# Universal Rocks Magnetic 3D Background



## DrTenochtitlan

Has anyone ever used the Universal Rocks "Rocky 3D" Aquarium Background? It's only 1/4 inch thick, it's flexible, and it's held in place by magnets instead of silicone. It's also under $100 (well under for some sizes), so there seems to be a lot to like about it, but I haven't found a review for it. I have a 55 gallon tank, and this seems like it would be perfect, since it looks good and hardly takes up any space. Anyone have any pros/cons with using the magnetic background on glass?


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## MbunaReef

Got a link?

I just acquired a 240 and am thinking about doing my first in-tank background, however, the tank is acrylic and I haven't seen many acrylic tanks with styrofoam backgrounds. Anyone know if there is an issue with acrylic tanks and styrofoam backgrounds due to the silicone?

TIA.


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## DrTenochtitlan

Here's their catalog as a PDF. The "Rocky 3D" background is on page 2:
http://www.universalrocks.com/Universal-Rocks-Aquarium-Reptile-Brochure- March-2011-w.pdf

Here's a video showing the product from the company:





I can't mention specific retailers inside the thread, but I've found at least two places in the US online that sell it. The 48" by 20" for the 55 gallon was between $77 (with shipping) and $91. That's really reasonable for a background.


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## DrTenochtitlan

Anyone? I'm wondering about the possibility of algae behind the background, as well as ideas on how I would attach my heater and hoses to the back.


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## DJRansome

I have in-tank backgrounds but they are siliconed, not magnetic. Don't you have to attach the magnetic ones flush to the back glass, thus leaving no room for heater or hoses?

I silicone mine in 1-2" from the back. The heater and intakes fit as usual. You won't get algae unless the back is facing a window or your aquarium light is not in front of the background.

With 1-2" of space and the filter intakes in the space, debris is swept up by the filter. I do occasionally (1-2X annually) stick a narrow siphon hose back there if there is any accumulation.

The trick is where to cut the holes int he background. And where to place the heaters and filter intakes relative to the holes.


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## boxrunr

I just purchased and placed this background in my 55 gallon. It came with clips, no magnets. Looks good. I like that it's thin.


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## DrTenochtitlan

boxrunr said:


> I just purchased and placed this background in my 55 gallon. It came with clips, no magnets. Looks good. I like that it's thin.


Could you post a picture of your tank with the background in it? How did you attach your filters?


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## boxrunr

for now i haven't hidden the hob intake nor cannister intake/output. they are simply hanging in front of the background. trying to figure out how to post a pic. 
te="DrTenochtitlan"]


boxrunr said:


> I just purchased and placed this background in my 55 gallon. It came with clips, no magnets. Looks good. I like that it's thin.


Could you post a picture of your tank with the background in it? How did you attach your filters?[/quote]


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## DJRansome

There is a sticky in the Photography forum. Save your pic on a free website like photobucket. Copy the img link provided into the CF topic. Click Preview to verify you can see your pic, then Submit.


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## boxrunr




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## DrTenochtitlan

boxrunr said:


>


That's a nice looking tank! :thumb: The background goes quite well with your rock. Any issues with the background itself?


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## boxrunr

DrTenochtitlan said:


> boxrunr said:
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> That's a nice looking tank! :thumb: The background goes quite well with your rock. Any issues with the background itself?
Click to expand...

Thanks. Thus far no issues with the background. The next day after i had placed the background, i noticed that the water was a bit cloudy and that there was a film of dust on the aquarium glass. Did a water change and wiped the glass, and everythings been looking fine. Perhaps i didn't rinse the background adequately before placing(?). I really wanted to hide the equipment but in the end i figured there wasn't enough space on a 55 g.


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## hoopvillian

Cannot find a place to order these online. Anyone?


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## DrTenochtitlan

hoopvillian said:


> Cannot find a place to order these online. Anyone?


There are at least two places in the US that I know of where you can get it. PM me and I'll send you the links. I just received mine in the mail today, so I'll try and post a video review this weekend.


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## DrTenochtitlan

I will be posting a review with photos of this background shortly (probably tomorrow), for anyone that's interested.


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## DrTenochtitlan

So here is my review of the Universal Rocks "Rocky 3D" background that I promised.

First, this is the background on my floor, just as it came. It's lying on a sheet of cardboard, which was in turn wrapped in cellophane. That's the company's packaging. Then, it was lightly rolled into another larger box and sent to me. (The product itself is quite flexible.) That box apparently came open during shipping, but there was no damage to the product, and nothing was missing. That was the fault of the store I bought it from.









As you can see, it's VERY thin, only about 1/4" inch. It's made from an extremely hard but flexible molded rubber, with actual rock particles attached to the surface and painted to look more real.









Here's another picture of the edge. I put my finger in the photo so you could compare the thickness to it.









Here it is with my new Beamswork Reef Bright light with the lights off in the room. I haven't installed it yet; I just set it in there loosely to give an idea of what it will look like complete.









A little closer with the lights in the room on.









Here's a close-up at a bit of an angle, so you can get a better idea of the texture. It's quite textured actually, for being so flat. The straight-on photos don't really do it justice.









And here's a picture from the side of the tank. Again, it's resting in there loosely, so it's not flush, but you get the idea. Again, you can see both the texture and how truly thin it is.









I spent just over $77 with tax for this background, and I've only found available to purchase from two online retailers in the US. My tank is a 55 gallon, by the way. They no longer manufacture the background with magnetic clips. The "clips" they had were just four uneven pieces of small PVC pipe with a slit, to hold the top of the background flush with the tank. In my opinion, the clips are about worthless. That said, I'm sure magnetic clips could be made, although I have decided to silicone mine to the back. It should be very easy, and there's a how-to video online. If necessary, it IS possible to cut the material, but it is VERY tough apparently. My guess is that a box cutter will work with some effort. As far as placing equipment, I would think that the heater suction cup could attach on the side in the corner as close to the back of the tank as possible. I'm still not sure about the intakes for the filter, though, and I haven't bought my canister filter yet so that I can experiment with the placement. That said, since I've seen pictures of others with the background installed and they had no issues, it must not be a huge problem.


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## DrTenochtitlan

Just to summarize, I was *very* pleasantly surprised by the background itself. It's so slim, that it doesn't even stick out beyond the top lip of the tank. That said, you won't be hiding anything behind it, but that was never the intention. Needless to say, I think this will be a great option for anyone with a 55 gallon tank that doesn't want their background to take up any room.


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## 13razorbackfan

opcorn:


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## Ladyfish

DrTenochtitlan said:


> Just to summarize, I was *very* pleasantly surprised by the background itself. It's so slim, that it doesn't even stick out beyond the top lip of the tank. That said, you won't be hiding anything behind it, but that was never the intention. Needless to say, I think this will be a great option for anyone with a 55 gallon tank that doesn't want their background to take up any room.


Thanks for the thorough review. Let us know how it goes with the installation too. Look forward to seeing it in place, water and fish and all! opcorn:

I have a 55gl as well, and not liking the black background in this particular tank, was wondering what to do instead. This seems like a great option!


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## DrTenochtitlan

Check out this thread for another really interesting use of the Rocky 3D background on a 200g build! An important lesson learned from his experience is that the background is thick plastic covered in rock material, but is "100% harder to cut than you'd think"! He says he burned up three saw blades making all of his cuts! It's that hard. He recommends SOAKING the background thoroughly before making any cuts.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=249482


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## Ladyfish

DrTenochtitlan said:


> Check out this thread for another really interesting use of the Rocky 3D background on a 200g build! An important lesson learned from his experience is that the background is thick plastic covered in rock material, but is "100% harder to cut than you'd think"! He says he burned up three saw blades making all of his cuts! It's that hard. He recommends SOAKING the background thoroughly before making any cuts.
> 
> http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=249482


Thanks for the link - what a great build! I was in my LFS yesterday and could see the Rocky 3D background in person and it does seem very tough. Good tip about soaking it first


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## DrTenochtitlan

Ladyfish said:


> Thanks for the thorough review. Let us know how it goes with the installation too. Look forward to seeing it in place, water and fish and all! opcorn:
> 
> I have a 55gl as well, and not liking the black background in this particular tank, was wondering what to do instead. This seems like a great option!


I thought I'd update this thread with some new pictures. I now have the tank complete and cycling. All it's lacking right now is the fish, but you can get a much better impression of how the background looks with finished landscaping. Let me add that this background is NOT siliconed in, it's simply in there loose. I'm using the large rocks at either end to hold the background in place at the bottom (you can see this in the second photo taken from the end of the tank). The middle is kept flush at the bottom with the substrate itself. The top is held in place using four cheap clips that come with the background. These are perhaps 1" cross-sections of a small PVC pipe. They are split down the middle, so they clip reasonably tightly onto the lip of the tank. The pipe presses against the top of the background, and is sufficient to keep it in place. I'm sure these could probably be improved upon, but they do work. All of my equipment that requires suction cups is stuck onto the sides of the tank. Only my canister filter return hangs over the back, and it stays in place just fine loose.


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## 13razorbackfan

Looks amazing. Lights look great.


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## mak51

Here is a web site http://www.yourfishstuff.com/rocky-3d-background/


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## dblake

I just received my Universal Rock aquarium flexible background. I was wondering how to place the filter tubes because the background is only 1/4 inch thick which is great. After seeing how you set yours up, it doesn't look bad at all with the tubes in the front. It is very nice. With my heater I will place it on the side glass in the back corner.


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## dblake

I have this exact same background and I use some strong scissors to trim off about a 1/4" off the top. It cut real easily until I hit a slightly thicker area and my scissors broke. I had to use a box cutter and that worked out quite well.


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## dblake

Where did you find the stones?


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## fishing12

dblake said:


> I just received my Universal Rock aquarium flexible background. I was wondering how to place the filter tubes because the background is only 1/4 inch thick which is great. After seeing how you set yours up, it doesn't look bad at all with the tubes in the front. It is very nice. With my heater I will place it on the side glass in the back corner.


Seems like a popular background. I just received mine the other day but it seems to be a shade darker that the one posted here. More of a brownish color perhaps. Im going to use an inline heater to eliminate that piece of equipment in the tank. I'm also painting my intake tubing a chestnut color that matches the background pretty well.

Did you silicone the background on? I wished they had stayed with the magnet attachments instead of the plastic clips they provide, I dont like them at all and ended up using silicone instead.


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## DrTenochtitlan

dblake said:


> Where did you find the stones?


I got the stone at a local nursery and landscaping store. I bought it by the pound off of a palette in the back of their storeyard. I think it cost me around $50 for 100 lbs. The stone was unmarked, so I don't know what type it is. I believed at the time that it might be granite remnants, but it could also be what's known as zebra stone.


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## DrTenochtitlan

fishing12 said:


> dblake said:
> 
> 
> 
> I just received my Universal Rock aquarium flexible background. I was wondering how to place the filter tubes because the background is only 1/4 inch thick which is great. After seeing how you set yours up, it doesn't look bad at all with the tubes in the front. It is very nice. With my heater I will place it on the side glass in the back corner.
> 
> 
> 
> Seems like a popular background. I just received mine the other day but it seems to be a shade darker that the one posted here. More of a brownish color perhaps. Im going to use an inline heater to eliminate that piece of equipment in the tank. I'm also painting my intake tubing a chestnut color that matches the background pretty well.
> 
> Did you silicone the background on? I wished they had stayed with the magnet attachments instead of the plastic clips they provide, I dont like them at all and ended up using silicone instead.
Click to expand...

I never did silicone mine on. It's sitting in my tank loose. I have the large rocks in the corners and middle securing the bottom, and the intake, heater, and clips securing it at the top. You're right, the clips aren't great, and they have a tendency to detach if you bump them too hard, but they are holding. I have considered making more PVC clips just like those, except making them a couple of inches long so that they have a lot more grip.


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## fishing12

Agree with you, if the clips were longer they would hold a lot better. The other issue I would have with them would be cutting a slot in the plastic back of the canopy. I know you could let the plastic sit on top of the clips but I like to have the plastic backs on mine flush with the aquarium, just personal preference. Other than that I think for the price it is a nice background and it doesnt take up any room in the tank.


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## DrTenochtitlan

fishing12 said:


> Agree with you, if the clips were longer they would hold a lot better. The other issue I would have with them would be cutting a slot in the plastic back of the canopy. I know you could let the plastic sit on top of the clips but I like to have the plastic backs on mine flush with the aquarium, just personal preference. Other than that I think for the price it is a nice background and it doesnt take up any room in the tank.


Surely there's enough of us with these backgrounds now that we could put our heads together and figure out something else that might work better as a clip on top for this background for those who don't want to silicone it in. Any ideas anyone?


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## fishing12

I still like the magnet idea. I thought I read somewhere that they discontinued them because of the cost. Personally I found the priced on Universals products to be more than fair I would pay a little more for the magnets, at least they should give you the option.


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## b3w4r3

I don't know, the clips work fine for me. It helps to have it sized right so that there is no gap at the top. The frame on my 100g has enough space that the clip slips behind the rim nicely though. I imagine it wouldn't be too difficult to epoxy a few rare earth magnets to the back side if the clips aren't enough.


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## fishing12

b3w4r3 said:


> I don't know, the clips work fine for me. It helps to have it sized right so that there is no gap at the top. The frame on my 100g has enough space that the clip slips behind the rim nicely though. I imagine it wouldn't be too difficult to epoxy a few rare earth magnets to the back side if the clips aren't enough.


Good to hear that it is working for you. I would imagine the frame size for a 180 and a 100 would be the same? My clips were stretched to their maximum and seemed to keep slipping. I do like your idea of the epoxy and magnets but I have already siliconed mine onto the tank and it seems like its good to go. Im going to post a picture in the Tank Setup forum, thread, 180 getting ready.


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## b3w4r3

Well as far as I know they aren't meant to be stretched. They just clip to the lip of the frame and keep the background from moving forward. They don't actually clamp the background, the clips are too flexible to hold like that. Here is a pic of how mine are installed.


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## fishing12

Good shot. I did the same and they just had no bite to them. I know I would find them inside the tank eventually lol! Maybe its me and my luck that they didnt seem to be sufficient, just the way most things seem to work (or not) for me.


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## AulonoKarl

I'm so glad this thread was posted. I've been looking at these backgrounds for the past 6 months or so, but there's not really any shots of them set up in a tank that I could find or user reviews. This is what I will ask my wife to get me for my birthday!


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## fishing12

AulonoKarl said:


> I'm so glad this thread was posted. I've been looking at these backgrounds for the past 6 months or so, but there's not really any shots of them set up in a tank that I could find or user reviews. This is what I will ask my wife to get me for my birthday!


I have a picture of the one im setting up under the Tank Setups Section thread, 180 Getting Ready. They are nice backgrounds for the price.


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## denske

Can someone pm me where these are available? Thank you, tanks look great.


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## fishing12

denske said:


> Can someone pm me where these are available? Thank you, tanks look great.


PM sent.


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## denske

Thanks again bud, anybody have experience installing one in an already established tank, without emptying it?


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## b3w4r3

denske said:


> Thanks again bud, anybody have experience installing one in an already established tank, without emptying it?


I installed the Olgas background in my tank with the fish in it. I removed most of the rocks, and moved some to the front so they were out of the way. Pushed the sand to the front too leaving a bare spot where the bottom of the background went. Getting it in and around the center brace was pretty easy really. I did have one fish that got behind the background while I was installing it. Had to shoo him out.

You want to go in with it with the back side facing up, and the bottom to the back of the tank. Then as you feed it in let the bottom fall into place, and push the top back. You probably will have to keep lifting the end sticking out of the tank so that it doesn't get caught up as it's going in. Be careful not to let the rocky side rub against the front or side glass as it will probably scratch it.


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## Kaenon

This BG looks great and I think I am going to purchase it.
Can anyone else who has the BG take pictures of their setup?


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## SAchiclidkeeper

what type of substrate did you use?


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## RyTheFryGuy

I've talked with my local store to see if they can get this in Ontario, it would be perfect for those of us with thin tanks!


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## areuben

I use many of the universal products and find them great. The logs and rocks are excellent, and I cut many of the larger rocks for hiding places for my catfish - metal snippers or a good carpet knife work very well on the thinner areas.
Background installation - I have the thin background on a large 250G and love the look - to install, I bought Velcro, 2" wide at a sewing shop - I silicone 2" square pieces across all the edges of the background, spaced around 18" apart and silicone squares to the back of my aquarium at matching locations - just measure it up carefully. These can easily be razored out in future. Bottom line is if I want to remove my background for whatever reason - it is pretty easily done. The Velcro has been in there for 18 months and hasn't moved. Just don't space the Velcro pieces too far apart - example, every 2 feet - as pressure behind the background will cause it to bow unnecessarily between attachment points. 
Works great for me and is low cost.


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## RyTheFryGuy

Thanks for the velcro idea! Perhaps hard as nails tape might work as well. As long as the contact area is dry and not exposed to water. Could use rocks and other decor to help keep the background flat on the bottom of the tank.

I was interested in Universal Holey Rock when I first started my tank. The videos of it I saw were very bright and the fish seemed to pop really well off the white holey rock. I didn't like how it was cut down the middle. Unless placed right up against the glass then you would see all the edges and notice that the whole rock is hollow. I also wasn't sure about the cut in half product for the simple reason fish don't really get any alone time with it. They go through the hole, but then the whole side is still wide open. I read about someone who moulded plastic cups onto the holes to make caves. The background though I really really want.

The rock/stone looks really cool. I love how you can cut this product. Could have used it a year ago... I used to breed bearded dragons and having upwards of 40 of those little critters rippin around in a Terrarium you really need to utilize all the space you can. And by having elevation, hideaways, and many warming zones you can have 40 beardies all enjoying life before they went to the pets store.


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