300gal plywood paludarium project

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Thanks.

Egon - it should hold up fine under water. I've seen a number of builds on the cichlid forum where people have used Drylok on backgrounds and it seems to have worked out well.

Etunes - I was debating the same thing and I'm really pleased with the Drylok method. It's a lot easier to apply than grout, it has minimal curing time and should have no effect on the water chemistry. From what I've read, it may actually be more durable than grout since grout/concrete has the potential to chip and crack off the background (though adding in acrylic conrete binder can help with that).

The Drylok really preserves the texture of the underlying styrofoam, so if you carve your foam to look like a rock, the final product should look like a rock (the flip side is that it won't hide mistakes in your carving like concrete can). I think the little grains in the Drylok also help with texture. I think you'll actually have an easier time getting a realistic rocky texture with Drylok than I did trying to get a wood texture.
 
@The_Deeb, very cool project! You have done a great job outlining the step by step details. I can't wait to see the tank with water and fish in it. You are an inspiration.

Good Luck in finishing the project w/o any glitches. :)
 
Nice Job!

< steals your veins and adds to his background >
 
You are very talented. Bravo.:WHOA:
 
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