Fake Wall Questions

[Glass_]

Hm, interesting. Thanks so much to all of you, I'm planning on getting the stuff this weekend.

[Glass_]

Update! Well, yesterday I bought all the stuff I needed(styrofoam, cutter, paints, liquid nails, quikcrete, paint) and carved the styrofoam. Today, I'm going to start cementing it. So, I have a few questions for cementing it.

1. How could I add texture to the rocks? Right now, the top of them is just plain flat. How do I give it more... texture, and make it more natural?

2. How many coats of cement should I have? I know you should start thin, get thicker, and then end thin, but don't know how many coats I should have.

3. Also, are there any tips on painting the cement? I bought white, black, light brown, brown, and greenish brown.

That's it for now. Thanks.

[beckdg]

1 carve them... the uglier and more random the better imo... or you can build up with crete to give them character

2 3 would be a minimum imo

3 dark in the recessed areas first to give it depth... then thinner paints starting with light colors working towards dark again

there's a good handful of techniques. a few good ones are already posted on the boards. for inspiration, ideas, etc. i'd give the stickies a once over.

[Glass_]

Ok, thanks. I carved the rocks to give it more texture, but when I cemented it, it cemented over all of it. -___- Oh well, at the very least it helped the cement bond to the styrofoam. I'm going to add sand to the cement at the last layer so there's at least some texture.

So, yeah. I put on the first layer of cement. It was a little less watery and thicker than I would've liked, but I think it turned out pretty well. The dry parts seem pretty sturdy, so I don't think the hermit crabs would be able to get through it. One last question, though, how much time do I give it to dry before I add the next layer, and then the next one?

Picture time!

[beckdg]

~24 hours... 36, MAYBE more if it's raining. i did 2 coats on one day on mine... but it was like 90*F out... and i left it in the sun on the back patio.

i use color as a better judge. if most of it LOOKS dry, go for it.

when you do your thick coat you may want to mix up some thicker stuff and use a knife or spatula to apply it to areas you want more texture in. then add your pour coat... or vise versa. they do have small spatula kits for pretty cheap at my local hobby shops. i'm sure they'd help but they're not necessary imo.

i know there's really no real way to get around brushing it in... but on your last coat, once everything is brushed into place... dab, dab, dab with the brush until all the brush strokes are out. it'll give it a way nicer texture than always staring at your brush strokes thinking "man, i could have done a better job than that".

the light grey spots in the lower left corner... if i were to judge for myself, i'd want at least half of the crete that color before my next step... but not all of it, that way it has better chances of curing as one entity...

[Glass_]

Ah, it's gotta dry outside? Ok, I'll bring it out there. Thanks. I'll wait till this evening to re-cement it.

[beckdg]

no, not necessarily, but it should help a bit.

[Glass_]

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, crap. The whole thing broke in half when I tried to pick it up. Idk what to do now. rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrryseiasjdhfl seiuyr'w:?A(734RYXCVFFBjlfsdjkvnlcds

[beckdg]

if you're making it permanent you can just silicone it in place and finish it inside the tank. if not... it's a 2 piece b/g now...

[Glass_]

Originally Posted by beckdg

if you're making it permanent you can just silicone it in place and finish it inside the tank. if not... it's a 2 piece b/g now...

I think it would've broke sooner or later, it wasn't that strong.