# DIY river bottom



## alaskan_aquaristJW (Oct 14, 2007)

today i decided to try and create a river bottom. Success! This is how im doing it....so far, it looks very realistic, its gonna look good in my tank....after it is completed, i may create a background to go with it....
What you need:
2 inch think slab of styrofoam, get whatever size youll need and measure and cut it to fit your tank...
1 50lb bag of quikrete concrete mix, about $7...
I used a flathead screwdriver to carve out the styrofoam surface, making it look like a mud river bottom, i found a scratching motion worked best....
Mix up your concrete mix and make it thin, grab a paint brush and paint the stryofoam with the watery concrete mix....i took rocks, some driftwood, stones, and fake plants and cemented them to the stryofoam and each other...let it dry and be cautious when putting it in your tank....i hear you need to cycle it in the water and do 2-3 water changes over the next 4-6 days,w/o your fish in the tank.....i dont have any pics yet, but it will be done by the end of the week.....


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## fishwolfe (Mar 27, 2005)

sounds cool,waiting for the pics opcorn:


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## emilaay_101 (Mar 11, 2008)

Sounds good.... cant wait for the pics....


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## Izzydawg (Jan 4, 2008)

Right on :wink:


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## Dewdrop (Nov 20, 2007)

Wooo Hoooo it's the end of the week! Let's see those pics :thumb: lol
I can't imagine how you would carve styrofoam to look like a river bottom. Did you add anything to color the cement? I bet it looks great but I just can't picture it. No imagination I guess lol. I bet the fish are gonna love it too.


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## a_c_arnold (Mar 7, 2008)

I hope that you secure it to the bottom of your tank properly. 2 inches of styro is very bouyant especially if it breaks lose from the very bottom of your tank it may take fish with it. I assume that you are planning to weigh it down with several decent sized rocks.


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## Ludo (Jun 7, 2008)

i would love to see this... are there pictures anywhere?


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## kingpoiuy (Jun 9, 2008)

I want pics!!! :x

hehe


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## BigBaby~420 (Jun 13, 2008)

weak at best.... diy fantasies


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## balachel (May 24, 2008)

any pictures yet


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