[DoLceNBeLLa]

Hey guys-

My family just bought a 56 gallon tank that is reef ready. We're planning on moving the contents of our current 55 reef tank into the new one after the floors get redone (wood floors + salt water isn't a good mix)

Last time around we basically threw a bunch of rocks in and added the water, skimmer and powerheads...then wondered why we had so many dead zones and problems with rock sliding.

This time around I want to go all out with the tank, which means extensive planning on the rock aquascape. I hear that PVC pipes are excellent for setting up the structure...but I've had trouble really understanding how it is done. Do you drill holes into the pipes AND the rocks? Do you just sit them on top? Help me out!! I really want an awesome set up!

Thanks

[glampka]

You want your rock to be stable. It is best to set your 1st course of rock directly on the glass bottom of the tank & then back fill with your sand. Reason for this is that if you have burrowing fish your aquascape can come tumbling down as they dig. You want to have plenty of places for the fish to swim in & out of as well as hide. Some people like to stack the rock against the back glass but doing it that way can lead to many dead spots where detritus will settle. Another problem with doing that is that fish will hide back there & you may not see them often. If a big fish dies back there you won't know it until it's too late & to get it out you'll have to tear everything apart. I like to leave a few inches between the rock & the back glass.
Be sure when you stack the rock that it is stable as you go up. crabs & snails can easily tip over rock that isn't set properly. You can drill holes in the rock & insert small pvc pipe or plastic pins to help lock the piece together.

[kolokefalo]

What I usually do first is make an X shape with PVC. Drill holes in the PVC, run cable ties through the holes but don't cinch them closed. The base of the PVC X needs to have "feet" for stability. Drill holes in the back of the rock which you can thread the cable ties through. Attach the rock to the X and then cinch the cable ties up to hold them.

[DoLceNBeLLa]

Interesting idea...wow so many ways to go!

My mom (I'm 19) had an idea of having two PVC "towers" that you stack the rocks up and around and then connect a pipe between the two mounds to have a big canyon in the middle.
Does that seem doable?

I have months to go before the new tank is set up, so anything is possible right now.

I'm still confused how to get those beautiful caves. You really just sit the rocks on each other carefully? I've never used any of the epoxy glues or anything, but am way more than willing to try.

[Mattfish]

We didn't use plastic ties or PVC, although the previous replies are from guys with a lot of experience so their opinions make a lot of sense.

Just by stacking up the live rock as you go, you'll naturally create some openings, holes, and caves. The rock isn't flat of course, so no matter how you stack it, as long as it doesn't wobble under your hands if you push a little bit, it'll have places for fish to hide and also be solid enough to withstand most fishes pushing, etc. Some fish will be much rougher than others of course.....

In our case, we decided to avoid plastic ties and PVC because we were newbies and figured we might rearrange later (carefully), and didn't want to create a connected structure we couldn't change.

[DoLceNBeLLa]

Yeah, having the freedom to change things around is always nice. We just did a poor job of it the first time around

If I can figure out the best way to do this...I have a cool idea of having two mounds on each side of the tank that are attached by an "bridge" of live rock.
Then, have a couple smaller rocks out in the front for fast growing corals that won't take over everything since they'd be surrounded by sand.

We have this one soft coral that is like a carpet that is all but taking over our tank! Atleast it's pretty. I'll have to try and frag it and give it to people who have tons of trouble with tanks because it is indestructible as far as I can tell.

Anyone have ideas on how I should anchor the PVC pipes to the floor? Maybe set into a fake rock made from that cement mixture and then set directly on the bottom?

[WILLIAM1]

I Am Having A Problem With Live Rock..... Can Anyone Help? When I First Started My Tank I Took All The Rock And Stacked It In The Middle Of The Tank From Side To Side So I Could See In The Back Of The Rock As Well. Plus For Cleaning Reasons, Dead Fish, Circulation, Ex...... I Wasnt Really Thinking About It To Much, Added My Fish Some Button Polyps. Now Ive Realized That The Rock Is Not To Sturdy. And Im Wanting To Place Some Anenomies And Stuff To The Tank But I Dont Want The Rocks To Fall. I Have Tried Using Some Aqua Stik Epoxy Puddy. But This Doesnt Work That Well Under Water. I Looking For Something That Really Holds Tight. I Know The Puddy Would Have Worked Better If The Tank Was Empty First But You Know Live And Learn.
I Like The Way The Rock Is Stacked It Just Needs To Be Secure.

[DoLceNBeLLa]

That happened in my tank as well in terms of the loose rocks. My dad was moving a plate coral and WHAM down goes the shelf. Thankfully only fish were under there and they moved out of the way in time.

If you like the overall layout, you might just need to twist and turn the rocks around until they fit against eachother. That's the basic idea I've been picking up from all the different threads.

[robe25m]

Truth is better rock, better reef design, I like Tonga Shelf rock for looks.

[DoLceNBeLLa]

Is there a way to raise the rock off the sand and create a "cave" while still having the wall effect? Or is that just a dumb idea?