My Background Floats!

[Creature Seeker]

Hello,

I'm in the process of cycling a Rio 180 that 'was' going well as ammonia was dropping to 0 within 12 hours.

Last night I attempted to add my home made 3D background which consists of 3 parts that fit together made from polysterine coated in 5 layers of cement to look like a cave wall.

To my horror when I tried to place them in the tank they floated! I assumed that the weight of all the cement on them would make them sink as they are a considerable weight but apparently not and it takes a great deal of force just to push the pieces down before they bounce back up again.

Unclear of what to do next I thought I try to stick them to the side of the aquarium. I transferred the heater, internal filter media, external filter, ornaments and water into a different tank to try and keep my bacteria alive.

I was wondering if anyone had any ideas of how to make this background stick in place as I'm not sure simple sticking it to the aquarium will hold it against the force.

Any help greatly appreciated.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

use aquarium silicone to stick it on, the tank and background will need to be dry and once they're stuck leave it for at least 24 hrs to go off before you fill the tank.

 

[raptorrex]

Hello,

I'm in the process of cycling a Rio 180 that 'was' going well as ammonia was dropping to 0 within 12 hours.

Last night I attempted to add my home made 3D background which consists of 3 parts that fit together made from polysterine coated in 5 layers of cement to look like a cave wall.

To my horror when I tried to place them in the tank they floated! I assumed that the weight of all the cement on them would make them sink as they are a considerable weight but apparently not and it takes a great deal of force just to push the pieces down before they bounce back up again.

Unclear of what to do next I thought I try to stick them to the side of the aquarium. I transferred the heater, internal filter media, external filter, ornaments and water into a different tank to try and keep my bacteria alive.

I was wondering if anyone had any ideas of how to make this background stick in place as I'm not sure simple sticking it to the aquarium will hold it against the force.

Any help greatly appreciated.

you could try to remove some of the polysterine through the bottom. also , maybe you could attach some silicone suctioncups to the back!! or, if you can remove some of the inside content, replace it with a container of some sort that will fill with water as you imerse the background!

 

[Creature Seeker]

Thank you

Both very good ideas.

Miss Wiggle, I have some aquariums silicone but wasn't sure if it could hold the force of the background trying to pop up.

...

 

[scubadoo]

I have a juwel structured background inside the tank - which is made of polystyrene & I attached mine with aquarium silicone - works a treat.

Like Miss Wiggle said though, the glass will need to be clean and dry for the silicone to attach properly and you'll need to leave it to dry thoroughly.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Like Miss Wiggle said though, the glass will need to be clean and dry for the silicone to attach properly and you'll need to leave it to dry thoroughly.

yay i got somethign right, proof I do actually listen to Ian....... occasionally

 

[Creature Seeker]

The reason that I'm worried that aquarium sealant won't hold it is because the pieces are quite large and it took a lot of force to push them down. This force constantly pushing against the sealant might make them pop out a few months later when everythings settled. I suppose I should buy a lot of sealant!

...

 

[Pheonix]

if its full of water it will be difficult to get a sufficient amount in there and it will take a LONNNNGGG time to dry, if you do, do it this way u may want to consider weighing it down with something heavy on it short term while it dries

i think id hollow it out a bit if at all possilble to reduce some of the boyancy then fill the holes with something heavy and tank safe

 

[wendywc]

Can you silicone a few rocks to the bottom of it?

 

[The-Wolf]

I'd use a product called wet water sticky stuff and not silicon.
it cures underwater and is safe for use in fish tanks.