Making Bamboo Stalks

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J

JoseCatala

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Dec 15, 2012
22
4
33
Brentwood, CA
I've seen on the internet pictures of tanks that have Bamboo stalks that are arranged to look like a forest. I haven't been able to find a 'fake' decoration of bamboo in any pet stores. So I thought about making my own. I have a bamboo plant that has dead stalks that I could use. My question is: What would I need to do to get them ready for a tank. I have read that you need to coat the inside and outside with a clear polyurthene (?sp).

Has anyone else done this?

Thanks in advance for your help.
 
I have a friend who makes fake bamboo out of pvc pipe. He has it down to a science.
 
go to a Michael's craft store & look for artificial bamboo stalks.
 
i would think coating it with a clear coat would have possibility to leech the chemical into the water in the tank and kill any life in it or if not make it VERY sick... unless the product you use says aquarium friendly lol why not just use reg real alive bamboo sticks ? it will grow and use up some nitrates that are in your tank..
 
You can always use lucky bamboo as long as the leaves are above the water line. I've used some of the decorative woven decorations before and the fish like to hide in them and it gives a unique look.
 
Haven't tried it yet. I've seen posts about using pvc which I may try. I bought bamboo stalks at a craft store, but when I put them in water they float..... no kidding right.... so right now I have six, six inch pieces submered in water waiting until they don't float any more. It's been about 10 days. still floating. And one of them has started to crack. I went to michaels and found some faux bamboo... Thought that was perfect except they were 4 feet long. I cut a piece to the 6 inches I wanted and it has a metal rod inside it. Not know what kind of metal... I decided not use them.

In these experiment I'm using a small 5 gallon tank to see what will happen.

I believe the clear polyurthene is ok for fish tanks since its make by Krylon and is the same type people have said they've used when painting PVC for filter parts.

I've thought about using the 'lucky bamboo' which I may try in my small Betta tank. See how that looks and if it works long term. But from what I've been reading, the leaves need to be out of the water.
 
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