DIY live rock??
 

I have herd of this before and i think i have seen it done but anyone know how to make live rock? or know who does?

Ive made some nice rock using sand/salt/cement at 1/2/1 ratio. Do a search here there is a thread on it from a few weeks ago. Also there is a HUGE thread on reefcentral Here:
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...5&pagenumber=1

Have fun, I found it was.

there is some pics of mine on this thread

http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=38808

I just made 3 small "plates" of it. It is still curing, so I don't really have alot of feedback to provide. All I used was cement and crushed oyster shells...no real exact ratio, but probably close to 2:5 (cement to shells). Water runs straight through it :lol: It feels light and "airy" (is that really a word?) :lol:

This week I will put the MMLR plates into my toilet tanks to finish the kuring process (different from "curing"...not a typo). I shoul dhave it kured in 2 to 3 weeks in the toilet :lol::lol:...then it will spend a few days in some plain water to test if it is now tank ready.

If anyone will be interested in the results, please PM me or bump this message again in a months time. I hope to have my results then.

I like mine. Its almost time to start up again.

Wow this is very interesting is there a certain type of cement that is prefered? i like the idea of softining salt opposed to rock salt as it s bigger.
basiclly all you need is cement sand salt and crushed shells?

I would really like to try this.

El Guappo I'll let you know when I'm starting some and invite you over for a rock making Sunday.

That would be awsome....

i have just come up with a few ideas for shaping. i have a jawfish and would love to set up some underrock tunnels for him. i was thinking of using some pvc on the bottom for the shape. as long as i can get the pipe out later.

Regular old portland cement is the stuff you want. I prefer the softener salt, oyster shell mix, makes for nice porosity. I've got mini brittle stars that love the few pieces I've put in the tank. They like to hide in the crevices between the oyster shells.

My tank is pretty small and the rocks I made are smaller. I used coarse salt and cement only and they seem to turn out pretty good.

My tank is even smaller but i would like to consider the posibility of building something to "FIT" my tank. end to end in the back. thinking of using a wood form for the 90,s in the corners at the back and make a small wall for the back.

Here are some pics of my first MMLR attempt.

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/MMLR-1.jpg

Close-up of the surface of the rock.

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/MMLR-2.jpg

Here you can see how the water passes through the rock. All the water from the tap is passing THROUGH the thickest (3") part of the rock with no problems.

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/MMLR-3.jpg

Watched a show on Discovery this AM about the aquarium in Atlanta. Apparently its the largest in North America. All thier LR is man made and aqua-cultured.

Did they happen to mention what exactly their MMLR was made from?

cement and sand is all they said

I'll be attempting to make my own rock in a few weeks. I think I'll be using more concrete and less shells than average, I like the look of rock more than shell.

There are 3 man made rocks in the picture....... can you find them?

http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s...nrf38/pic1.jpg

far back, bottom left and top right???

LOL I can, they are the ones with the salt voids.

Bottom left, bottom right and top center with the square hole in it. :)

Very impresive. these seem to get a lot of good growth on them. let me know when your doing the next batch as i would like to see this done. they almost look better than the bought LR.

Thanks

Those look great! I (kinda) like the appearance of my shell rock...maybe might go with a wee bit more cement next time.
Remember when making MMLR, part of the goal to to have as much surface space and pores/opening as possible/practical. The overall idea is creating a haven for massive amounts of happy bacteria :biggrin:

Thats why I try to use a 3 to 1 mix. :)

3:1 concrete to sand? or sand to concrete? (or whatever you used with the concrete? :lol: )

3 parts "stuff" to 1 part concrete.

I use 3 parts coarse salt and 1 part cement. Very light and porous.

The best part of DIY rock is the shapes of BIG (huge) custom shaped pieces you can make to hide over flows or power heads. take you time and design your dream rock shapes. use playground sand as a form...
then...
get a garbage can put it outside and fill it with the hose to cure the BIG pieces. you need to do it outside b/c you need to change the water every few days for several weeks (many weeks for thick pieces)
I made awesome pieces last fall that cover my overflow but dont take up much tank space

Saltyrockbox: got any pics of your rocks?

I've been Making some rock for the past couple of days and I'm pretty impressed with it.

After going to the Local SW store, I literally puked in my mouth when I saw the price of LR....

I've been using 4parts of crushed oyster shell and 1 part portland cement. Now for the holes in the rock? Rock salt..Nope...Softener salt? Nope
This may sound very strange but I used Cheezies...Yup Crunchie Cheezies, Not only do the make the holes somewhat unique, they pull out of the cement very easily after 24hrs of the rock setting. They pretty much become like a sponge.
I'll post some pics once I'm all finished up.