The Ultimate DIY Rocks! - Page 9

samwrang · #**201** 12/08/2006, 01:13 AM

Does anyone have a trick on breaking up the salt if it comes in clumps in the bags? Its humid here and the entire bag is in clumps.

lildraken · #**202** 12/08/2006, 01:50 AM

The length of the curing time greatly depends on the thickness of your rock. some rocks from the same batch took 10 weeks while a few of the thicker caves still have not cured after 15. I gave up on those and started a new batch with thinner walls.
I think someone else mentioned earlier that you're supposed to wait 2 weeks before soaking in water. If you soak it too early, the "sludge" that comes to the surface of the water is a mix of calcium silicate hydrates and calcium hydroxide. to paraphrase what I've read, that "gel" is supposed to assist in the proper hydration of concrete so by soaking it too early in water, it separates the gel from your rocks and slows down the curing process.

samwrang, why not smash the bag against the floor and break up the salt with a hammer before you open the bag?

Hotrod324 · #**203** 12/08/2006, 02:18 AM

yeah just like ice... The rock salt i bought was all in very big chunks and i didnt like it. They werent clumped together, just big pieces. I got the amount i wanted and doubled bagged it in big ziplocks and took a hammer to it until i was satisfied. Multi purpose, helps with stress too

samwrang · #**204** 12/08/2006, 02:52 AM

We're working with the hammer in the bag - with the amount of hammering I am starting to think it would be easier to pay $10lb

Hotrod324 · #**205** 12/08/2006, 03:29 AM

Tie a rope to it and hang from the roof. Get some boxing gloves and name it (insert name of guy you worry about with your wife here) Jealous enough you'll end up with powder

impur · #**206** 12/08/2006, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Whisperer
I don't know. Ask them. They are all over my crab traps and my dock's posts. I catch gobies and blennies that now living in my display tank. Although the river's salinity is close to that of freshwater, many saltwater animals somehow can stand the lower salinity. I catch baby goliath grouper, blue crabs, snook, tilapia, sheepshead, redfish, ladyfish from my dock. Jellyfish swarm the river at certain time of the year. Stingrays come upsteam during mating season. Dolphins go upstream and we see them frolicking often. The point is, the barnacles can too.

Ahh so you live near the mouth then? Thats cool, wish i had a dock and river i could see all that life in.

barbra · #**207** 12/08/2006, 03:12 PM

Taking this thread back a few days - there is a cornstarch based packaging material on the market very similar to styrofoam peanuts. They are a small cylindrical shape and can be dissolved in water, you can actually eat them if you like, but they don't taste very good. I was wondering if anyone had tried using those? Unless someone says otherwise I think I am going to give it a go this weekend, I just hope they don't dissolve too quicly.....

blakeoe · #**208** 12/08/2006, 03:22 PM

sounds good to me. I would try seeing how fast they dissolve in a cup of water first. If they go quickly maybe try making your cement mix (as dry as possible), then add them. If you add them while you are making your cement mix im sure they will go quicker.

TekCat · #**209** 12/08/2006, 03:29 PM

So, what is the "Ultimate DIY Rocks" recepie?

thisisme · #**210** 12/08/2006, 03:32 PM

also what is the best way to cure it ??

cdentii1 · #**211** 12/08/2006, 04:03 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by TekCat
So, what is the "Ultimate DIY Rocks" recepie?

I second that

Hotrod324 · #**212** 12/08/2006, 04:05 PM

Through trial and error the best rocks i have come up with have been with the mixture of 2-3 cups sand/ 1 cup cement/ 1 cup rock salt. After i get the shapes i want i get screwdrivers of different sizes and needles and whatever else is small and poke them to give them even more holes and a more natural look

Travis L. Stevens · #**213** 12/08/2006, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by TekCat
So, what is the "Ultimate DIY Rocks" recepie?

I personally think that the 2-3:1 ratio of salt to cement is great. I have yet to have problems with it, but your milage may vary.

TekCat · #**214** 12/08/2006, 04:31 PM

Thanks, could "ready to use" concrete mixes be used (like Quickrete) or portland cement must be used?

Travis L. Stevens · #**215** 12/08/2006, 04:47 PM

the ready to use stuff has all sorts of rocks and such in it. The portland cement is prefered because it's pure in it's own right. No sand, gravel, rocks, fillers, etc.

TekCat · #**216** 12/08/2006, 05:22 PM

Thanks Travis. One more dumb question: just to play with this stuff, are there sources that sell portland cement in smaller quantities (other than 50lbs or more per bag)?

tslabaugh · #**217** 12/08/2006, 05:51 PM

TekCat,

I, too was looking for a smaller bag, but ended up getting the 90lb bag just because it being so cheap. I have made two batches of rock and have barely made a dent in the bag! lol Now, I have enough concrete to do any other DIY things that come around.

I do have a question about the finished rock though. Are the surfaces of the rock kind of brittle?

When I pick up the rock and squeeze it, I can feel some of the pores giving away. It feels like you could chip away pieces very easily, but I know in the tank there shouldn't be any chipping going on. lol Just curious

tankslave · #**218** 12/09/2006, 02:21 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by tslabaugh

I do have a question about the finished rock though. Are the surfaces of the rock kind of brittle?

When I pick up the rock and squeeze it, I can feel some of the pores giving away...

Its the kind of stucco/mix you use. Some mixes have this styrofoam-like stuff mixed in. Stick with the more sandy kind, and it should be OK. Also, if it cracks easily, you need to adjust the amount of water you use. Either its too water or too dry. Just takes some trial and error. You can also add some nylon fibers specifically for concrete reinforcement which you can mix in. Now for some pics.

First, a $189 "Reef Ceramic"

http://www.captiveoceans.com/mm5/mer...de=Loose-Rocks

Now one that cost less than $0.50:

Here's how you do it:

Happy DIY'in!

tankslave · #**219** 12/09/2006, 02:23 AM

I just noticed the irony in choice of background for that last pic. Oh well.

Also, if you're carefull, you can probably avoid any of those obvious bubble-wrap impressions. Just dont use too big pieces of bubble wrap.

Holmez221b · #**220** 12/09/2006, 11:15 AM

tankslave Yours looks better than the store bought!!!

redvipe2010 · #**221** 12/09/2006, 01:05 PM

Tankslave, very nice looking rock!

tslabaugh · #**222** 12/09/2006, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by tankslave
[B]Its the kind of stucco/mix you use. Some mixes have this styrofoam-like stuff mixed in. Stick with the more sandy kind, and it should be OK. Also, if it cracks easily, you need to adjust the amount of water you use. Either its too water or too dry. Just takes some trial and error. You can also add some nylon fibers specifically for concrete reinforcement which you can mix in.

I used portland cement not the stucco stuff. You rocks are very cool looking!

rufio173 · #**223** 12/09/2006, 03:46 PM

Seems like the stucco is the way to go... (looks natural and nice and white) definitely looks like it is going well. Seems like you can really build some really large reefscapes using some really big trashcans with this stuff.

Peace,
John

thisisme · #**224** 12/09/2006, 04:09 PM

tankslave do you add anything to the mix besides water and did you cure it? if so how long and how thank you

tankslave · #**225** 12/09/2006, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by thisisme
tankslave do you add anything to the mix besides water and did you cure it? if so how long and how thank you

Nope, just straight stucco mix. I played around with the mix/water ratio. I havnt cured it yet, so we'll see how that goes. I'll probably stick it in a rubbermaid bin with RO/DI water for a few weeks and see if anything leaches out.

Thanks for all the comments!

It was really Whisperer's doing! I pretty much gave up on doing anything with cement related till I saw what he did. Yea, the stucco mix seems to be good recipe straight out of the bag!