Black live rock?

[gmubeach]

Ok my fiance and I are getting married ... I have a gorgous fish tank now, its white.... she wants to join the dark side of life and have an all black fish tank... the only part I havn't figure out is the rock... Can I even make black rock or paint white rock or something to that affect ... do they sell black cement ... please anything would be appracite don't feel like any idea is too stupid or already thought of I have a year so no rush on this build

[gmubeach]

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/10868/product.web

still looking but this stuff looks like it would be good to mix with the cement... if I can only find black cement

[Jon Lazar]

I would investigate using a dye like Rit. You could try soaking your LR in it, or mix the powder into the cement for DIY LR. You'd have to do your own research on what it's made of, how it might affect your tank, and whether it would color the rock enough. Expect the rock to become less black though as it's overgrown with coralline algae and other encrusting critters.

[gmubeach]

RIT is code for what so I can search it... I know its going to turn purple anyway but she wants it all to look the same.... I will check and see whats in it ... keep on posting

[zygote2k]

When I worked for a pond company back in the day, we mixed our own concrete colors using dye. The problem with dyed concrete is that when the concrete cures, the lime tends to lighten the color up substantially. I would think in a reef tank with higher alkalinity than a FW pond, this might be more of an issue. You might even find that the dye leaches into the water and might be harmful to the inhabitants.

 

If you really want to go black, try black lava rock- just rinse it thoroughly before use.

[flowerseller]

tell her to get another hobby. this is a colorful one and meant to be that way.

 

[Happyfeet]

tell her to get another hobby. this is a colorful one and meant to be that way.

Bwahahaha

 

A thought- you could make your own rock using black sand and black pond foam using molds.

[Coral Hind]

Sakrete makes a "charcoal" colored additive. It cost $6 for a one pound bag at Home Depot.

 

MFG Brand Name : Sakrete

MFG Part # : 65075002

Edited May 19, 2010 by Coral Hind

[dcreefer]

Check with "Paul b". Paul gives the following steps for base rock... Go with a PVC skeleton wrapped in screen lined with concrete and rolled in black sand...it's almost too easy.

 

We are going to try a couple of different techniques to build base rock in June and I'll be posting pics as we go along.

[Origami]

RIT is code for what so I can search it... I know its going to turn purple anyway but she wants it all to look the same.... I will check and see whats in it ... keep on posting

 

Not that I'm advocating using Rit dye, but just want to respond to Troy's question. Troy, Rit is a brand of fabric dye. You can often see it on the shelf in your grocery store near the laundry detergent. See http://www.ritdye.com/home.lasso for more info.

[truestelf]

im sure you can find a dye on the internet to do it, but it will probably leech into the tank and may be harmful to things in it.

[Coral Hind]

Wouldn't black rock just turn into purple, brown, and green rock as the algae covers it?

[BowieReefer84]

Idea. . . . .superglue is ok for our tanks . . . black sand exists in nature . . . .Cover rock in glue and then coat it in black sand like dipping a piece of chicken in egg wash and bread crumbs? You did say, "please anything would be appracite don't feel like any idea is too stupid." Might want to get the glue by the gallon...haha

[Coral Hind]

The super glue would seal the pores which would reduce any benefit for nitrate reduction.

[flowerseller]

Wouldn't black rock just turn into purple, brown, and green rock as the algae covers it?

Are you implying this is ultimatly a colorful hobby anyway?

 

 

[Happyfeet]

The super glue would seal the pores which would reduce any benefit for nitrate reduction.

 

I'm not so sure, so long as the glue isn't too viscous I think it would only seal up the smaller pours, but the added sand coating would more than make up for that by increasing the overall surface area.

[Coral Hind]

Are you implying this is ultimatly a colorful hobby anyway?

 

 

 

Absolutely a colorful hobby. I said all kinds of colorful words this morning when I realized I left the RO unit running all night.

[trockafella]

Absolutely a colorful hobby. I said all kinds of colorful words this morning when I realized I left the RO unit running all night.

 

 

ohh that blows... Done that to many times to count, and I use all those vibrant words each time.!!

[trockafella]

Whats the point of the black rocks anyways..? I understand that what she wants, but is there something thats trying to be accomplished..? Arent you just going to cover the rocks with coral..? Or i suppose you could just do a tank full of black sun corals.. Im sure you can find black plastic or fake rocks..

[BowieReefer84]

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/10868/product.web use some superglue gel and a brush to get the gravel on the rock.

Then, use some regular "thin" superglue and a spray bottle to get some sand on top to add some more texture.

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/233/product.web

 

I am not sure how long the tank would take to cycle if you do this to the rock. My guess is a long long time.

 

I would carry the theme with using the black sand as your substrate and cover the back wall in superglue and then cover that in sand before filling the tank. Maybe do the back and sides . . . .

[firerbta]

tell her to get another hobby. this is a colorful one and meant to be that way.

 

I know its colorful. Thats why I wanted as much black as I can to make everything stand out. Don't know about the rock, just wanted to see if we can do it.

[gmubeach]

flowersellers be nice:) The hobby isn't about making fun of people its about trying tnew things Troy

[gmubeach]

http://us.ebid.net/for-sale/1-lb-black-concrete-cement-color-dye-colorant-8562268.htm just got to figure out if its ref safe

[Jon Lazar]

If you had a refugium large enough to hold all the live rock you need for denitrification, you wouldn't have to use functional LR in your display at all. Put your LR somewhere else and you can do most of the ideas about that wouldn't work with "real" live rock.

 

You could also make your display tank "rockwork" out of fiberglass cloth and resin over a hollow framework, and dye or paint it whatever color you want. It would be messy to build and tough to make look right, and you'd want some way to prevent the water inside from going stagnant, but it could be done.

[gmubeach]

Hmm or put a huge frag rack in black on diffrent levels with pvc and have the rock in the sump... Need to figure out how much sump I need and how much will fit... Anyway Shes very excited!