Here's what you'll need:
1. Eggcrate for the frame (light diffuser at lowes/HD - or if you want black eggcrate because some people say the white stuff causes algae growth you'll need to go to a specialty store or order online)
2. Great Stuff Foam - I used the Pond variety and bought it online. It comes in a green can and the foam is black. You can also use the regular stuff that comes in a red and yellow can and is at Lowes/HD and the foam is yellow/white.
3. Epoxy - I used this 30 min. stuff from a local hardware store. Make sure it's not the stuff for metal. http://www.amazon.com/Devcon-S-31-2-...7230168&sr=8-4
4. Dry sand and rocks - this is mainly for looks. You can build in shelves with the rocks like my tank to make it look more natural and give yourself a place to keep coral.
5. Superglue or silicone to glue the eggcrate together and to secure the rock wall to the back of the tank.
Basic Steps
1. Measure the dimensions of the wall and cut the eggcrate frame. You can see how this was done in my thread. Make sure not to cover over overflows, grates, drains, or returns. You can glue the frame pieces together with super glue or silicone.
2. Squirt the foam onto the frame - it puffs up a lot so you might want to practice a bit on something else beforehand. If you want rocks in the wall like mine, you'll want to put them on the frame and foam around them (don't foam over the front). Once the foam cures it will hold them in place. Let the foam cure for 24 hours. Once cured, an optional step is to sand and carve the foam into more realistic rocklike shapes. Otherwise it'll look bulbous.
3. Once the foam is cured and sanded, you're going to want to epoxy over every sq. inch. The epoxy is UV resistant and keeps water away from the foam. It's best to do this in small stages. I use a cheapo paintbrush (found several for $.25 each at the hardware store) and mix up the epoxy and paint it on a section of the wall. When I've painted it on, I sprinkle sand all over the wet epoxy. The epoxy hardens in 30 min. After that, I do the next section of the wall and sprinkle more sand. Repeat until the whole wall is covered in epoxy and sand. Let the wall cure for 24-48 hours.
4. Put the wall in the (empty - no water) tank and silicone it to the back/bottom. These things will float if not secured. Let the silicone cure for 24 hours. After that, you should be good to go! Add water and rock and start the cycle!
There you have it. hi5!
