Newbie looking for a mentor and ID

[Glennrf38]

Originally Posted by TheReefGeek

What kind of concrete did you use?

Just typical type 10. If you want faster drying time you could also use "Post Haste" which is used for fence posts.

[TheReefGeek]

How many parts concrete, to how many parts rock salt did you use?

[Glennrf38]

Originally Posted by TheReefGeek

How many parts concrete, to how many parts rock salt did you use?

Aproximately 3:1 Salt to concrete. Add water, stir, pour. Drink another beer, continue until all beer is gone.

[TheReefGeek]

So you first combined the concrete powder and the rock salt in approximately 3:1, then you kept adding water and stirring until what kind of consistancy?

[Glennrf38]

Originally Posted by TheReefGeek

So you first combined the concrete powder and the rock salt in approximately 3:1, then you kept adding water and stirring until what kind of consistancy?

It was pretty soupy. I tried it with a fairly dry mix but it was too hard to mix. So I just kept adding water until I could mix it. The roundish ones I made in a sand mold the others were just drop and plop on to a plastic garbage bag.

[TheReefGeek]

Which got better results do you think, a mold, or just hand-done on a garbage bag?

[Glennrf38]

Originally Posted by TheReefGeek

So you first combined the concrete powder and the rock salt in approximately 3:1, then you kept adding water and stirring until what kind of consistancy?

The kewl part of this that I have found is that there is no right or wrong consistancy, form, or ratio. I just pretty much guessed. if there is anyone in the area that wants to try this, give me a shout. I really don't need much more rock, I just want to try it cuz it sounded fun. I still have most of the bag of concrete left and alot of salt crystal too. Bring your own beer and hammer. Oh yeah also bring a bucket and a bin for the molds.

The mold was just an old rock I found in the back alley. I was thinking of trying a real "live rock" for the mold next time but I don't feel like wasting $7/lb. to make a mold incase something happens to the rock.

[Glennrf38]

Originally Posted by TheReefGeek

Which got better results do you think, a mold, or just hand-done on a garbage bag?

I like the looks of the hand molded on myself but it is a personal preference I think. With the sand mold, I used a plastic bag between the sand and the concrete but if you like the sand (or aragonite) texture, I would just skip the bag. I have some pretty course aragonite that I might use for the mold next time to give the rock more texture.

[Glennrf38]

Well I went out and got 20 more lbs of live rock, stacked it up on the pvc tubing just the way I wanted it, put everything back in. And now to see if it all worked. I still need about 5 lbs of rock to finish up but it'll get there.

Thanks Keith for coming over and giving me your suggestions and encouragement.

Damn that was a long night.........