Rock on stilts or placed directly on tank bottom?

[CFR]

I'm thinking of putting my rock on stilts when I set up my new tank. My DT's going to be 23 g with 1 inch deep sandbed. I could use acrylic rods or milliput to raise the rock.

I want as few dead spots as possible and be able to keep as much sand sifted as possible. So I thought that having the rock raised by 1 inch from the tank bottom (meaning that the sand under the rock won't be compacted by the weight of the rock and sand sifters i.e. cerinth or nassa snails would be able to roam freely underneath it) could have an advantage. Hope the above makes sense.

What do you guys think? Is this worth the effort, or should I just put the rock directly on the bottom of the tank?

Thanks in advance!
Chris

 

[Wieloch89]

Interesting...

It wouldn’t be much hassle but I’m not sure how beneficial it would be. Wouldn’t hurt to try and see what happens. As long as the stilts were secured really well to hold up as long as the tank is running.

If you go that route... keep us posted on your findings.

 

[Gareth elliott]

You could use acrylic rods if wanted it to appear floating. Or attach branch rock with epoxy.

. Compressive strength of acrylic is 1500 psi or the same as created under a 1/16” high heel. So as long as its stable and and multiple rods are used to disperse the weight this will hold. Neither acrylic or polycarbonate will yellow under uv.

 

[CFR]

Thanks for the replies guys!

I don't want the rock to look like it's floating. I guess the image below could help you understand what I'm asking.

Which one of the above set ups works best to minimise dead spots ?

Cheers
Chris

 

[Gareth elliott]

The caves and hideouts in the rocks the more likely your fish will feel secure. If method one produces more hideouts go with method one. As to the effect on the sand bed, i have no idea. My rocks are surrounded by sand not on top of it. I have not noticed my snails unable to dig around my rocks.

 

[CFR]

I see! Thanks Gareth

Ok, to make it more interesting...

Which of the above options could have better flow and less dead spots?

Thank you!
Chris

 

[User1]

I just went to the local box store and bought some 5" PVC or abs pipe, cut it to height, and rested the rock on that. I have a pretty deep sandbed anyway but I know I may have something that likes to dig. Because BRS shipped me some boulders in the 150 lbs of dry Pukani that I ordered (I could probably use them for landscaping) I really didn't want those crashing down on the bottom or even the side panels. So this was something that I figured would provide a good base to rest on. Sand would more or less cover it anyway and I'm not too worried about stuff leaching. Seemed to work and I've done it in the past with previous tanks.

 

[lapin]

Drill some holes in the pvc. If you dont it will become a dead spot. If you ever do move it, some nasty bacteria might be released into the tank.

 

[Reef_Pilot]

I am planning on the same type of thing. I have 3 islands and a 2-1/2" sand bed, and each island has 3 legs made of epoxied rock, about 1" to 1-1/2" tall so all the sand sifting creatures can get under them without disturbing the rock work. I am planning on an engineer / convict goby and figure it can't hurt, and it will increase the stability. I say go for it!

 

[fish farmer]

I've done it with 1" PVC pipe and elbows making a "table" over a deep sand bed. I did this in a 120 FOWLR. I drilled a bunch of holes in it, but stuff does still collect in it. I needed to support a huge dead coral head which was about 20 lbs. The fish love hanging out under it and I was able to hide most of the PVC with well placed rocks.

 

[NeedMoreReef]

You will always have some "dead spots" and thats ok, easier to syphon out detritis with your weekly water change.

your only taking about a one inch sand bed anyways. place rock direcly on the bottom. or don't use any sand at all.

 

[hoppy]

I set my rock on egg crate to even disbursement of weight on glass- then filled with sand around it. This is the 1st time I have done this and my tank is young so not sure how this will work long term but so far so good.

 

[alanbetiger]

+1 on eggcrate but I do it more because I'm usually worried about dropping a big base rock onto the glass and cracking it with my 350. Also I think it makes the rockwork more stable because it can grip into the crevices. I've seen some people use acrylic rods like you suggest. From what they wrote it was mainly to try to save the cost of a lot of base rock you don't see in 200+ gallon tanks with 3-4 inches of sand. I personally think with a 23 gallon tank and 1 inch of sand you'll be more at risk of the sand getting shifted so you can actually see the rods or the rock look like it's floating.

 

[kkeller416]

Personally...I like to sometimes flip a rock or rework the rocks into different forms..you maybe limited if glue stands on them...I wouldn't worry too much about flow and dead spots..
My two cents