DIY aquarium background(in progress)

[davescube]

it is not as tough as u think to carve the shell..

and yeah, i agree with you.. it takes forever to carve the background..
from my experience, it is not neccesary to get a fine detailing..
u could play with fire to get a better result =)

0oh.. u should have measured it first.. hehe..

 

[davescube]

my carving is to be done very soon..

and 0k, so here is basically my plan...
i will only silicone the three pieces of foam together..
i wont be silicone it to the back of the aquarium..

Refer to the picture below:
1. thinner piece of foam
2. thinner piece of foam
3. carved foam, thicker than (1.) and (2.)
4. hanger to be attached to the back of the aquarium
5. rectangle hole
6. a real heavy metal to be put inside of the hole

will it works? what do you guys think?

 

[coolkeith]

I doubt that works, it takes atleast 25 pounds of metal or concrete to sink 1 pound of foam.

 

[davescube]

really? omg..
perhaps i should just change my mind to use 1 foam instead?
the idea to use 3 pieces of foam is so i can put a metal or something in between them..

what do you think you suggest?
well, i dont really want to silicon it to the aquarium ><"

 

[jpstodwftexas]

you might want to consider this

Where Can we see bigger and I do mean bigger Pics.
Be looking for something like that for My Vivariums...Geckos need love too

 

[ar0wan]

I doubt that works, it takes atleast 25 pounds of metal or concrete to sink 1 pound of foam.

Which weighs more a pound of metal or a pound of foam?

 

[scubado65]

I haven't seen how this is done before. Do you coat it with cement and epoxy paint it?

 

[sundevil_brian]

Which weighs more a pound of metal or a pound of foam?

the weight isn't the most important thing it's the density and how much water it displaces. and the density of foam << density of water

 

[billm90]

Which weighs more a pound of metal or a pound of foam?

silicone to the back is the only way I know.

I did some spray foam stuff and put a few large rocks in it. common sense tells you it should sink, especially after I gutted it to basicaly a thin coat of foam with holes. it was basically a cave, like putting holes in a ball with the inside hollow. It never sank. I tried suction cups. that lasted about 5 minutes.

end result was silicone.

 

[davescube]

i am getting more and more confuse hahaha..
lets say i silicon it to the tank, and the cement that i use is not safe for fish, so i want to coat it with epoxy resin..
the question is how can i remove the background without damaging both foam and glass tank?

actually i have done carving with the background..

but the problem that i have now is:
1. I dont know what my cement contains.. it is not written on the package..
2. and a few kind of epoxy resins that i have now do not state whether it is aquarium safe.. *sigh*

is silicone the only last resort?