How do you support your rocks?

[Dargason]

I'm getting ready to set up a 200g I just got, and I have read many things about various ways to support the rock. I will have a 3-5" DSB and I'm wondering how most people set them up.

Do you put the rock under the sand so that it is directly on the bottom of the tank?

Do you build a platform (e.g. eggcrate) partway down in the sand?

Do you build a PVC support structure for it?

Do you use glue or tie wraps to secure the rocks together?

Thanks!

 

[camel shrimp]

You can go to the hardware store and buy pvc couplings that are used to join pipes together. For about 3 bucks yo will have a stable platform to set your structure on. That's what I did.

 

[McReef1]

To secure rocks together, regular fishing line works great! It is invisible in the water and obviously very strong.

Good luck!

 

[arnjer]

I put mine in before the sand that way if any of the critters dig in the sand I am less likely to have a rock slide. Also if you put the rock in and leave it a couple of days or a week before the sand you can see stuff that you may not want and take it out.

Jerry

 

[BradR]

PVC in the sand, supporting eggcrate or just rocks themselves works fine. This Dutch guys drills holes thru his rocks then puts PVC thru the holes for some incredible vertical structures. Don't remember his homepage tho.

GL

 

[canadawest]

His name is Tanu if I remember correctly, and yes he's got some outstanding aquascaping.

I myself just put the rock in on top of the sand, using the larger base rock first. Just pushed it down to firm it into place then built on top of that. It's quite stable even without fasteners or support materials. Just like in nature!

 

[SPC]

I also just placed mine on top of the sand.
Steve

 

[SteveP]

I put mine right on top of the sand.

Steve
8{I

 

[pthiruma]

I supported my rocks using PVC rods. drill four holes in equal distance as a square and
insert the rods and place them on the sand.
you can not do this after filling water in the tank. It will be messy. If you are planning to do this, do not break the rods
before hand, because the rocks will need different length rods to stand. you get the
PVC rods in TAP Plastics. The advantages of this method,
no cluttering of debris,
good water movement,
diggers will not make a rockslide,
clear plastic rod is not visible,

Pat.

 

[imow]

I give them lots of encouragement!!!!

 

[M.E.Milz]

I placed the rock on an eggcrate shelf buried 1" below the top of the sandbed. I used strips of eggcrate 3"-4" wide and placed on edge as the legs for the shelf. The legs should intersect each other so that they stay upright. Tie everything together with plastic cable ties.

 

[Dargason]

Hmm... lots of good ideas. I'm especially intrigued by the idea of vertical structures supported with acrylic rods. It gives you a lot of flexibility in your aquascaping. If you find the link to his pictures, let me know!

For those of you who just pile the rocks, do you worry about "rockslides?" I didn't worry about this for my 20 gallon tank, but I have avoided turbo snails and starfish because I'm afraid they'll know over rocks.

Piling the rocks is the easiest and most flexible and I'll probably go that route early on until I'm convinced the aptasia has been eradicated.

 

[Anonymous]

I've just got 2" dia PVC stubtubes (about 4" long). If I was doing it over again, I'd poke them full of 1/4" holes to let stuff get in and out of them easier. They're starting to grow the purple stuff after 8 months. You can see them on my webpage.

Ty

 

[FijiKen]

I had some 4.5" PVC drainage pipe connections leftover from my lawn drainage project (can get some at Homedepot). Used the flat side of the connection to rest on the tank bottom and shaped the jagged/cut side to hold the live rock (height varies from 3"-4" due to size of the bed). Drilled 1/2" holes on the sides of the cut pieces so that critters/gases can be released. Also used non-toxic hot gun glue to bond the base rock onto the PVC pieces. This worked well since it only takes a couple of minutes to bond (glue is like the silicon sealant used for glass tanks). I then stacked show pieces of Fiji rock onto the supported base rock so that it lies in the middle of the tank. This way I can remove the top rocks for easy access to the rear and back of the tank for cleaning or getting to critters. It also creates caves and openings for fish to swim in between. Will be placing live coral on top of the show pieces and possibly anemone and clam on the sand bed. Spent a few hours arranging but planning it out early for maintenance and looks is well worth it. Good luck.

 

[SuperLeet]

heres the rock driller's web page
http://www.tanu.nl/

have fun

(by the way i got it by typing "tanu reef" into google, it wasnt that hard

 

[Worm]

i use briefs myself

seriously, though, i used 2" diameter pvc, cut to 21" long for my 180(6x2x2), drilled holes in them, then cut eggcrate to fit my built in overflows so that i had 2 mirrored support structures. i used cable ties to strap the eggcrate to the pvc pieces. i kind of overbuilt placing the pvc pieces only about 6" apart. i think i have 5 lengths of pvc on each 34" support structure.

 

[davelin315]

You can always use epoxy sticks to glue them together, but I tend to just stack them on top of each other. Put some heavier pieces on the bottom so they don't move around much, and then start stacking. It's more fun to be able to move stuff around, and your starfish and snails won't be able to move stuff around much. As long as you check each piece to make sure it's stable, you should be okay. I don't have rockslides in my tank since the urchins got deported, but I do have pieces of coral that get kicked out once in a while by the fish or an industrious hermit crab. Just remember, if you're going to stack, just make sure it's stable. I created a structure, put a couple of pieces of large flat tufa on top of it to create ledges, caves and overhangs, and then built up again. It's kind of like a house of cards, but my dog running by won't make it tumble to the ground (and I won't lose my prize stamps to siblings either!).

Sorry about the Brady bunch analogy.

 

[shadetree]

I built a pvc platform for my rockwork. It keeps most of the rock above the sand and allows excellent water movement and gives me a full 12 square feet of DSB that is not compacted. I then used the platform as a spraybar and am very happy with the results. There is no detrius build up at the base of the rocks and you can clearly see the water movement coming from underneath and inside the structure. This rack is supporting 300 pounds.

Other pictures on my site show that the pvc is completely hidden when everything was installed.

Scott

 

[M.E.Milz]

FWIW, an eggcrate shelf has IMO a couple of advantages over a PVC frame. First, the rock tends to lock into the squares of the eggcrate, thus keeping the rock from sliding around. Second, the eggcrate keeps fish from burrowing too far into the sandbed.

 

[Dargason]

Shadetree --

That's a great idea! Very easy and practical. You could even install a vertical post or two if you wanted to support tall structures, or maximize the visibility of your rocks by supporting them with a structure similar to stadium seating.

Is that 1" PVC?