# Sand fountain volcano?



## WPFix

I am pretty new to aquariums, and have a 30g cichlid tank. My fiance, who I blame for my new obsession, is quite a bit more experienced than me, and has a 55g aquarium. 

Recently, I saw a video of a tank with a "underwater waterfall" or sand fountain, and of course, my fiance, who is putting together plans to redesign her tank, since we just moved, fell in love with it. It also got me thinking. After doing some research and figuring out how they work, which is amazingly simple, I had an idea. Why not make a "sand volcano" using the same concept?

Here is what I am thinking. With all aesthetics aside, which is the easy part, it will simply be a slightly more elaborate sand fountain. Instead of the sand falling strait down into a catch basin, I make a slide for the sand, similar to what you find on most childrens play grounds, and throw in a few zig-zags for effect. I would make the slides "U" shaped to contain the sand in the channels I make for it, probably out of some sort of plastic or PVC (painted to hide it in the "volcano"). 

To collect the sand from the bottom of the slide, I would utilize the vaccume formed by the rising bubbles in the vertical pipe, but at the bottom of the pipe I would use a 90* elbow and extend the pipe out to the collection point at the bottom of the slide, to suck the sand back up into the system. 

As for the slides, I am guessing that they could be a no shallower than a 45* angle, for a slower flow, and 60* for a faster flow, taking into account the added resistance of the water compared to air. Of course this will require some testing. 

As for making it look good, after the functional part has been made, I plan to make a foam inner frame, and cover it with a thin layer of concrete with black concrete coloring. The sand will be red of course. And a few added artistic touches to make it look good. 

The bubbles will be channeled so that they exit through the top or "mouth" of the valcano, and I may add some kind of red LED to the top as well to add to the effect and give the bubbles a reddish glow. 

I am also thinking of adding some tunnels to the side of the mountain so the fish can swim through it. 

The end result will hopefully show a charcoal-black mountain, with red light and bubbles coming out the top, and red sand flowing out just below the top, and ending just before the bottom of the structure.

So, after reading my novel (sorry about that), what do you guys think of my idea? I have not seen or heard of anything like this before, so any advice, help or ideas would be welcome.


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## dalfed

Sounds good post pics when you start!!


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## CAM

Sounds pretty cool. But I'm curious. How does all that movement of the substrate keep the tank from becoming ultra-cloudy ?


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## tbub1221

CAM said:


> Sounds pretty cool. But I'm curious. How does all that movement of the substrate keep the tank from becoming ultra-cloudy ?


This was my concerns also. And IMO the sand vacuum could work but I have fine sand bottom aquariums that I use a siphon vacuum to clean and it will pick up sand but most of it falls back down .the poop and old food ETC .. is far lighter than sand. Also I think that the 90 degree elbows will block things up. Use electrical grade (gray )pvc conduit it can be heated with a propane heater / torch jet lighter etc . 
Heat it and make slow steady bends it could improve flow.
Also keep in mind the more air pressure that is made means more friction and water lift so for it to work use a bit oversized air pump and good luck with the build.
Another idea to keep in mind , if u plan to use concrete then mind where u run air lines if its sealed by the ornaments for looks that's great , BUT when the rubber air hose hardens and cracks after a year you will loos all pressure and youl not have a way in to fix it ..
I encountered this issue once myself.


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## WPFix

Well, here is an update.

I have made the PVC section, and tested it out. I used 3/4" PVC, and the design seemed to work better without an airstone than with one. The 90* elbows did not seem to be a problem. As for the sand, regular aquarium sand was to fine, it mixed with the air bubbles and alot of it would actually end up floating on the surface. However, I found a heavier/larger grain sand at Michael's that works great, and was actually quite clean when I went to rinse it. The only issue is that it is more of a brick red, than a bright red/orange color. I will keep my eyes open for a suitable replacement in the future, but this will do for now. 

I also have cut out and glued together all of the foam layers to make the body of the volcano. See the pictures at the bottom of this post. I still have some trimming to do on the foam, but I am waiting for the cilicone to cure so I have something more solid to work with. 

As for the concerns regarding the air line, I have thought of this as well. The airline will not be in contact with any cement, and will enter through the top elbow of the PVC, via a hole that will be drilled there for the inlet of the hose, and as the outlet of air as well.

So, with what I have done, next comes trimming and sanding the foam down some more to make it look more realistic, then using the aquarium you see pictured, I will continue to use that as my "mold" for building this, but will be lining the sides with saran wrap or aluminum foil before I start with the cement work as to not damage the tank. Pretty much using something so that the cement doesnt stick to the actual tank, since I plan to use this tank for my next project, a 3-D back ground with an enclosed sand fountain designed into it. 

So, without further delay, PICS!


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## WPFix

Forgot to mention, I do still have more foam work to do. Mainly, the part that will go over the top of the upper PVC elbow, and the "mouth of the volcano will need to be made with some kind of grill to keep the fish from swimming down into the volcano. I am also going to add a cave or two to the design as well for the fishies to swim through.


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## WPFix

Well, added 2 coats of cement. With all all the foam, it floated. So, i shaved off alot of the foam and added some cement to the back side for added weight. Here is a picture after adding cement and just before test #1.

After 2 coats of cement:









After final coat of cement:









And now, the moment you have all been waiting for. I still need to make some adjustments. As mentioned in the video, some of the sand is falling off to the side, but I am thinking of dremelling the side down some and making another ramp down the side, and with the way I channelled the air bubbles out the back, it is taking some of the sand with it, so I will have to make some modifications to that to prevent sand from escaping with the air. Might just have to make the air bubbles come out the front with the rest of the water. But, the first test I think was a success! As you can tell, my fiance is quite excited.


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