Aquascaping GLUE and some "gluing" tips for your rocks!

[BBN Reefer]

I used BRS's thick gel super glue and accelerator to hold things temporarily then Marco cement to make it permanent.

I did the exact same. Solid!

 

[ClownSchool]

Some may hate me for this but here goes...
I just did my very first glued aquascape and I'm rather pleased with results. I went on the recommended glue sites and had my order all set to be placed and then it occurred to me "cyanoacrylate" the Dollar tree down the road sells that stuff. What to lose? So sent my daughter, (poor child) and began my project. I love the Tidal Garden videos, so instructive and he takes his time showing you how to actually do stuff without selling you the bridge. Anyway first thing I learned was don't use the Gel. Buy the runny fast drying stuff. KEY is to create a powder with the crushed sand left from smashing the rocks into smaller usable pieces and toss it at the joint spots then add a few drops of glue. It joins immediately. Almost like Acrylic solvent. It isn't super strong but it holds. Here's my logic. I need to get it from where I'm building to the spot in the tank where it will stay indefinitely. So the most stressful part will be the move and avoiding it to break? Well that worked for me. I built several pieces and put them all together in the tank to appear as one. So far so good. So $12.00 in Dollar Store glue later. This is my result.

I’d love to see a picture. This is all new to me and building aquascapes seems like a promising hobby.

 

[mehaffydr]

I used Marco cement on all of mine

 

[sghera64]

Two-part epoxy putty.

I try to let natural "lock & key" formations and gravity do most of the work, but use the putty/epoxy just in case something shifts a little. So far, it has worked well. I've not had to take it apart to see how strong the bond is.

I've affixed large and heavy coral cup coral in place this way before. The cup coral sat between two rock formations. At some point, one of the rocks was moved and the cup coral looked like it was "hanging in free-space" as the epoxy was holding it up on just one side. I was surprise how strong that bond was.

 

[nessjosh]

I actually used a caulk gun and a couple silicone tubes (clear) from the big box store. It's the same silicone they use for glueing your tank or sump together. Just let it dry before putting it into your tank. This works for a new setup and allows you to get creative. I them used sand and blew it onto the fresh joints to cover up the clear silicon look.

 

[ApoIsland]

Can you glue aged (over 20 years in my tank) live rock together? If you can what’s the best one to use?

absolutely you can. just make sure you scrape the bonding areas really well to remove the algae and use the super thin cyanoacrylate with sand method. if you plan and prep well the rocks will be out of the water less than 30 min.

 

[ApoIsland]

This is the start of my new 6ft tank scape.
@Glue Masters thin , argonite sand and crushed rock powder. When done right the rock breaks before the bond.

Here are a couple others I've built.

Here is my lagoon scape all growing in. 6 months. For this one I used same method with wet cured rock. Took a little more time but still works.

you are a master. these are some of the best I have seen. usually corals totally destroy a good rock scape but yours are small enough I can only imagine how amazing that lagoon tank would look if you got rid of all the frags that aren't on the rocks and laid a half inch of fine white sand down

 

[F i s h y]

you are a master. these are some of the best I have seen. usually corals totally destroy a good rock scape but yours are small enough I can only imagine how amazing that lagoon tank would look if you got rid of all the frags that aren't on the rocks and laid a half inch of fine white sand down

Thank you for the kind comments. Those coral will be going into my 6 ft tank when finished and the lagoon will turn into a nem tank. I am out of room in my current one. I plan on doing sand in both at that point.

 

[Wasabiroot]

I can't believe how little people use acrylic rods? You can literally build a solid as hell, dismantlable Lego aquascape without any glue. I plan to make a Pico reef using the Acrylic rod method very soon and will post a Build thread

I think it's because unless you search them out specifically, they're a lot less conspicuous or widespread than glue. It's not like there's an Acrylic Rod aisle at home depot.
(maybe there is, lol.)
I have heard they work very effectively though!

 

[Glue Masters]

Thank you for the shout out! R2R is awesome. We are truthfully humbled and for those who never tried our products, we run r2r special lifetime discount. All products, all the time.

 

[Spicy Reef]

I can't believe how little people use acrylic rods? You can literally build a solid as hell, dismantlable Lego aquascape without any glue. I plan to make a Pico reef using the Acrylic rod method very soon and will post a Build thread

Rods definitely have their place
I could have never built my aquascape using them… then again maybe I would have ended up with something better…

 

[fowler279]

I used @Glue Masters thin glue and crushed up marco rock to create mine. Nothing else and its holding extremely well. Been sitting in the garage for a month or so and i have had to move it a few times. So far so good.

 

[coralfarmer]

I use Polygem epoxy , it’s a two part takes about 24hrs to cure . Once it has cured and hardened it’s stronger than the rock itself .
I also use fishing line , wire and zip ties to secure the Rick during the curing process. Most aquascape projects take between 3 and 4 days to complete .
I mostly work with Real Reef Rock .

 

[Glue Masters]

Wow, looks awesome!!!!

 

[coralfarmer]

Thank you !

 

[HawkeyeDJ]

I have had a lot of trouble with 2 part epoxy putty’s not wanting to stick to glass.

2 part epoxy doesn't "stick" to anything. It works by being malleable initially, getting worked into nooks, crannies, overhangs and undercuts. Then, once it has hardened, the pieces are "locked" together. Glass, having no nooks or crannies, is not going to work with epoxy.

 

[Gup]

2 part epoxy doesn't "stick" to anything. It works by being malleable initially, getting worked into nooks, crannies, overhangs and undercuts. Then, once it has hardened, the pieces are "locked" together. Glass, having no nooks or crannies, is not going to work with epoxy.

I preferred not to be a contrarian, but the coral that I used, I attached two Marco stones to my back glass. From there, I attached 4 more small nuggets, to the back glass there I used magnets. That way they were usable for me when I could pull them out and place GSP’s to them.