DIY Live Rock/Aragocrete?

chipmunkofdoom2

Reefing newb
Anybody ever done this? I eventually want to set up another tank and it'd be awesome if I didn't have to buy more rock for it. Here are some links if you've never heard of this process before.

http://www.garf.org/class.html
http://www.mindspear.com/reef/concrete/index.htm
http://www.athiel.com/lib3/arago.htm

It seems like a legit process, but I've read on a couple pages that if not dried/made properly, it can wreak havoc on your system. I've also read that it may not. That's why I'm looking for YOUR guys' input! Thanks.
 
Thanks for the link. Yeah, it looks like fun... I'm more intrigued by the cost factor. I think I recall reading that if you make it yourself, the rock costs less than $1 a pound, although I can't find the link right now. Of course, you'll need a piece of rock from an established system (or a piece of uncured rock would probably work well) to get some life in the tank.

*EDIT*

Here are a couple more links I found.

http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Hangar/6279/RaiseCementRock.html
http://www.saltwaterfish.com/vb/showthread.php?t=19952
 
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Well, I am trying now. My first mix crumbled but I may have been to eager before it had cured. The second batch has done better. It is still, to my mind, heavy. But I may use some to extend natural rock.

Many sites say to mix plastic shavings.......not sure why unless to reduce weight but do not know where to find a souce for plastic shavings?????????????????? One batch I tried pasta..yep. maraconi. The idea is it will dissolve during the curing process and create holes.
Mine didn't quite work out that way.

Some say add gravel..I didn;t to reduce weight.

I have 2 batches or a total of 8 "rocks" curing in a plastic tub. Mostly fresh water but I dump a bucket of saltwater from water changes other wise I flush the tub out with the hose every few days. The first four are looking hopeful...the second four still look like concrete lumps. I made my own holes in them with a scrap piece of plastic tube about 1/1/4" dia.

Give it a try. what have ya got to lose but a bag of concrete? I'm thinking at least 2 months curing time.
 
Give it a try. what have ya got to lose but a bag of concrete? I'm thinking at least 2 months curing time.

Yeah, that's exactly my thoughts!

As for the plastic shavings, it's to encourage coralline growth. They stick to plastic easier... I recall getting it on my powerhead and filter long before it started sticking to my glass.

As for holes in the rock, how big are you trying to get them? I understand the rock should be somewhat porous, but the one guide kinda went over that I think. You're supposed to put the mix in and then make little lines of sand where you want there to be holes and such... I think. I dunno. If I ever get a new tank, I'm definitely doing this. I still to this day can't believe how expensive live rock is. I may try to find people to trade pieces with so I can get a good, diverse culture going in my home made rock.
 
Yeah I have heavily considered doing this for the majority of the rocks in my next tank upgrade. I have a DVD that Leroy from GARF sent me with one of my orders that shows how to make it on video. I really like the idea of being able to make rocks with divots using frag plugs so you just slide in the plugs and you dont see them.

The only downfall is the lack of diversiy in fauna that you will get in your aquarium compared with using liverock from the ocean
 
The only downfall is the lack of diversiy in fauna that you will get in your aquarium compared with using liverock from the ocean

Yeah, that would suck, but you can always go to a LFS and get a piece of uncured rock to put in the tank with it.. eventually it should colonize. I'd probably just trade a piece of rock from my current setup with someone else, then put that traded piece along with another piece from my main tank into the tank with the new rock. I figure it'd colonize well enough.
 
kinda true, the fauna that you find in liverock is extremely diverse, some will spread. unlike the ocean it wont keep getting better. as the tank gets more and more mature the liverock runs "outta gas" and its reccomended that in tanks that are mature for a few years that you periodically replace rock in your aquarium with liverock.

Dont mistake me for saying this is a bad idea. I love the idea and in time will do it myself, Its just there are so many biological benefits to having as much liverock from the ocean that has been shipped well with minimal dieoff as you can. The more diverse your tank is the less likely it is going to be that you will have any major quality issues with your tank.

Tanks can be easily kept with just aquacultured rock or man made rock no problem. just weighing out the cost/benefit of it is all.
 
Oh yeah, I definitely hear ya. It's all about the cost/benefit ratio.

The best option is to put the fake rock on a real reef to let it mature and colonize in the actual ocean, haha. One company did that I think... it was cheap and had all the benefits of being real live rock.

Ideally, I want to have a large couple hundred gallon tank in my living area (when I graduate and get my own house and all), a smaller tank (55 to a hundred) in my room, hopefully a nano somewhere like in my home office and perhaps one in my kitchen. I figure if I start with half real rock and make sure I have a couple different types, as long as I rotate between those 3 or 4 different tanks, they should stay pretty diverse.
 
all of the florida aquacultured rock doesnt even hold the diversity that real live rock does. its great. but it is only in there 2-3 years and thats not near long enough for some really cool stuff to happen. Im not downtalking it at all. but nothing beats the real thing.

I currently have a 180, 80, and 36 (just broke down) im about to buy a house and I will always have 3 tanks. I am going to upgrade to something over 300 gallons in a few years, and have the 180 as a sps tank and my 80 will be somethng else that i will not reveal until it happens. only one person on this forum knows what im doing with the 80g.

You think almost exactly like me. I love having multiple tanks. ooh and i ride too
 
*** sorry about going off topic*** this is my 98 cbr 600f3. fastest pic i could find on photobucket. taken about a year or so ago.

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Tampa bay dont MAKE their rock.Its mined,calcium based(actually extinct reefs).Then taken out and dumped in the ocean for 3 to 4 years.
Like Dustin said,you'll get a mantis from them at times(god knows I've had my share of em),but you cant beat all the life forms that comes on that rock.Its not at all unusal to put the rock in the tank and have a fish come swimming out.
 
*** sorry about going off topic*** this is my 98 cbr 600f3. fastest pic i could find on photobucket. taken about a year or so ago.

Haha, no problem man, it's for a good cause. Lookin good :beerchug:
Honda makes a good bike :mrgreen: I have an 03 600RR.

bikesunset018rc8.jpg


I love it to death and it's the reason my tank took the back seat for a while, haha. Now I'm kinda hitting a wall.. I don't want to go any faster on the street, but I'm getting all the lean angle I can for the speed I'm going. I'm trying to save up for good leathers and track plastics so I can get to a track, but I'm torn between that or upgrading the tank... haha. They both cost a lotta money.
 
awesome, one of my friends has an 05 600rr. its a good bike. Sadly i dont have the option to be torn. the closest track is 5 hours away and the fish tanks are a lot easier for me right now because I have a 2 and a half year old son, so its hard to really get out now. I used to put a good 8000 miles minimum a summer on my cbr and i only rolled just over a thousand this year. I love it though. there is no other feeling in the world like a mororcycle.
 
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