Is there a safe way to paint decor in my tank?
26 posts • Page 2 of 3
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Snowboss4492 - Posts: 2098
- Joined: Sun Jan 27, 2008 11:24 pm
Z,
My daughters b/f Serial32..... took aquarium silicon and smeared it all over some pvc pipe fittings and then covered them in playground sand that he bought at lowes {like 6 bucks for a 50 lb bag} he then let them cure for about 3 days and they have been in his tank for months now.....one is a house for his freshwater stone fish and the others have become breeding rooms for his cichlids....look at his profile sometime......they look cool and you could use any sand or artificial substrate you want - I'm thinking about doing the same thing with refugium rubble {small chunks of live rock} in my 65g salt tank to fill in gaps and build coral platforms that look more natural
Snowboss
My daughters b/f Serial32..... took aquarium silicon and smeared it all over some pvc pipe fittings and then covered them in playground sand that he bought at lowes {like 6 bucks for a 50 lb bag} he then let them cure for about 3 days and they have been in his tank for months now.....one is a house for his freshwater stone fish and the others have become breeding rooms for his cichlids....look at his profile sometime......they look cool and you could use any sand or artificial substrate you want - I'm thinking about doing the same thing with refugium rubble {small chunks of live rock} in my 65g salt tank to fill in gaps and build coral platforms that look more natural
Snowboss
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gumbii - Posts: 1695
- Joined: Tue Dec 04, 2007 3:31 am
you could get away by using CLEAR SILICONE I from GE... i found some at walmart for 3 bucks a tube... but at home depot it's also about 3.50 or so... i use it alot, since i'm always either building a tank, or modding a tank...
don't use silicone II or any colored silicone... even though they do come in nice colors now... don't use they... silicone II has some anti-mold stuff that kills fish...
another forum figured out that silicone I is the same silicone that is in aquarium silicone... you just get alot more in silicone I by GE than the aquarium silicone by all glass...
don't use silicone II or any colored silicone... even though they do come in nice colors now... don't use they... silicone II has some anti-mold stuff that kills fish...
another forum figured out that silicone I is the same silicone that is in aquarium silicone... you just get alot more in silicone I by GE than the aquarium silicone by all glass...
Last edited by gumbii on Sat Jun 07, 2008 6:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Zambize4899 - Posts: 499
- Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 4:35 am
Thanks Boss and Gum --
That sounds like a great alternative to painting. My substrate is black so using a different shade of black (are there shades of black?) it could like very striking. Or maybe light grey like the fake driftwood I have in another tank. Silicone and sand...sounds good.
More fins to ya'
Zambize
That sounds like a great alternative to painting. My substrate is black so using a different shade of black (are there shades of black?) it could like very striking. Or maybe light grey like the fake driftwood I have in another tank. Silicone and sand...sounds good.
More fins to ya'
Zambize
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Snowboss4492 - Posts: 2098
- Joined: Sun Jan 27, 2008 11:24 pm
Z - -heres Serials profile........you can see the PVC pipes cvered in sand in a couple of his pics.......i ike your idea of useing the black substrate....it would blend right in .........I want to use black arag-life sand on the 65 gallon when i start setting it up...i bet it would make bright colored salt water fish really pop under MH lighting...woohoo................lol
Boss
http://www.ratemyfishtank.com/friendemail.php/17720
Boss
http://www.ratemyfishtank.com/friendemail.php/17720
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Tmercier834747 - Posts: 887
- Joined: Wed Feb 13, 2008 8:33 pm
If you want a small reference on the black...do exactly as gumbii said, make absolutely freaking sure you get CLEAR silicone. My freaking dumbass browsed the section for 20 minutes with this in mind and somehow managed to STILL grab the wrong ones. At least it was Silicone 1, but white.
Coated PVC must be all the rage now, I just did mine for my new tank last week:
http://icedt83.spaces.live.com/photos/c ... 46FF0!149/
(under 'new fishtank' album)
Substrate is blacksand flourite, the PVC is coated in Tahitian moon sand (black) and because I used white silicon I threw some loose substrate on top of that...
Also do your thing in sections, little by little, if you have the time or patience. It seems that in some cases it was curing too fast which made it easier for the stupid sand to fall off as I was coating it.
Lastly now that I'm looking at this picture again...most DIY sites say that its fine to just do the 'lips' of the PVC, well if you look at mine..since the PVC is white and the sand is black well...I guess you can say I'm probably gonna be taking it out someday and starting the 3 day process of drying, coating, curing, and rinsing again. =P
Coated PVC must be all the rage now, I just did mine for my new tank last week:
http://icedt83.spaces.live.com/photos/c ... 46FF0!149/
(under 'new fishtank' album)
Substrate is blacksand flourite, the PVC is coated in Tahitian moon sand (black) and because I used white silicon I threw some loose substrate on top of that...
Also do your thing in sections, little by little, if you have the time or patience. It seems that in some cases it was curing too fast which made it easier for the stupid sand to fall off as I was coating it.
Lastly now that I'm looking at this picture again...most DIY sites say that its fine to just do the 'lips' of the PVC, well if you look at mine..since the PVC is white and the sand is black well...I guess you can say I'm probably gonna be taking it out someday and starting the 3 day process of drying, coating, curing, and rinsing again. =P
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Snowboss4492 - Posts: 2098
- Joined: Sun Jan 27, 2008 11:24 pm
Nice tank T - - i know that serial had trouble with the sand coming off at first as well........i think he finally covered the pvc then just buried it in the bag of sand for 3 days then pulled it out and rinsed it ................i love the black sand !!!!!
Boss
Boss
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Zambize4899 - Posts: 499
- Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 4:35 am
Tmerc---
Wow, I really like the PVC you made. That is very cool. And with a dremel tool I think I can make it look like driftwood by roughing and shaping the ends, creating irregular striations, and even knot holes or rises (where branches were). It looks good and I've got black substrate, too. I've out of town right now but can't wait to get back to my fish...
Zambize
Wow, I really like the PVC you made. That is very cool. And with a dremel tool I think I can make it look like driftwood by roughing and shaping the ends, creating irregular striations, and even knot holes or rises (where branches were). It looks good and I've got black substrate, too. I've out of town right now but can't wait to get back to my fish...
Zambize
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Snowboss4492 - Posts: 2098
- Joined: Sun Jan 27, 2008 11:24 pm
Z ,
go to your local lmber yard and ask them for some Schedule 80 pvc {whatever size you want} it's double the thickness of "standard" pvc {which is schedule 40 btw, lol - -anyway, it will give you much more matieral to cut into to make it look like wood.................good luck ....lets see some pics girl !!!!
Boss
go to your local lmber yard and ask them for some Schedule 80 pvc {whatever size you want} it's double the thickness of "standard" pvc {which is schedule 40 btw, lol - -anyway, it will give you much more matieral to cut into to make it look like wood.................good luck ....lets see some pics girl !!!!
Boss
