My DIY Rock

[reefrubble]

http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...readid=1243167

[jefnalyssa]

Nice looking!!

[reefrubble]

Jeff , Thank you for the kind words . I have to make a lot more rock before I will be ready to put water in my tank again .


Ted

[DOTZ]

Man that looks good. What cement did you use? I want to make some, and did try once with gray portland cement(because there was no white anywere to be found) and after 4 months of curing it still covered the wall of the 10 gal tank with calcium. So now I need to find a good cement to try it again. It really looks great though.

[reefrubble]

I used Polybond Tile Grout , From HD . sunkool told me about the stuff . I couldn't find White Portland cement anywhere . Ted

[DOTZ]

Cool thanks alot!!! I'll go there and check it out. Is there any certain color or anything else I should know to make sure I get the right stuff, or will any of it do? Thanks again.

[DOTZ]

Also did you use any additives with it or just strait grout?

[reefrubble]

DOTZ , I used the snow white , but I think any of them will work . After I mixed the grout , I added some shell. I got the shell from a stone yard. I also added rock salt , that I got from HD . I used the one in the Blue Bag . To make the the frame work , to support the shapes , I used plastic gutter guard , and zip ties . Ted

[cougarguy]

I don't know if it will be a problem but I think everything in Custom Building Products product line have mold and mildew inhibitors in them to help with problems in wet area installations.

Custom is the manufacturer of Polyblend grouts.

Check out this link to their site: Custom Building Products

Also another thing that is in them is a latex additive to increase strength.

Justin

[dzeadow]

I was just on the verge of trying this out until I saw the post about mold/mildew inhibitors... what's a good alternative to the grout then?

[reefrubble]

There are no mold inhibitor chemicals listed in the MSDS .http://www.custombuildingproducts.c...ser=diy&lang=en

[sunkool]

Ted is right.
I used this for a long time before finding whit portland.
The msds tells what is int the bag.
Ted your link did not work so I am reposting it.

http://www.custombuildingproducts.co...er=diy&lang=en

[cougarguy]

Cool

I have used it over the years and I remember about 4-5 years ago them putting on the bag that there were mold and mildew inhibitors. I looked on the site but couldn't find the msds so I figured I would throw it out there.

Thanks for the links to the msds though.

[reefrubble]

sunkool , Thanks for the help . Ted

[dzeadow]

Cool.. I need to make some rock for my setup since I live 2 hrs away from any LFS so this would be awesome! I thought I saw in another thread the link to a video of how someone actually made a rock. What's the wait time.. cure for 24hrs soak for 3 days, dry for a day and then soak for 3 weeks?

[Markieb]

Very nice!
I tried some myself and am VERY please with the results.
http://s8.photobucket.com/remix/play...fs=1&os=1&ap=1

[dzeadow]

nice slide show. Do you guys see any problem w/ making this rock and then when it's all done curing out and pH checks out, pulling some of my base rock out and replacing it w/ this stuff? I'd be reducing my biofilter by quite a bit.. I guess replacing one rock at a time would be the ticket?

[Markieb]

I plan to seed my rock soon during the curing process with old tank water and some bought bugs and bacterias. It is outside in the sun and should do nicely that way in the sunny Houston winter if you want to call it that!

I mostly impressed with how light and porus home made stuff can be.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a23...07/Stacked.jpg

[dzeadow]

That looks great Markieb... I hope I can get some good looking stuff like that in a month or so!

[sunkool]

Originally posted by Markieb
Very nice!
I tried some myself and am VERY please with the results.
http://s8.photobucket.com/remix/play...fs=1&os=1&ap=1

Nice job Markieb

Here is mine.





Close up





Here is a video of how they were made.
In this video the cement was mixed with 4 to 5 parts sand to 1 part cement with 2 parts salt.



And removal after 24 hours

[dzeadow]

Sunkool, you mixed all the parts together and then put it in a box of sand right? Then the soaking process takes out the salt? What's the soaking procedure? I think you put it in the other thread, I just can't remember what it was..

[Markieb]

Thanks Sunkool,
I see your's is as porus as mine.
I really think it is going to be better than live rock for my inhabitants.

[sunkool]

Originally posted by dzeadow
Sunkool, you mixed all the parts together and then put it in a box of sand right? Then the soaking process takes out the salt? What's the soaking procedure? I think you put it in the other thread, I just can't remember what it was..

yes I mixed all together then added water then mixed again.
You can soak the rocks for a few days after 36 hrs. to release some of the salt. Then let the rock dry cure for 2 to three weeks. then soak again for a few days. Durring soaking change the water as often as possible.
No matter what you do the cement will not cure in less than 28 days.
On my 75g I did not wait for a full cure because I did not put salt in the mix. I just let the cement dry for 2 weeks filled tank with water, changed water 2x, then filled with saltwater. ph has maintained 8.8 for the past month.

[dzeadow]

Sounds easy enough! I think I might start this this weekend.. sounds like a fun, money saving project.

[jefnalyssa]

Can I use any sand? What type of salt do I use? Did Mark use oyster shell instead of sand?