my plywood and foam Reef

[eaj43081]

Have you had any problems with the "great stuff" after it is all set up, like when adding the rock hitting and breaking a chunck off or anything like that? I really like the cave look that it gives you, I am just worried about how it holds up. I would really like to do this look on my next tank.

[ChrisB]

sac-bobme,

Do you have any finished pics?

[aninjaatemyshoe]

Do you know if the black great stuff that you can get is still safe for use? In other words, is the dye innocuous?

[texreefer]

in my tank for a year and no problems with the foam

[sac-bobme]

umm sorta.
its drained right now, but I am moving and will be setting it up really soon.

I drilled the rear of it with so i have 2, 2inch overflows on the rear.

[don954]

the guy who has the big 600 gallon sea-ray reef has also done this, but he coated the foam with epoxy and then dusted it with aggregate sand while the epoxy was still wet. This gives the foam a natural look from day one..

[Daemonfly]

Nice.

There's always been the debate whether the foam will hold up in SW over time, hence the common coating with cement or epoxy.

Hope this one continues to hold up well.

[aninjaatemyshoe]

Polyurethane, which the foam is made from, is not entirely impervious to chemical breakdown. In a saltwater system, you'll have a number of oxidizing agents that can cleave polyurethane polymer chains. The question is how long this process takes in a saltwater system. You'll notice, for instance, that even polyurethane seat cushions will experience a certain amount of chemical change over time. They kinda get crusty and brittle - easily worn. This is probably what you will see in saltwater as well, though I would predict it will happen more quickly. On the other hand, biofilms, algae, and other growth on the surface of the foam could act as a decent protector against this chemical degredation. In any case, aside from aesthetic issues, this breakdown should not really be of much concern. Polyurethane is a well-established material in biomedical devices and implants. If you can implant in your body, I think it's safe to put it in your reef tank.

[B.friend]

Thats Awesome I Love It

[otterpop510]

very cool DIY..

i've heard issues of the foam breaking down quickly from UV (ie - lighting over reef tanks) and disintigrating.. was there any issues with that or any way that you compensated (you mentioned that you sprinkled sand/crushed coral on top surfaces..)..

[texreefer]

it will discolor and get brittle under uv light, however, only the portion outside of the water, so it has been a non issue for me

[chrismhaase]

So as long as the foam is under water it will not break down? Any more pictures and or updates? I am about to setup a 90, how many cans do you think I will need? 3 or 4? Also, you bought this stuff at Home Depot and lowes? Do they also have the black stuff there?

[chrismhaase]

Also, to make sure it doesn't float, I need to silicone PVC to the glass and then cover that with the foam???

[guntercb]

This tank is awesome and cheap to make. Great work.

My only concern is if I wanted to remove a fish. I have had to get some fish out of my tank and had to remove all of the rock to do it. I guess in a tank like this you would have to use fish traps? Have you had to remove a fish yet? How did you do it?

Cheers,
Chris

[Coyle]

Can you show us the filtration and skimming setup on your system? I am curious to know how much "extra" skimming/filtering power would be necessary to use on a system like this, without the natural bio-filtration of the live rock.

[Edward Smith]

Originally posted by Coyle
Can you show us the filtration and skimming setup on your system? I am curious to know how much "extra" skimming/filtering power would be necessary to use on a system like this, without the natural bio-filtration of the live rock.

I'm going to try a plywood tank in the next month or so. I intend on using a dedicated sump just with LR and a DSB but here's the beauty of it.....no $7-10/lb for "attrative" LR, I'm going with 200#'s of rubble and base for about $1/lb baby!

[texreefer]

i have a 40 gal DSB fuge and a 25 gal sump.. fuge is packed with live rock and macro,, have never registered any nitrates with salifert test kits. i very rarely add fish but once i do they are on their own.. so i take great care with husbandry to make sure they are healthy and have a healthy environment

[Edward Smith]

What do you mean "they are on their own?" Do they feed strictly on what grows in the tank? I have a buddy who only feeds his vegaterians once a week because "they feed off the alge on the rock."

[240-Reefer]

closed cell foam? Name Brand? Issues or any hints or tricks?

[texreefer]

yes... great stuff.... have fun and dont' get any on you

[aninjaatemyshoe]

"I am about to setup a 90, how many cans do you think I will need? 3 or 4?"

I would buy at least 4 (they are rather inexpensive). You'll want to use one for practice so that you can get a feel for how much it foams up as it can expand quite a bit. You'll need extras in case you can't do it all in one sitting as it is difficult to keep the foam in the nozzle from curring thus preventing you from using the same bottle again. 2-3 bottles should be enough to cover the entire back of the 90 along with making some 3D sculptures if you want.

[salty3]

Does the foam act as live rock if you add the CC and sand because then it would be pourus.

[aninjaatemyshoe]

I would not expect it to act much like liverock beyond what the sand and CC would do if used separate from foam - in other words I don't think the foam itself will act as live rock. In fact, one of my bigger concerns about using it is the possibility that it will act somewhat like bioballs do and be a nitrate factory... I plan on using a remote deep sand bed to help bring down any possible build-up of nitrates.

[Keelay]

Freakin' Awesome. Beautiful Aquascaping. I've wanted to do the foam thing for sometime now. My tank has been setup about a year now and would need to take it down to do the foam. Not sure I want to do it yet. Maybe for a new tank...

Kudos to you.

[Wolffvet]

Great looking tank! I'm definitely going to try the foam idea when I build a tank