What tile to use for growing out sps / lps?

reefguyty

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 25, 2016
Messages
67
Reaction score
48
Location
Ventura
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Can anyone recommend a type of tile I could use to grow out sps and lps? Ideally there are some large tiles I could get and cut them to size with the tile saw.

I saw some threads about making your own but I rather not deal with the mess at the moment :D
 

BigJohnny

2500 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 27, 2015
Messages
3,707
Reaction score
2,471
Location
North Carolina
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Any ceramic tile from home depot should be fine, just make sure if it's glazed it's clear (just glass) because if it's colored it could contain copper sulfate (blue or green) or other contaminants. Sometimes it's hard to glue to the glazed ones so you can scuff em up. I know people that prefer travertine tiles, which I assume are safe but have no idea.

Regardless of what you use, I would rinse then soak in a bucket for a few days to remove any surface contaminants.
 
OP
OP
reefguyty

reefguyty

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 25, 2016
Messages
67
Reaction score
48
Location
Ventura
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Any ceramic tile from home depot should be fine, just make sure if it's glazed it's clear (just glass) because if it's colored it could contain copper sulfate (blue or green) or other contaminants. Sometimes it's hard to glue to the glazed ones so you can scuff em up. I know people that prefer travertine tiles, which I assume are safe but have no idea.

Regardless of what you use, I would rinse then soak in a bucket for a few days to remove any surface contaminants.

I have looked at Home Depot for ceramic tiles before and couldn't find any that weren't glazed. That is good to know about the clear. I'll look for a tile shop in my area and see if they have any non-glazed ceramic tiles. I'll probably soak them in RO for a month or so. Thanks!
 

rtparty

2500 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
Jan 19, 2010
Messages
4,689
Reaction score
8,071
Location
Utah
Rating - 100%
1   0   0
I thought I remember seeing someone use those small 1*1 tiles that you use for backsplash. They come on a "sheet" and you just peel them off as needed.
 

mpsteve

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 4, 2009
Messages
141
Reaction score
113
Location
Pelham nh
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
bf6bc4e4e57ef14057ea1a815df2a1b5.jpg


These ones right here are found at Home Depot and are 6x3 I score them down the middle and end up with two 3x3 tiles. 4 bucks and change for like 7-8 of them
 
OP
OP
reefguyty

reefguyty

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 25, 2016
Messages
67
Reaction score
48
Location
Ventura
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
These ones right here are found at Home Depot and are 6x3 I score them down the middle and end up with two 3x3 tiles. 4 bucks and change for like 7-8 of them

Those look perfect, hopefully they have them at the stores around me. Can I ask what they are made out of? Thanks!
 

newbreefer316

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
May 11, 2016
Messages
1,024
Reaction score
250
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Travertine tiles, they come in all different sizes at home Depot. I picked up a bunch of 4x4's http://www.homedepot.com/p/Jeffrey-...tine-Tumbled-Wall-Tile-9-Pack-67542/100178748 but i wish I could find some 3x3. I throw them in the back of the toilet for a couple weeks before using to cure them a bit before use. If you get the smaller ones sold by the sheet make sure to clean off all the glue before using as well.
 
OP
OP
reefguyty

reefguyty

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 25, 2016
Messages
67
Reaction score
48
Location
Ventura
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Travertine tiles, they come in all different sizes at home Depot. I picked up a bunch of 4x4's http://www.homedepot.com/p/Jeffrey-...tine-Tumbled-Wall-Tile-9-Pack-67542/100178748 but i wish I could find some 3x3. I throw them in the back of the toilet for a couple weeks before using to cure them a bit before use. If you get the smaller ones sold by the sheet make sure to clean off all the glue before using as well.

Thanks it's good to know the name of those travertine tiles, they look perfect.

I picked up some of these marble tiles I found at HD. They are a bit more expensive and I am a little scared of them cracking the bottom glass of my tank if the fall off a rack :D

IMG_5611.jpg
 

Catfish2

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Jul 24, 2017
Messages
229
Reaction score
183
Location
Menifee, CA
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Travertine tiles, they come in all different sizes at home Depot. I picked up a bunch of 4x4's http://www.homedepot.com/p/Jeffrey-...tine-Tumbled-Wall-Tile-9-Pack-67542/100178748 but i wish I could find some 3x3. I throw them in the back of the toilet for a couple weeks before using to cure them a bit before use. If you get the smaller ones sold by the sheet make sure to clean off all the glue before using as well.
Thanks for including the link. I've been looking at getting some larger tiles, but wasn't sure which ones would be reef safe. Thanks!
 

Looking for the spotlight: Do your fish notice the lighting in your reef tank?

  • My fish seem to regularly respond to the lighting in my reef tank.

    Votes: 104 75.9%
  • My fish seem to occasionally respond to the lighting in my tank.

    Votes: 15 10.9%
  • My fish seem to rarely respond to the lighting in my tank.

    Votes: 8 5.8%
  • My fish seem to never respond to the lighting in my tank.

    Votes: 3 2.2%
  • I don’t pay enough attention to my fish to notice if they respond to the lighting.

    Votes: 3 2.2%
  • I don’t have any fish in my tank.

    Votes: 2 1.5%
  • Other.

    Votes: 2 1.5%
Back
Top