I truly insist on rock that is light weight.

[inachu]

I truly wish I could have rock that is very very light weight.

Everything they sell in stores be it live rock or dead rock is always very heavy.

I am paranoid on the verge of a psychological problem.

I have see too many tv shows/movies where the bottom falls out.

That is why you have not seen pictures of my tank with lots of rocks.

The biggest rock on the left feels like 15 pounds:
http://picasaweb.google.com/inachu/MYFISHTANK/photo#5185030617455681170


Ok so this is not about me people ok?

Where can I find light weight rock?
Or maybe I should just make fake rock?
I am looking into this if this is a viable soloution.

I have seen others reply using foam but this makes the tank look like something from the old TV show Fraggle Rock. I do not want that.

Once I do have fake rock I do not want it to look real but days later paint wears off.
Looking for a permanent soloution.

[cdbias2]

Try the Marco rock. It's dry and needs to be cycled but everyone raves about how light weight it is. I have found that the Tonga branch rock to be the heaviest by mass.
The Marco 50# box will fill your tank and you can throw that other in the trash.

[matt880305]

looks like you have a prob with your background to with all the wetness lol. i can give you a solution to that but not the rock. anyways tack the background off let it dry then clean all the water spots that you can then take the same background and instead of just taping it on tuck it under the plastic and then tape it. works like a charm for me .
Matt

[papagimp]

Look into marshal island rock, it's typically extremely porous and lightweight compared to simlarly "sized" rock from elswhere.

fwiw, "fake rock" doesn't have to be painted. Look at the DIY forums for homemade aragonite based rocks, they'll look pretty much just like the real thing. Although they won't be any lighter weight, usually less porous and heavier. But just as effective in many cases.

Guess I'm lucky we don't watch the same shows on TV, I've never seen a bottom fall out of a tank, but if it helps "ease" your brain, I've had as much as 250lbs of live rock crammed in a 55g before, open top stand and whanot so if it were going to crash through, would have done it long ago, lol.

Sounds to me like your just having a few jitters about the wieght issue, I was the same way when I stuck my 220g in the house, theirs no bracing on the top whatsoever, just the stand holding around the edge of the tank, but I've seen the tank holding plenty of live rock before so i'm not worried. Your fears will ease the longer your in the hobby and you get a little more experience dealing with these types of issues.

[demonsp]

Whene you want 1 lb per gallon minimum then its hard to lighten it up. Glas is tempared and breaks are few and far in between.

[seapug]

As others have said, your fears are largeley unfounded as long as you aren't tossing the rocks into the bare bottom of the tank from across the room. If you are paranoid about it, placing plastic eggcrate on the bottom can help distribute the weight more evenly and helps with stability of the 'scape.

[Savas]

You can also drill holes in any rock buy to remove some mass.

[seanb1]

if you want to worry about something, worry about the water weight.

the rock doesnt amount to diddly compared to water.

[inachu]

Is there any retail site on the web for it?

I googled and the search was not promising.
I'll google some more later tonight.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12245981#post12245981 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cdbias2
Try the Marco rock. It's dry and needs to be cycled but everyone raves about how light weight it is. I have found that the Tonga branch rock to be the heaviest by mass.
The Marco 50# box will fill your tank and you can throw that other in the trash.

[inachu]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12246019#post12246019 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by matt880305
looks like you have a prob with your background to with all the wetness lol. i can give you a solution to that but not the rock. anyways tack the background off let it dry then clean all the water spots that you can then take the same background and instead of just taping it on tuck it under the plastic and then tape it. works like a charm for me .
Matt

thanks


Its been there since the tank was fresh water for over 5 years.

Too lazy but if I ever do then I might just paint it black.

[cdbias2]

marcorocks.com

[Mike in AZ]

You likely have over 450lbs of weight in that tank just from the water. I wouldn't worry about the weight of your live rock.

water = 8.34 lbs/gal

saltwater with a s.g. of 1.025 (8.34x1.025) = 8.548 lbs/gal

If the tank had nothing in it except saltwater and was completely full you'd have about 470lbs of weight in it. But with sand, LR, and anything else in there you won't have the full 55gal of water.

Just something to think about

[Tswifty]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12246464#post12246464 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by seanndenise1
if you want to worry about something, worry about the water weight.

the rock doesnt amount to diddly compared to water.
Great post :lol:

Water weighs approx 9lbs per gallon... Also, like papagimp I had around 150lbs im my 55gallon tank. In fact I had so much I was able to fill my 90 with it, with a good bit left over.

If your that worried about puncture or stress points on your glass you can lie an eggcrate sheet on the bottom of your tank underneath your substrate like I did as a precaution.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/165449Calfo1.jpg

In all honesty did I need it... No...

why did I do it... beats me... just had a bunch of eggcrate left over :p

[buckeyegirl]

You could build a frame out of PVC and attach the rocks to it, so it looks like you have more rock but there is a big empty space behind the frame.

[inachu]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12246581#post12246581 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Tswifty8
Great post :lol:

Water weighs approx 9lbs per gallon... Also, like papagimp I had around 150lbs im my 55gallon tank. In fact I had so much I was able to fill my 90 with it, with a good bit left over.

If your that worried about puncture or stress points on your glass you can lie an eggcrate sheet on the bottom of your tank underneath your substrate like I did as a precaution.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/165449Calfo1.jpg

In all honesty did I need it... No...

why did I do it... beats me... just had a bunch of eggcrate left over :p


THAT IS AWSOME!!!!!

I'm going to find out where to buy the stuff.

[mrbigshot]

i ordered some marco austrailian spagetti rock and it showed up yesterday, i ordered 15lbs and after shipping it was $33 so a little over $2 lb shipped. it didnt smell at all but it needs to be soaked and scrubbed as there is a ton of silt that needs to be removed. the nice thing is that its dry so once its in the tank it will take on 25%-40% weight from the water so you get a great deal. finish with some live and your set.

http://xs226.xs.to/xs226/08144/rock1647.jpg
http://xs226.xs.to/xs226/08144/rock2707.jpg

[Tswifty]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12246719#post12246719 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by inachu
THAT IS AWSOME!!!!!

I'm going to find out where to buy the stuff.
Lowe's or Home Depot... also known as "light diffusers"

You might have to be careful moving your substrate around... You'll need to do a rather large water change after... How long has your tank been set up for?

[wiscsaltwater]

Not sure why your worried about rock weight, the rocks actually can make a tank lighter, 40lbs of live rock can displace more water weight since water is denser than most live rock.

Its hard to explain but fill a 20gallon aquarium up to the tip top with water then put 20lbs of live rock in it, the water the rock displaces actually weighs more than the rock so it makes the tank lighter..........