you're going to need an adhesive to keep it together. So today let's talk about it!

1. What is your favorite GLUE for aquascaping?

2. Besides GLUE what other adhesive do you find useful for aquascaping?

 

[takitaj]

I used BRS's thick gel super glue and accelerator to hold things temporarily then Marco cement to make it permanent.

 

[Kristopher Conlin]

I havent glued a rock scape yet but I am building a 120 gallon and will be trying it out soon! I can't wait.

 

[Alaeriel]

Does a two part epoxy count? That's what we used to secure our scape. Coming up on the one year anniversary in the tank and it's been moved to the new house without issue so far!

 

[walloutlet]

Glue and mortar... it's a "rock" solid solution to keeping the aquascape together. Only problem is removing the build for maintenance. So be smart about how you glue it together.

 

[Jilly92]

I tried gorilla glue first and that didn't work but I still use it for frags. Then I used a green putty that still ended up falling apart. I ordered dry rock online and it was dusty from shipping and I forgot to rinse it before gluing it all together, so that's my fault. Now I just stack my rocks, which comes in handy because I can pull them out to groom the rocks, like popping off vermetid snails, killing aiptasia or cleaning.

 

[Ratherbeflyen]

I used black sanded grout, lighting diffuser, and lava rock to make my aquascape.

 

[reefsaver]

I can't believe how little people use acrylic rods? You can literally build a solid as hell, dismantlable Lego aquascape without any glue. I plan to make a Pico reef using the Acrylic rod method very soon and will post a Build thread :)

 

[Jilly92]

I can't believe how little people use acrylic rods? You can literally build a solid as hell, dismantlable Lego aquascape without any glue. I plan to make a Pico reef using the Acrylic rod method very soon and will post a Build thread :)

I want to do this!

 

[Sharkbait19]

I hate the imagitarium putty. Does not hold at all, and my scape used to be built with it. I only use it now for fixing corals down or fixing rubble down when crazy glue isn’t available/able to be used in that location.
Otherwise crazy glue is best for me. All of my rubble was glued together using that and wedged in the tank.

 

[ying yang]

Im in england so did little research and 6 months ago seemed like a shortage of superglue everywhere.couldnt find no big bottles so ended up buying 8 x 50grams at £ 7.99 a bottle so £64 on glue for my 2 rock structures lol then bought some aqua forest stone cement to go over the joints as superglue in saltwater over time can degrade i seen some say so didnt want to take risk.
Watched that tidal gardens video above plus brs video to get idea of using ultra thin glue and sand to make the bond.i didnt use accelerator as the superglue set hard enough wirh 20 seconds holding anyway

 

[flyfisher2]

Some may hate me for this but here goes...
I just did my very first glued aquascape and I'm rather pleased with results. I went on the recommended glue sites and had my order all set to be placed and then it occurred to me "cyanoacrylate" the Dollar tree down the road sells that stuff. What to lose? So sent my daughter, (poor child) and began my project. I love the Tidal Garden videos, so instructive and he takes his time showing you how to actually do stuff without selling you the bridge. Anyway first thing I learned was don't use the Gel. Buy the runny fast drying stuff. KEY is to create a powder with the crushed sand left from smashing the rocks into smaller usable pieces and toss it at the joint spots then add a few drops of glue. It joins immediately. Almost like Acrylic solvent. It isn't super strong but it holds. Here's my logic. I need to get it from where I'm building to the spot in the tank where it will stay indefinitely. So the most stressful part will be the move and avoiding it to break? Well that worked for me. I built several pieces and put them all together in the tank to appear as one. So far so good. So $12.00 in Dollar Store glue later. This is my result.

 

[Jilly92]

Some may hate me for this but here goes...
I just did my very first glued aquascape and I'm rather pleased with results. I went on the recommended glue sites and had my order all set to be placed and then it occurred to me "cyanoacrylate" the Dollar tree down the road sells that stuff. What to lose? So sent my daughter, (poor child) and began my project. I love the Tidal Garden videos, so instructive and he takes his time showing you how to actually do stuff without selling you the bridge. Anyway first thing I learned was don't use the Gel. Buy the runny fast drying stuff. KEY is to create a powder with the crushed sand left from smashing the rocks into smaller usable pieces and toss it at the joint spots then add a few drops of glue. It joins immediately. Almost like Acrylic solvent. It isn't super strong but it holds. Here's my logic. I need to get it from where I'm building to the spot in the tank where it will stay indefinitely. So the most stressful part will be the move and avoiding it to break? Well that worked for me. I built several pieces and put them all together in the tank to appear as one. So far so good. So $12.00 in Dlooar Store glue later. This is my result.

The problem with that stuff is that it doesn't last

 

[flyfisher2]

 

[flyfisher2]

The problem with that stuff is that it doesn't last

Meaning,
It falls apart in the tank over time?

 

[flyfisher2]

I tried the Instant Ocean epoxy and ended up scraping it off
That didn’t hold and made a mess

 

[N3mo]

I used superglue and baking soda as the main bond, and then filled the gaps with aquaforest stonefix..

 

[John734]

The super glue method works great, I used the Glue masters glue and marco sand. Proper ventilation is the key! And I pre- drilled frag holes on everything.

 

[flyfisher2]

I tried gorilla glue first and that didn't work but I still use it for frags. Then I used a green putty that still ended up falling apart. I ordered dry rock online and it was dusty from shipping and I forgot to rinse it before gluing it all together, so that's my fault. Now I just stack my rocks, which comes in handy because I can pull them out to groom the rocks, like popping off vermetid snails, killing aiptasia or cleaning.

I see what you’re saying… you move your rocks frequently. I plan on leaving them in place unless something demanding they be moved happens.
In your case I would put the sculpture on acrylic sheet and lift that out if need be?

 

[HJ99]

Tidal Gardens Method with Gluemasters thick and thin. Used the thick for "tacking" in place then filled up the gaps with thin combined with sand and powder from the rocks. Had plenty of filler material from breaking the rocks. Sent the Mortar stuff back.