Bare bottom - Epoxy mixed with crushed argonite

[DaveRaz]

I need some advice. I prefer bare bottom and was wondering if mixing epoxy with sand was a bad idea. My research indicates the epoxy, once cured, becomes inert. I like the look of sand but love the flow I'm able to achieve without it. My worry would be any possible leaching. On my current tank I have added sand twice, only to remove it. I want the sand look! haha

 

[DeniseAndy]

If you want the sand look, Marco Rocks sells this cement stuff E Marco 400. It is usually used to cement rockwork together. I have used it to make clam holders and because my lps tank is bare bottom, holders for my acanthestrea and cynarias. It works great. I acutally shape it using sand mixed with it. Looks like sand , but hard and solid. I would try a small bit and see if it gives you the look you want.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Should be fine really. Just like building a back wall or insert but on the bottom not the back.

 

[GoVols]

I got lucky but not at first.
I overdosed Seachem Cal and Alk. Precipt. was everywhere and I had to break up the sandbed too.
So the sand that was under my reef aquascape fused together with my live rock.

So when I went BB all my base rock is flatten out to that rock hard sand and nothing moves

 

[DaveRaz]

Good feedback thanks!

And govols, you gave me an idea which may be perfect! Haha.

 

[Higher Thinking]

I've seen it done before. However, the end result is not how you'd probably like it. At first it looks just like you'd think. Then the coralline sets in and the entire bottom ends up looking like the back of a tank that doesn't get wiped down. Not ideal...although also not the worst thing in the world.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Whether there is organic material leaching from the epoxy will depend on exactly how the particular brand is formulated. It is a broad category, like saying latex paint. It is likely OK, but avoid any that say anything about mold, mildew, antibacterial, etc.

 

[GoVols]

Good feedback thanks!

And govols, you gave me an idea which may be perfect! Haha.

lol,

Trying to make this best out of my many errors.

I'll add this...

I called Seachem and told them what was going on.
She Said: "Sir your math is right but you just dosed 5 times over the daily maximum daily dose with those products."
She said: "I guess you've got a nice frosting on all your glass about now"
I said: "I **** sure do!"
She Said: "Happy Scraping"

 

[CenlaReefer]

Superglue and aragonite work well yet that would take a good bit of glue which may be more toxic that the epoxy. I found textured, oil-based Rustolium brand spray paint that looks like aragonite. It even has darker specks that make it look like irregular sand. I plan to spray the bottom (underlying surface) of my next BB tank with that stuff. From above you will have clean glass yet it will look very much like a shallow sand bed.

 

[FranklinDattein]

It is called Faux sand bed, if you wanna google.
Most folks use a plastic board and glue sand to it.

 

[mi-reef]

I'd caution against this. I've done it myself and it looked great when the tank was new. But once coraline algae started growing, it was a royal pain to remove. Eventually the bottom was completely covered in coraline which wasn't the white sand look that I was hoping to maintain. Kinda like a bare bottom tank if you didn't scrape it.

 

[brandon429]

hey I wanted to offer something about two part epoxies in the marine tank, the arrangements will make huge cracks in time. I have used every type of epoxy you can get from wal mart, home dept, lowes, internet, to make magnets and 100% of them crack open in time. For your needs Id do the expanding foam + top covering. I have a freshwater planted tank that's 13 yrs or more by now made that way, and it still holds the substrate onto the foam after that long zero cracks. its a heckuva submersion test I can attest to, triple expanding foam is better for your application imo

my planted bowl is 1/2 submerged and the back wall is all foam, rock, and coconut husks + planted tank substrate all welded to that foam before it dried so it looks like an amazon back wall./

 

[GoVols]

hey I wanted to offer something about two part epoxies in the marine tank, the arrangements will make huge cracks in time. I have used every type of epoxy you can get from wal mart, home dept, lowes, internet, to make magnets and 100% of them crack open in time. For you needs Id do the expanding foam + top covering. I have a freshwater planted tank that's 13 yrs or more by now made that way, and it still holds the substrate onto the foam after that long zero cracks. its a heckuva submersion test I can attest to, triple expanding foam is better for your application imo

my planted bowl is 1/2 submerged and the back wall is all foam, rock, and coconut husks + planted tank substrate all welded to that foam before it dried so it looks like an amazon back wall./

Great Post

To your point:
My oldest brother has owned a construction business going on 40 years.
He says there is only two kinds of concrete.
1) Cracked
2) To be Cracked

 

[brandon429]

Here's update pic of the terrarium background top one just now, totally full of roots and overhangs not one bit is broken down. This bowl started in about 2003 the cam date is wrong

Foam locked in wood and rocks, for a marine test I'd be curious to know how a simple cleanup crew fared in a cycled test version of a reef foam setup. I think there is already posts of people doing it w foam

 

[DaveRaz]

Very very cool

 

[GoVols]

lol,

Trying to make this best out of my many errors.

I'll add this...

I called Seachem and told them what was going on.
She Said: "Sir your math is right but you just dosed 5 times over the daily maximum daily dose with those products."
She said: "I guess you've got a nice frosting on all your glass about now"
I said: "I **** sure do!"
She Said: "Happy Scraping"

...