jude Posted September 5, 2004 Report Share Posted September 5, 2004 Hi again I am planning to build a rock wall out of small pieces of schist I have. The wall is for my BIG tank when I can afford it and the tank will have an outside filter. I thought I would build the wall on an old UG filter plate, put it on the bottom of the tank, and cover it with gravel - that would mean I could build it in advance and the plate would give it some stability. The problem is I don't have a lot of schist and I really don't want to buy more - so I don't want to have the first layer or two of the wall buried in the gravel - especially as the base would need the most solid and squarest bits, leaving all the odd shapes for the rest of the wall. So my question is, what could I use to build the first layer or two of this wall? Something 2-3" high and squarish. Would bits of bricks be OK? Cheers Jude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke* Posted September 21, 2004 Report Share Posted September 21, 2004 Hi Jude, My tank has slate glued to the entire back of my 4' tank. Unless your dead set on rocks slate is similar and easier to work with in tanks. I think bricks may add hardness to the water. Goodluck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jude Posted September 22, 2004 Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2004 Thanks Luke, I was concerned the bricks might do that Regarding the slate vs schist issue - I already have schist Cheers Judy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted September 22, 2004 Report Share Posted September 22, 2004 Hi Jude, If you do need some more schist make sure you get it from a Garden Centre rather than a pet shop as it is heaps cheaper that way. Cheers, Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jude Posted September 22, 2004 Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2004 Thanks for that Matt. I might need some more but I'm hoping not. The bits I have are small and squarish - they originally came from a floor to ceiling fireplace surround - ugly great monster it was! When we took it down most of it was still in great big lumps, concreted together - but I salvaged all the small bits. They are mostly 2"-3" in size. If I got more I imagine it would be in bigger slabs - is it hard to break up? Cheers Judy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted September 22, 2004 Report Share Posted September 22, 2004 The schist I got is small and oval shaped with nice smooth edges between 5 & 10 cm long. I built a curved wall with it in my tank and left a hole in between a few bits and siliconed a terracotta pot behind it to make a cave. I got a bag a 2kg bag for under $10. It shouldn't be hard to break with a sledge hammer, but I would be very careful as it will probably shatter, definitely wear safety goggles! See pictures of my wall here: http://www.geocities.com/i_lovebeer/Spawnings.html http://www.geocities.com/i_lovebeer/LargeHomeTank.html Cheers, Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke* Posted September 23, 2004 Report Share Posted September 23, 2004 Are you gonna glue the schist together or try to balance it? A sledgehammer will break the schist. Oops just saw Matt's reply, oh well, I agree Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jude Posted September 23, 2004 Author Report Share Posted September 23, 2004 Oh dear Don't forget, I am a little old lady ............. not sure if I could lift a sledge hammer :lol: :lol: I thought I would follow Pegasus's advice about building the wall - plan it out, use a masonry bit to drill holes and insert joiners like cut up bits of old felt pens. I glued schist years ago when we had a fish tank, it diidn't last cause the surface is so flakey and dusty. Even with a good scrub it feels dusty. I made it with lots of holes so the fish could swim in and out. It was cool till it fell apart! I like the idea of the pot glued behind it but what do you do when you want to catch a fish that's in there? LOL Cheers Judy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted September 23, 2004 Report Share Posted September 23, 2004 Never thought of that , fortunately none of my fish have been smart enough to hide in there when I'm trying to catch them, otherwise I would have a bit of a dilemma . I used hot glue on mine, but it is not very good. It works fine until you move the wall around too much and then a few bits start falling off. Pegasus' idea sounds good. Cheers, Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jude Posted September 23, 2004 Author Report Share Posted September 23, 2004 One day you'll get a smart fish and then you'll be in trouble!!!!! :lol: :lol: :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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