# 55g community build with DIY rockwall



## danss2 (Sep 21, 2012)

Hi, all you fine aquarists! 

I wanted to share this new (and first of this type) experiment of mine with yall and get some constructive criticism, if I may *c/p*

Just glued it on. Curing









Filled, day one









Second day after moving fish in here









Future plans:
Moss wall (right wall, to hide riser and PH). Plannig to use Java Moss
"Lawn grass" over the hill in the middle. I know it's a bit too late due to tank being all filled and "live", but I'd still like to add it (would love to hear suggestions about type of grass to use)
A tree next to left wall (i hope)


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

nice work! I dig the "terraces".Enjoy and watch water as your tank has not had time to cycle properly.


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## jbrown5217 (Nov 9, 2011)

Looks cool.

I would read up on the nitrogen cycle and how to properly care for fish if you are using them to cycle a tank.

The live plants (at least they look like live to me) will help to keep parameters in check, but you should really throw a lot of them in the tank. They love to snack on ammonia, nitrites, and eventually nitrates.


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## danss2 (Sep 21, 2012)

Thank you, guys 
Fish adapted to the change very quickly. I did loose 2 tetras in the moving/adaptation process - one committed suicide by jumping out of the "transfer bucket" and the other looked like was damaged or something. Otherwise all look good.
I do have all but 3 live plants. I put carbon head from my 20g tank that had some bacteria on it, in this tank to help promote bacteria growth. Not using carbon filter anymore, just laying there on top of top plant bed.
I do want to plant more in there. Any thoughts/suggestions on what type of "grass" to use on that middle hill to create a green lawn?


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## jbrown5217 (Nov 9, 2011)

dwarf hairgrass would be a solid choice imo

Dwarf Hairgrass (Elocharis acicularis)


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## whitetiger61 (Aug 2, 2011)

Is that a UGF in the tank..if it is.i would ditch that if you want a fully planted tank. as for dwarf hair grass. depending on how you take care of it, it can be a fast grower or a very slow grower. for faster growth, plant it , then in a couple of days trim it to the substrate. for slower growth leave it alone..will also grow faster in high light and co2..but once it starts to grow, its a constant battle to keep it trimmed.

Rick


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## danss2 (Sep 21, 2012)

JB - thank you for the tip on the grass.
Rick - how often do you think one would have to trim that?
And to answer your question - it is UGF. Not the whole bottom is covered, though. I left areas where I'm planning to plant without any grating under gravel. Is that, usually, a main concern on using UGF with live plants? (that with normal UGF use, plants's roots will not have where to "grow into")
I'm not thinking to plant whole tank. Just certain areas, that I designated for it (with no grating), rock wall and artificial wood (the one on the right)


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## danss2 (Sep 21, 2012)

Since my last post, I had an algae bloom "infestation" and could not make it go away no matter what I did... Until I installed a submersible pump with a UV light...
So, here it is, after 2 months since I put that pump in.


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## drywall guy (Dec 16, 2012)

wow that looks nice !!!!


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## KMoss (May 7, 2011)

that looks amazing! love the plants and love that rock wall with the nooks for plants. that's such a good idea. do you mind sharing what kind of materials you used to build the wall?


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## 04cybersnail (Dec 31, 2012)

I would like to know also how you built such a nice wall.


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## danss2 (Sep 21, 2012)

Thank you, guys 
Mainly, I wanted to make it as inexpensively as possible 

The idea derived from multiple ideas of watching other ppl's diy walls. Mainly videos found on youtube. Originally, I wanted to follow one of them, where the guy demonstrated making such a wall from pink insulation styrofoam sheet. But in our local store I was not able to find smaller sheet then 6x8 feet, so I decided to make it our of white styrofoam sheet, which is available in homedepot in variety of sizes, including about the size I needed.
The fact that I used that white sheet instead of pink altered the procedure substantially from what I originally planned to follow... LOL (due to the fact, that that white styrofoam is "made" out of larger "bubbles", then pink, and that renders the ability to cut good looking rock shapes out of it for the worst)...

1 - cut the sheet to needed size for the tank (I made it a little smaller, about an inch lower, then the tank's height).
2 - cut that wall in half (due to the top of my tank having a "divider" for use of two separate hoods, that made it impossible to slide the whole piece in).
3 - used soldering iron with special end to carve the stones (if you follow this, make sure you do it either outside and with a fan blowing fumes away from you or in VERY well vented area with the fan blowing fumes away from you, coz when this stuff burns, it releases "unhealthy" fumes! You've been warned!).
4 - made sticking out rocks using pieces of styrofoam, formed to my liking, glued onto places I wanted with aquarium safe silicone glue and reinforced with pieces of metal inside (I used what I had plenty of - mid size paper clips, straighten out and cut to needed length. If you have something different, that would work (like finish nails) that would be fine too). Just stick one or two (depending on the size of the rock) nails into the back of the rocks, half way in, leaving the other half sticking out of it to go into the wall. Put small amount of glue around those nails and stick them onto the wall where you want them.
5 - terraces are made almost the same way as sticking out rocks, just larger. Then when done, were mounted the same way as other sticking out rocks, but with more reinforcement with "nails". Unfortunately, I thought of taking "progress" pictures too late, thus do not have any... :-( Large terraces made from the same thickness styrofoam, cut to size I wanted, and carved with the same soldering iron to make an outside look like 3 rocks laying on the top of each other, and then the top was carved out the same way to make room for gravel to plant plants.
6 - to paint it I used cement mix (with very fine sand) and cement dye (added to the last coat). Mixed first coat very thin, in the bucket it looked like an oil thickness, so it was easy to apply using a paint brush. Second coat I made thicker, to get a good layer and texture. Last coat was made as thin as first and with dye. Each coat needs minimum one day to completely dry. Do not apply any coating onto the back side of this wall!
Since I used cement mix and dye, I had to make sure there was no harmful chemicals left in there by rinse the ready made wall with water very thoroughly. It is recommended to fill the tank (after the wall is installed) and drain it at least 8 times. What I did, though, I rinsed it before I installed it in the tank, by rinsing it in my bath tub.
7 - glue the made wall to the cleaned back wall of the tank. I used, again, aquarium safe silicone glue. Found it in home depot. Let it cure for a couple of days (I gave it an extra day on the top of what is recommended in it's instructions).
8 - put all the rest of the stuff in, filled with water and done.


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

It does look awesome and would seem to be worth all the effort!VERY NICE,totally dig the terraces and plant holders.


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## BryansGirl420 (Jan 13, 2013)

My boyfriend showed me this page the other day and I just had to comment. Your tank is gorgeous! I especially love the rock wall. I would have never guessed you made this yourself!


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