Foam Background

Liam515

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Mar 18, 2021
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Can you put a foam background in an aquarium like the ones Serpadesign makes in his gecko and snake tanks (obviously it will be secured to the glass)
 

deeda

Silver Tier VIP
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Mar 26, 2008
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Can you put a foam background in an aquarium like the ones Serpadesign makes in his gecko and snake tanks (obviously it will be secured to the glass)
I don't know how he makes his backgrounds or whether they are meant to be submersed in water continuously so you might ask on his forum or youtube channel.

There are commercial backgrounds made for aquarium use as well as quite a few DIY ones made by members on MFK.
 

Liam515

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Mar 18, 2021
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I was wondering if the foam or the paint might be bad for them
 

Rtc/tsn

Redtail Catfish
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Apr 22, 2021
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I was wondering if the foam or the paint might be bad for them
I’m pretty sure polyethylene is food safe which means it’s also safe for aquaria use then paint I don’t know you’d have to do some research on that but as long as you double check that it’s safe for fish you’ll be fine
 

fishdance

Redtail Catfish
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Jan 30, 2007
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Make sure the polystyrene is well secured to the tank wall I mean WELL SECURED, especially if thick as it is incredibly buoyant and I've had one pop off, smash the tanks cross braces which allowed the tank to literally split apart. This only took a few seconds.
 
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twentyleagues

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MFK Member
Apr 5, 2017
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Flint town!
I make them. Usually coat mine in epoxy so I know they are safe. I've heard using drylok paint is safe without epoxy, but I haven't tried it yet.
20180901_230331.jpg
One in my 180. Obviously there is real wood also.
I've made 10 so far and have tried a couple different ways but all with epoxy. The one above was carved then coated in black epoxy and then painted with a paint that was supposed to adhear to plastics and epoxy. After about 2 years the paint was flaking off.
20190401_212443.jpg
This was a sand waterfall. Coated in clear epoxy painted with acrylic paints. This thing was so strong it took me forever to destroy it. I used alot of epoxy to make sure the moving sand didn't damage it. Overall wasn't happy with design and it was made for my ex so when she became my ex it was destroyed. Lol
20190324_204930.jpg
This is one of my first ones. Coated in cement and painted then coated in clear epoxy. Has been in use for over 5 years. Still set up today.
All attached with silicone to glass. Make sure when you attach it to the glass you make a bead around the perimeter to keep junk out from behind the background. Steps you learn as you go.
 

the_deeb

Blue Tier VIP
MFK Member
Apr 22, 2006
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Yes, it can work well, though as F fishdance said, make sure you secure it with lots of silicone to compensate for the extreme buoyancy. If your tank has a rim, I like to size it so it’s large enough that it can be wedged firmly between the bottom and the rim for extra support.

I’ve built several backgrounds using high density extruded polystyrene (the pink foam boards) coated in tinted drylok. I much prefer this to styrofoam for carving details. Here’s a vid of a background I made this way for one of my old 65g tanks:

 
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