My first cement/rod rockscape

shollis2814 · Jun 25, 2016

Picture first. I took about 3 days to do this and just finished up tonight.

This picture is about 95% complete. I took it before cementing in the last two pieces. You can't see the rod anymore and I packed crevices that could use support with hydraulic cement. The goal was to create more areas of light for higher need frags in a tall tank (36 bowfront). I have three high light shelves at the top and I am thinking of trying to get some Cyphastrea to grow over the old brain coral skeleton in the lower right.

I taped out a footprint on the garage floor (roughly 8 x 10) and tried to keep everything in there. This weighs 13 pounds (That should be ok for that footprint, yes? I don't want to crack the bototm of my tank because of too much weight) and will come within an inch or two of the water line depending on how much I bury it. The whole things seems stable. I have three heavy rocks cemented together to form the base and I tried to counterbalance each level.

I let it cure for a while and then I put it in a bucket of saltwater. How long should I let it cure in that bucket before introducing it to my tank? I am leaving town Sunday for a few days. Should I just let it set until I get back next week, or are these things pretty good to go once they have had 24-48 hours to set?

shollis2814 · Jun 25, 2016

Finished tower after everything has set.

Daniel@R2R · Jun 25, 2016

Cool! great job!

Lionfish Lair · Jun 25, 2016

What did you use for the rod?

shollis2814 · Jun 25, 2016

Lionfish Lair said:
What did you use for the rod?

It was a fiberglass driveway reflector from Lowes. It was about $2. The cement was around $9. Gloves and a plastic cup to mix cement brought the grand total to less than 20 bucks.

shollis2814 · Jul 4, 2016

Got the tower in and moved some frags over.

There is a natural lean to it that makes me uneasy, even though I have put it on the floor and jumped around and tried to knock it over. It's just the way the rocks fit into one another. It is modular. The rock with the frogspawn is the joint. The fiberglass rod goes 2-3" down into the rock below. I didn't plan it that way, but the cement didn't hold well there, and it made it a lot easier to get the base in and situated, and then the top part.

Blastos are ticked at being moved, but my diamond goby wasted no time in claiming the base as his new...base.

Cyphastrea up above. I am hoping it will encrust the brain skeleton.

I like my frogspawn coming out of the side, but I think it is too shaded. I might have to end up moving it again.

Birds nest front and center.

I forget what this one is.

Tiny frags of Superman Montipora

I forget what this one is. It has gotten bumpier since I had it in the tank. It's up near the top in some good flow, so I hope it takes off.

There is another frag around back of the last shot.
So far, I am pleased. It's a little big for this tank, but I hope one day to upgrade to a 55 or 75, so I was building for the future

eric.battani · Jul 4, 2016

If it makes you worried about it leaning, you could get a couple thick sheets of acrylic/polycarbonate to make a stable base by drilling some holes in the acrylic, then drill some matching holes in the base of your tower and use zip ties to hold it together. You can bury the acrylic under your sandbed and you will never see it.
How long did you let the tower cure before placing it in your tank?

eric.battani · Jul 4, 2016

ImageUploadedByREEF2REEF1454817137.474304.jpg

Here is a picture of the way I used the acrylic sheets to make my rock work look like it's defying gravity. My sand covers all the acrylic so you can't see any of the zip bands or acrylic

shollis2814 · Jul 4, 2016

eric.battani said:
If it makes you worried about it leaning, you could get a couple thick sheets of acrylic/polycarbonate to make a stable base by drilling some holes in the acrylic, then drill some matching holes in the base of your tower and use zip ties to hold it together. You can bury the acrylic under your sandbed and you will never see it.
How long did you let the tower cure before placing it in your tank?

I used hydraulic cement. I let it sit in a 5 gallon bucket of water and I changed the water every day for a week until ph and alkalinity stabilized. I started with tap water, but as things slowed down I put in the same LFS salt water I use for water changes. I let it sit for a couple of days with no noticeable changes in pH or alkalinity in the bucket. About 10 days total.

Watching things carefully in the DT and watching for shifts, but I think it's OK. I have read of some folks using this hydraulic cement and putting it in their tank the next day.