I'd like to apologize if there has been a similar topic posted but I couldnt seem to find one so here'goes...
I'm thinking about making some of my own plastic plants and I was wondering if there is a safe kind of glue or cement ... something to stick the plastic leaves down to slate or large rocks. Has anyone else made or improved their own plastic plants? I found some great materials at a dollar store and I think it will be much cheaper and I'll be able to make alot if i find the right glue. Who knows maybe it will turn out looking like crap but it's worth a try right?
MOD MOD MOD -----if it doesn't come out the way you like then you can take it out ....if it comes out the way you want or better......wow then you have something no one else does...I love seeing tanks where someone has done something "outside" the box - - - you go girl !!!!!!!
Aquarium silicone is a very good suggestion and very forgiving - - my friend just changed his tank to sand and smeared silicone all over some larger PVC pipes and rolled them in dry sand - - after dried he put them into the tank as Breeding tubes for his cichlids and one is a home for his fresh water stone fish - -you can't even see them in there - -great stuff
I would also go with Aquarium silicone, it will bond to most materials very well and you will know that it's safe for your tank. Good luck with your project.
I just used regular silicon from lowes. I've heard mixed things between regular silicon and aquarium silicon. But I've used the regular silicon in my tank before and it hasn't done anything. I've also read many diy sites that say they use regular silicon from the hardware store. Plus regular silicon is like $4 compared to $10 for aquarium silicon.
don't use silicone from lowes... well you can... but one is dangerous...
i think silicone I by GE is safe for tanks... but i'm not sure... silicone II comes in all kinds of colors and stuff, but it's not safe for fish because it has that anti mold chemical in there that can/will kill fish...
silicone I is 100% pure silicone and works great...
also... don't get any leaves and plastic shrubbery that has metal wires in it... get the ones that hang down from baskets... that one usually doesn't have any metal parts in it... the metal will rust and pollute the tank...
good luck...
edit:...
yeah i found the link to another forum where we discussed the chemicals in silicone II and I...
also... silicone I is the same stuff that's inside tubes of all glass silicone...
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=21234
I've been using Silicon ll (Clear) by GE with the anti-mold chemical. (OOPS). I used it for a rock structure around pvc which it held up for about 6 months and did not harm my fish at all. I also just used it for attaching sand to 2 peices of pvc for my cichlids. It hasn't harmed them yet (knock on wood). Maybe I should remove them and start over with another kind of silicon?
Edit:
I was also reading on another forum is that the reason why you shouldn't use the silicon ll is because of the anti-mold stuff it gives off a lot of ammonia while it's curing. They also said it's not as safe as silicon l, but you can use it as long as you let it cure extra long and away from the tank.
Im having a hard time finding something to anchor the plants to the bottom...every rock i try drilling into breaks into pieces even with the propper drill bit. Looks like its time to get creative again gang....I dont want to use something tooooo heavy but it has to be heavy enough and easily burried under the gravel. My original idea was slate or broken teracotta pot pieces but no luck there. It also has to be something that the silicon will stick to. Hmmmm.....
try drilling into the center of a piece of lexan [plexi-glass] like 4inch by 4inch {depending on the size plant you are anchoring} then bury the lexan so it can't pull up through the substrate - if it pulls out - -try a bigger piece - --just a thought {i know around here the glass shop will give away small scraps of lexan, good luck, Boss
At petco, i just saw metal twist ties for plastic plants that are safe for aquariums... if u have something light that u can silicon to the plants, you can then weight them down with these twist ties... a pack of 8 runs a buck
you could look for some rock called feather rock... it's like a pomace volcanic rock... it drills and cuts really easy... but the thing is that you have to make it sink to the bottom...
the trick is to boil it, then toss it into ice cold water... the stone soaks up all of the cold water into it's heated pores... pretty simple... then drill and glue the plants to the bits of rock and viola...
also... petco hustles some rocks that have little holes for fake plants... but they are baller and pretty ugly IMO...
