# Changed my rocks - what do you think?



## jschwab45212 (Apr 25, 2006)

Well when I set the tank up three years ago I grabbed about 150 lbs. of rock from a pond at work and have used that until now. I have finally got permisson from the wife to move my tank from the basement to the living room so I decided it needed a face lift.

Before









After


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## Britnick (Apr 18, 2008)

Much better. nice job. =D> Bet your wife is pleased you moved it now


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## niccomau (Oct 14, 2008)

much better I love the look of holey rock :thumb:


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## eL Chupy (Aug 6, 2007)

i think more of the other rock instead of the castle would have looked sweet. i like the new look as well, clean holey rock is awesome, but not so much to my liking once algae starts to grow on it.....

one BIG suggestion that I think would make this tank even better... change the 'rocky' stick on background to a plain black or dark blue. the picture types draw attention away from the main focal point of the fish and world you're creating inside the tank


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## jschwab45212 (Apr 25, 2006)

eL Chupy said:


> one BIG suggestion that I think would make this tank even better... change the 'rocky' stick on background to a plain black or dark blue. the picture types draw attention away from the main focal point of the fish and world you're creating inside the tank


Cool, I'll try the plain black and see how that looks.


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## BurgerKing (Jul 1, 2008)

i liked your old setup, it looks more natural(minus the castle) in comparison to the holey rock. I think making a pair of stacks of holey rock on either side of the tank would look better, but you have to look at the everyday, so do what you like best.


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## crotalusfan (Jun 21, 2008)

I do like th holey rock, but liked the old rock much better.


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## venustus19 (Aug 30, 2007)

i might be one of the few, but i am not a big fan of holey rock for some reason... so my vote is for the old set-up, but tweaked.... i like the look of more natural looking rock for a set-up... take out the castle, and the old set-up is perfect...

but the new set-up is very clean looking...


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## Computer (Sep 24, 2008)

I liked the first set up (minus the castle) but overall it looks good.


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## ercnan (Aug 13, 2006)

Not a fan of the castle at all.
Marginally better with the holy rock (the castle's gone).
But a natural look (before without the castle) is more inviting to me.
Holy rock looks too "salty" IMO
Stacked slabs of limestone look more natural I think.
The new looks good, make no mistake, but the old with some mods. would have been better for me.
But that's just me.


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## D-007 (Jan 3, 2008)

I also prefer the "before" look better.

As already mentioned more of the older rocks and no castle would have been what I would have done. I'd have also tried some Java Fern in there.

Thing is, if YOU like the look of it and YOUR WIFE likes the look of it then all is good :thumb:


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## iceblue (Apr 27, 2004)

venustus19 said:


> i might be one of the few, but i am not a big fan of holey rock for some reason... so my vote is for the old set-up, but tweaked....


Your not alone on the holey rock thing. Effective for buffering the water somewhat but from what I've read nobody who dives the Rift lakes can find any of it there.

I would also prefer the look of the rocks in the first picture minus the castle. But it's all personal preference. If your happy with what you put in your tank and it provides for your fish according to their needs then it's all good. :thumb:


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## trigger (Sep 6, 2002)

Sorry, I love the old setup (if you'd loose the castle  ) I don't like the new setup at all. holey rock just does not belong in a cichlid tank IMHO.


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## bwah (Apr 13, 2008)

i like it. some of the rocks look like skulls


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## jschwab45212 (Apr 25, 2006)

I actually only had the castle in the first det-up for a few months and then ditched it, just never took new photos. Personally I like both set-ups, this one will be easier to clean and to re-arrange since there are only 6 or 7 pieces of rock to remove instead of 30 like the old set-up.

The fish seem to love the new rock. There are many more hiding places. I don't know if it was just changing the rock or if this rock makes my multipluncatus happy, but I actually saw them this morning. I really had not seem them since I put them in there two years ago, untill yesterday when I took all the old rock out and they didn't have anywhere to hide. Now today after they got used to the new rock they are out and about exploring in the daylight.










When I move the tank upstairs next weekend I think I'm going to try and make two stack on either end of he tank and leave some open sand in the middle and try to put a few live plants in there.

Thanks for the comments, I knew there would be mixed reviews. As said above I like the way it look and so does the wife so the new look stays for a whle, especially since I spent around 350 bucks on rocks.


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## 3569Ryan (Jul 8, 2008)

Dude you need to bring back that awesome castle!


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## Timkat4867 (Jan 11, 2008)

Need to add a few well placed plants or else the holey rock looks too plain.


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## Demasonian (Oct 23, 2005)

To echo the comments of others, I like the rocks from the first setup better than the holey rock, but that's just personal preference, and the holey rock does have its charms.

I think the key to any good rockscape is to create something which looks natural, something that "makes sense" to the eye. Sometimes this can take hours of monkeying around with positions. Two things I try to ensure when rearranging rock - vary height levels so that your piles don't look like a straight line across the back of the tank, and avoid symmetry. eg. iIii___ii_iIiIi, rather than IIi_____iII or IIIIIIIIIII.

I also second the advice of a plain black background. It will contrast nicely with the bright white of the rock and create a nice sense of depth.

Whatever you do, be sure to post some pictures after you move it upstairs!


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## barbarian206 (Apr 2, 2008)

there both nice the way you had and have it set up but some plant will do you justice also is that sand eco- complete sand if yes how many bags did you use in that 55 gallon.


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## wheatbackdigger (May 11, 2008)

Trash the castle and put the old rock back in.


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## prov356 (Sep 20, 2006)

I like the old rocks better too, but lose the castle.

If you want to stick with the holey rocks, then I think a few well placed ones look better than stacking.


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