Aquascaping

I just built a small PVC shelf to get some of my rock up off the sand bed and make the rock sit higher. I currently have about 80lb of rock and didnt really want to add any more as it already takes up a fair amount of space.

My question is..........

Should I complete all of the arranging at the same time or do a little at a time? I dont want to stress the fish to much. I just recently had a yellow tang with ich. He is doing VERY well now and I think im ready to start messing with the tank again.

Also looking for oppinions on a PVC shelf. Anyone have any good/bad experiences with them? I used 1/2" pvc and drilled a ton of holes in it for flow.

 

I'd do it all at once; just one stressful event this way instead of several.

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by a "PVC shelf"?

 

I failed to take any pictures of the build, but basically I built a shelf with 1/2 pvc pipe, and joints. It sits about 4" off the floor of the tank and I have placed/stacked rock on top of it and around it to hide the pvc. It also creates a cave of sorts under it. Ill try to take some photos of it set up. I plan to do this this afternoon.

 

Here are some pics

 

Following along I'm interested too

 

very cool!

 

So far the self is working as I planned. I just need to get some more small rock to fill in the holes and hide it from sight. I drilled all the holes in it in hopes that it would cut down on stagnant water and/or build up of detritus within it. This also allows a nice shelter for mirco organisms and snails/hermits. I figured it would be safe as it is the same stuff I used to plumb my tank.

I found that it gave me a little more control of the stability of my stacking. I did not use any epoxy or glue. There are 3 tubes running the length of the shelf and it allowd be to place rocks in between them for stability. I'll keep updating once I find out how well it stays put.

Ill also post some more pics once I fill in the bare spots with additional rubble. I may even buy some tonga and drill holes in the back of it so I can zip tie it to the pipes to hide them better.

Looking back I wish I would have painted it, but I was affraid that the paint would just chip off and cause problems. Maybe I'll get lucky and coraline will take hold!

 

Nice job..coralline LUVES plastic,acrylic..etc.