Now i want to set my new tank (220L) up with african cichlids. so im thinking lots of rocks. Do i use real ones or fake ones? coz real ones will be real heavy? but then fakes ones will not stay in place? I dont know!

Suit yourself. Either works.

Either works

What are the fake ones made of that poly resin stuff?? If so, how would you keep them in place?

Cichlids, oh...you are so lucky :bounce: :bounce:

real rocks work better, make sure you can lift them in and out of the tank easily or watch out tank??

i find real rocks easier

here is my tank

Just use extreme caution when adding them to the tank because they can be heavy enough to break the glass. Try lava rock if you can get it, it's lighter than most other rocks.

have to be careful with lava rock it often has heavy metals in it. Go with real rocks, I have never been able to understand why people pay money for something made to look like something you can get for free? it just doesnt seen right to me. I have only ever had 1 fake resin branch thing, the first time i scrubbed it all the colour came off.

If you are worried about the rocks falling etc (which you should be) silicon them together before you add water to the tank or use stable flat stones

do the rocks need to be piled high? (some ppl recommend this to divide territories etc) it seems dangerous to do this as some cichlids like to dig. and also the glue mite come unstuck? I think ill use a mixture of flat and round rocks but just keep them on the low side!

you should always start your rocks on the bottom then add the gravel etc after. even if your fish dont dig just incase the gravel moves. if your really worried about silicon not holding and want to go a litle higher get a masonary drill bit, drill holes in the rocks and pushh in plastic pegs to lock them together.

lol, bringin out the heavy guns suphew :lol:

as long as your rocks arent too big 2 fishy silicon should hold it fine, go a little nuts with it if your wanting to be safe. its often easier to get all your bits and make your rock formation outside the tank so you can plan it all out and then put it in

p.s. if you join our club it could make for an interesting article

Siliconing rocks together is quite hard they dont really stick to eachother, you need to clean the rocks perfectly to get an alright seal, i read on the satlwater forum you could use aquaneed it or something like that, it's what they use for gluing there coral rock together and gluing the corals down.

aquakneedit isn't a glue, more like a filler or putty, salties use it for holding corals to rocks but not so often for sticking rocks together, usually just cable ties, drill and peg, or good stacking!

I stack my rocks, but I wont go higher than a single tier in levels. I make caves, but I dont go as far to make caves on top of caves. I just take care to make sure the rock is sturdy in place.

Generally if a rock was to get knocked down (for some unknown reason), the speed is reduced by water resistant and the impact is spread across the substrate so its not really a problem. The rocks that could crack the glass at that height are so heavy they definately aren't going anywhere 8)

I'm using river rocks this time, and they're a bit of a pain in the butt because they're mostly round making it harder to build cool structures. In my previous tanks I used to have rock slates (from some quarry in the Waikato) which were fantastic, and I'd stack those two-three tiers up with no worries. They were thin, strong, and more importantly flat

I'd prefer real rocks over fake rocks anyday. Not only do they look better IMHO but the weight makes them harder to move, so if I build something, it stays built. If you find you need to use a glue to hold a rock in to place, then you need to find another rock or find somewhere else for it.

Question: how would you clean around rocks if they were glued together?

BRISTLENOSES!

p.s. if you join our club it could make for an interesting article

the wonders of the outlaws.

i have the mother outlaw coming up at the end of this month joy joy staying for two weeks im losing sleep already

If you want to use fake rocks try this forum

http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/synthe ... 17921.html

IF YOU HAVE PROBS FINDING ROCKS i HAVE SOME ALMOST SLATE COOL LOOKING ROCKS IN THE GARDEN YOU CAN HAVE A FEW, DEPENDING ON HOW MANY YOU NEED, i HAVE THEM PILED IN MY BIG TANK AND HAVENT HAD ANY PROBS! WITH CAREFULL PLACEMENT NOT EVEN MY LARGE PLEC CAN MOVE THEM

Nice thread.

I just got home from getting two types of rock from the beach around Red Rocks, Wellington. They're jagged with interesting minerals running through them in lines. I got many shapes: slabs large and small, big blocks, small blocks, ones with holes eroded into them...

Now for some building outside of the tank I reckon. Trying to make something that will hold nicely without too much glue or drilling. We'll see (I mean it, I'll post pics ;-) )