Styrofoam?

[freshfish]

I was reading something that said people have used styrofoam like live rock because its good and porous. Anyone ever tryed this in their sumps? Anyone have any more info on the subject?

[MNGold15]

I have never herd of that, but personally I would be afraid of it giving off some chemical that could kill everything off over time. If you try it Chad, good luck!

[clownnut]

not Styrofoam, that will break down over time.
you can the great stuff to make liverock. if you all have been to stan's meeting. there are a lot of PVC+great stuff in that tank, i remeber the xenia tower for sure it all PVC+great stuff.

[David Grigor]

Are you thinking of cell-pore ? Pics look like foam but is actually blown-glass material.

This time when I aquascaping the 180g upgrade tank, I plan to use black foam for ponds instead of the great stuff. It doesn't really cost much more and I know for sure is safe for fish. I'm going to just be using it in the joints to help cover the rods and to fill in the gaps to keep nice and sturdy. Likely will then cover the larger exposed areas with crush coral to give texture. Much like what Stan did on the 1700g but only in the joints of the baserock.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=9232&Ntt=foam&Ntk=All&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Np=1&pc=1&N=62728&Nty=1

[mtfatwork]

I am pretty sure he is talking about great stuff. PM stan or Tico, I believe both of them have used it in their setups.

[wkjames]

Stan, could you share your method with us? I could barely hear you going over it at the meeting, and I'd sure love to hear a more thorough explanation. If you have the time to share, it looks like I'm not the only interested person.

David, where do you buy the black stuff you're talking about? What's it called?

[David Grigor]

Kelly, I posted the link right to the stuff. You much have not realized it. $7.99 a can at the Drs.


Stan took pvcs, coated it with great stuff let it cure for 24 hours, used fiberglass epoxy ( make sure it doesn't have any mildew inhibitors in it ) and mixed with some aragonite to seal the great stuff.

I'm a little worried becasue I will be using the fill the joints between base rock that I wouldn't be able to cover all the areas with fiberglass epoxy to seal it. This other stuff is made for ponds and it fish safe. Perhaps the other stuff is too, but since it's only $3 more a can, I'm going with the pond stuff and not trying to seal it. At RC in the large tank forum, there are several year old posts that used the stuff I linked and didn't put any coating on it so I'm pretty confortable with doing it....

[wkjames]

Kelly, I posted the link right to the stuff. You much have not realized it. $7.99 a can at the Drs.
You are right, I did miss it. Thanks David!

[djyox]

I have been checking this out over the past few days on RC, there are some pictures and walk through of how he did it, and I really like the idea:
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1188352

Then I will mix that in with "The Ultimate DIY Rocks" of 2:1 salt to portland and see what happens...

[David Grigor]

Good demonstration.

I've never cared for the giant wall look though.

[kvmn]

david goodluck on your 180g process,,,i did use black foam on my 180g glass tank but the foam doesn't stick too good in glass but it hold up in plastic overflow box ,,i think you may clean the glass very good or do something else so help foam stick to glass wall,,,and you may lay the tank down instead of stand up,,better bond that way i think,,,just try to help you out if you didn't it ,,but if you do then never mind,,,don't forget to stick some rock on foam it will look very cool,,,,good luck bye dave

[David Grigor]

I'm only planning to use it in the joints between rocks when using the rods. Not planning to put on the back or overflows. I prefer the nice clean look of keeping the back scraped and coraline algae free. My personal tastes keeping it clean gives a better 3D effect and more crisp look.

[REEFSTOCK]

Chand it is NON- pourous so the water cant get in there and break it down like regular foam sheets.
I really like having my tank's filteration remote (even if its live rock) and really want to give the foam a try some day on one of the many set-ups!

I presume the paint is just for looks. If so, then I imagin you could use the foam as a pin board to move frags around. Sound right?

[Soltaker]

I presume the paint is just for looks. If so, then I imagin you could use the foam as a pin board to move frags around. Sound right?

Sure! You could use it like the ceramic Frag Stations....you would just have to weigh them down somehow oryour frags would float away hehe

[REEFSTOCK]

Magical floating island theme!

[David Grigor]

Mount your lights under the tank, glue a few chairs to the ceiling and have a little fun with it...

[wkjames]

I have been checking this out over the past few days on RC, there are some pictures and walk through of how he did it, and I really like the idea:
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1188352

Then I will mix that in with "The Ultimate DIY Rocks" of 2:1 salt to portland and see what happens...

Here's a more detailed look at that guy's process. Thanks for the original link. Really cool!
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1184780

[djyox]

Thats sweet IMO. I think it looks good, and is a great idea for like a 55gal that is too tall, all you can do is go up.