LF Opinions on a new scape.

bobyboy · Jul 30, 2022

Hi,
I’ve got a new bowfront corner tank that I’m setting up.
The dimensions are 4’x4’ with about a 6.5’ curved front. The tank is 24” tall(hence the 24” yellow level in the background) and will have a 16” tall canopy ontop of it.

here is my current iteration of the scape, it’s made from left over real reef rock, some left over Carib sea base rock and some old tank rock all molded together with the purple Marco concrete. Ignore the rubble in the left corner, and yes the square plywood is to scale.
None of the arches or caves where bought, they are made.

let me know your thoughts!

RSnodgrass · Jul 30, 2022

In general it looks great! Only consideration is if you plan to add sand everything should be taller or set on thicker acrylic/pvc squares so the height isn't compromised by shifting sand in my experience.

Jeffcb · Jul 30, 2022

Looks good.

bobyboy · Jul 30, 2022

RSnodgrass said:
In general it looks great! Only consideration is if you plan to add sand everything should be taller or set on thicker acrylic/pvc squares so the height isn't compromised by shifting sand in my experience.

I’d completely forgotten to mention that I will be using the ocean direct sand, roughly 1.5”-2” worth. I always add the rock work first then the sand afterwards, I’ve found doing it this way helps to avoid shifting structures as things settle and the sand gets tunneled through.

The plan is to attach most of it together into 2 or 3 large sections, this will not only make it easier to remove but should also help with the support.

RSnodgrass · Jul 31, 2022

Yup, that leads to my point.

The small arches become very small and unusable by most fish.

The medium arches for fish like tangs are temporarily big enough until they grow. My tangs now routinely blow out all the sand to the bottom of the tank to make room for themselves.

Long term, the sand burys alot of the rock so putting your rocks on a lift to bump them all up a little less than the sand depth helps as it's easy to under estimate/visualize the needed arch height before sand, perhaps you already did this.