# my first DIY BG?



## sisonek (Sep 8, 2009)

I am getting ready to start my first background and I have a few questions. 
1.	Does it matter what type of Styrofoam I use. 
2.	Do you have to seal the back side of the Styrofoam
3.	I see in a lot of the post that people use something called eggcrate on the bottom of their tanks when they put a BG in, why? What is itâ€™s propose? What is it? and do I need to get some?
4.	How heavy/thick should the layer of Quickcrete be
5.	Should I put a regular coat of Quickcrete on and let it dry and then put a second coat on in the color that I want?
Well that is all for know I am sure that I will have more questions as I go. 
Thanks!


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## mightyevil (Oct 23, 2008)

sisonek said:


> I am getting ready to start my first background and I have a few questions.
> 1.	Does it matter what type of Styrofoam I use.
> 2.	Do you have to seal the back side of the Styrofoam
> 3.	I see in a lot of the post that people use something called eggcrate on the bottom of their tanks when they put a BG in, why? What is itâ€™s propose? What is it? and do I need to get some?
> ...


1. No, it does not matter what type you use but I have heard the least problems with white.

2. No, you do not have to seal the back side of the styrofoam.

3. No, definitely not necessary, I don't use eggcrate on mine. I am assuming that they do it so their tanks don't get scratched from the bottom when they put decorations in or maybe so the sand doesn't shift so much and the fish don't expose the bottom of the tank.

4. The first couple of coats should be sort of runny so it gets through the crevices in the rocks but not too thin to where it doesn't stick to the background. Many people have problems with the cement sticking to the background but its because the cement is way too runny.

5. You should put at least 3-4 coats on your background and don't let it completely dry between coats, apply the next coat when the prior coat is dry enough to stay on the background. Your last coat should have the color on it.


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## sisonek (Sep 8, 2009)

Wow that was fast, thanks. Do I need to use something else to seal the front side of the background when it is all done or can I just let it sit for a bit?


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## Rick_Lindsey (Aug 26, 2002)

Patience is the name of the game if you opt not to seal, lots of people are very successful going that route. I wouldn't bother sealing unless it were for a soft-water tank (or if I were in a hurry).

-Rick (the armchair aquarist)


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## mightyevil (Oct 23, 2008)

Rick_Lindsey said:


> Patience is the name of the game if you opt not to seal, lots of people are very successful going that route. I wouldn't bother sealing unless it were for a soft-water tank (or if I were in a hurry).
> 
> -Rick (the armchair aquarist)


X2


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## howmany (Jul 1, 2009)

the eggcrate is to spread the weight of the rocks out, instead of just putting a lot of weight in one point which can lead to cracking. If you are not putting any rocks in your tank, then i don't see why it would be needed.


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## littlejoenc (Jan 11, 2005)

You can use a product called Drylock instead of Quickcrete..
A lot easyer to use, and lot less trouble..
Just use the cement colors to color it..


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## sisonek (Sep 8, 2009)

I started on my first attempt at making a BG this week. Here is what I have so far. The arch will eventually be brown; it is suppose to be a root. The rock wall will be dark charcoal when it is finished 








































The middle piece is still drying that is where my filter will be housed


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## mightyevil (Oct 23, 2008)

sisonek said:


> I started on my first attempt at making a BG this week. Here is what I have so far. The arch will eventually be brown; it is suppose to be a root. The rock wall will be dark charcoal when it is finished
> The middle piece is still drying that is where my filter will be housed


Great start! opcorn:


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## sisonek (Sep 8, 2009)

Here is my progress so far today. I have to go to work nowâ€¦  so this will be all I get done for now. I am hoping to get all of the carving done tomorrow, and maybe start the cementing on Sunday. I do have a few questions at this point.

1.	The panel that is not carved yet will have my filter intake behind it any suggestions on how to â€œhideâ€


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## mightyevil (Oct 23, 2008)

1. Hiding the intakes is always the tricky part, you have to get creative and figure something out...maybe if you make another root and hide it behind that.

2. To hide the seams you should do what you suggested, that is probably the best way to do it. Just remember that you will have to silicone everything in and then cement.

3. As long as the cement is dry by the time you submerge it and it doesn't fall apart when you try to smudge it, it should be fine.

4. That is a good question since only small parts of the root will be attached to the wall, if you put enough silicone where the root makes contact with the wall, my guess is that it should hold. Pink styro is known to have problems with sticking but put some pressure on the root where it makes contact with the wall and I think you will be okay.


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## sisonek (Sep 8, 2009)

Ok. This is where I am at. I think that I am just about ready for the concrete 
















































The holes on the far right are to allow lots of water flow to and from my heater. The black grading is where my filter intake will be I am hoping that the cement will stick to the black plastic grading leaving holes about the size of a pea.

Now I have a few more questions should I put everything in the tank seal what needs to be sealed then apply the cement inside the tank? Or can I possibly put a few layers on while it is still outside of the tank and then put it in the tank seal it to the back and sides and then add a few more layers and the color


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## mightyevil (Oct 23, 2008)

Yes, you can put a few layers of cement on before, I think that this will be the best way to go about it. Remember that the background must not fit tightly in the tank right now because after adding cement the background WILL be thicker and not fit in the tank.


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## bulldogg7 (Mar 3, 2003)

Looks good but have you considered what you're going to put in the completed 30gallon tank? After adding rocks it looks like you will have lost over half the volume of the tank. Since the tank is empty why not just silicone individual styrofoam rocks to the glass and cement over that instead of piling it up 4-6 inches. You could set the plumbing and put the styro around it while not taking up 1/2 the tank. 
Not trying to be a @#$^, just wondering why people half the size of their tanks. It does look good, but looks like a rock wall, faux stone veneer might save some time and you could silicone some styro cutouts over that to hide the plumbing and make caves.


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## sisonek (Sep 8, 2009)

Here it is with the second coat.


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## mightyevil (Oct 23, 2008)

Looking good!


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## csaxe21 (Jun 7, 2009)

Looks great!
I made my background myself as well, and I love it. They make every tank look great!
You should be able to see mine if you're interested if you press on the link in my signature 

Just make sure you use the right silicone , or else you'll have some problems.

Looking good! Good Luck


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## sisonek (Sep 8, 2009)

Here is what I got done this weekend. It is in the silicone in the tank now curing in a few days I will mix some more cements and finish the seams and do some touchup there is a lot of finish work to do. I am worried about one thing though the weather here has took a turn for the worst it was 80 on Saturday and it is 60 today. So I am thinking that I may have to use some kind of a seal on this instead of letting the cement cure for a long time. Can anyone recommend a good sealant to use on this?


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## bulldogg7 (Mar 3, 2003)

that root turned out pretty cool, nice contrast on the bg


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## mightyevil (Oct 23, 2008)

sisonek said:


> I am worried about one thing though the weather here has took a turn for the worst it was 80 on Saturday and it is 60 today.


That is actually a good thing. The slower the cement cures the less imperfections it will have. I say you wait a few days and then put it in and do about four 100% water changes and then test the water's PH, if it is between 8.0 and 8.6 you are golden. Otherwise try the West Systems Epoxy resin, it is a two part resin. Or loo for the MASS epoxy resin on Ebay but you will spend some money for that stuff.


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## sisonek (Sep 8, 2009)

I just got done adding the finishing the seams and doing a little touchup. One thing that I should have done differently is to have the root branch where in enters the tank and have one branch running over the rocks and one bulging out away from the rocks. Next time I do one of these I think that I will just take the top of the tank off so that I do not have to make so many small pieces I had to make a total of 4 separate pieces for this one.

Here is a picture of how it looks with the seams done. I will post more pics when I get is set up. Thanks for all help fully advice and kind comments.


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## sisonek (Sep 8, 2009)

Here is the final outcome of my little project, I am not 100% happy with it but it was my first time and I learned a great deal. The biggest mistake I made imo was not keeping carful track of the color mix, when I went to fill in the seams after the BG was inside the tank I thought that I had a pretty close match, boy was I wrong after it dried it ended up being a lot lighter so from the seam over it is more of a mix of grey and charcoal whereas the first section is very charcoal. The flash from the camera brings the contrast out more than you can normally see. Now I just have to decide what kind of cichlids to put in the tank.
Thank you all for you helpful advice and your kind comments they have be very appreciate

Without water 









With water


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