Jon Lazar November 9, 2017 Share November 9, 2017 I'm getting ready to start aquascaping, and I'm going to place the rock first for stability. Then I'll add a ~2" sandbed. I'm looking for ways to elevate the rockwork an inch or two above the tank bottom so the first two inches of rock aren't buried in the sand. I thought about concrete pavers from HD, but not sure which ones are reef safe. Any best practices? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mari.harutunian November 9, 2017 Share November 9, 2017 PVC and then sand mixed with epoxy to cover it. Ask copps about the epoxy. Saw it in his presentation for CMAS. Great idea. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raj November 9, 2017 Share November 9, 2017 Will epoxy stick on pvc ? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mari.harutunian November 9, 2017 Share November 9, 2017 Will epoxy stick on pvc ? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Epoxy sticks to everything. At least the kind I️ have used. Never for aquarium use though. But the pvc is just to elevate the rock. The sand mixed into epoxy will cover the pvc kind of like play-dough and keep detritus in areas that can actually be siphoned. There should be no structure that depends on the epoxy sand sticking to the pvc for stability. I️n theory. I️ have never done this. Just watched the lecture on it. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madweazl November 9, 2017 Share November 9, 2017 Is minimal contact with the sand an option? I'm planning to lift the vast majority of the rock structure off the sand bed but will be using rocks here and there as the pillars. This provides places for awesome stuff like gobies and pistol shrimp to hang out also. Not sure what exactly your concern is with the rocks contacting the sand but between the goby/pistol pair and the diamond goby we have, the sand around and under all the rockwork in my current tank gets completely relocated fairly often so there aren't any particular dead spots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Lazar November 9, 2017 Author Share November 9, 2017 My biggest reason is that I have a live rock pillar and I want to attach it to a wide, flat, heavy base for stability. A 12x12x1 paver sounds ideal. My second reason is that I want the look of the rock sitting on the sand, but I want the stability of the rock sitting on the tank bottom panel. I don't want to use PVC pipes to create a scaffolding for the rockwork. I've got Marco cement for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cpu933k November 9, 2017 Share November 9, 2017 how about eggcrate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malacoda November 9, 2017 Share November 9, 2017 If you're worried about the pavers because of any of binders used to make them, what about a piece of flagstone instead? May not be quite as perfectly flat or smooth as a paver but will probably be pretty inert. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Lazar November 12, 2017 Author Share November 12, 2017 Thanks everyone for your ideas! We took a tour of HD and looked at pavers and flagstone, and talked about the pros and cons of eggcrate. In the end we decided to simply place the rock on the glass bottom and go with a slightly shallower sand bed. We're also making liberal use of Marco mortar to stabilize the rocks-especially the foundation rocks. Critters can dig all they want without making anything unstable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linkfalcon November 12, 2017 Share November 12, 2017 (edited) What about those marine blocks will all the holes Can’t remember the name Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Edited November 12, 2017 by linkfalcon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raj November 17, 2017 Share November 17, 2017 What about those marine blocks will all the holes Can’t remember the name Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk marine pure block !! but that would be super expensive to add to display Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raj November 17, 2017 Share November 17, 2017 I used regular white 1/2 inch pvc from HD to raise 4 inches - so fish can hangout under the rocks and water can flow u set the rocks But in retrospect I should have done what @mari recommended after 6 mth the coralline algae has been taking over the white pvc so it’s not bad Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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