DISCLAIMER/NOTICE: There are many methods on the web to making these things. Please be wary that not all products are safe. Furthermore, many users who post a fantastic product on day 1 will not be so quick to update that post 3 months later when the setup has rotted, collapsed, or otherwise failed. Just because someone has used a certain method and made a nice looking project does not mean that is a safe method; double check your sources!
The following is my personal method for making false dirt/rock walls for chameleon setups:
FALSE DIRT:
Materials:
Lighting "egg-crate" or louvre: http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...=lighting+diffuser&storeId=10051#.UI8occXA_ng
Expandable Foam "Great Stuff" (Get the red can, standard stuff mainly; for larger projects consider using the black "large gap filler" for a base layer): http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1401725&cagpspn=pla
Silicone (do NOT get mold inhibitors; nothing for bathroom/kitchen use!; GE Type 2 I have personally used for over 2 years now without problems but thats the best guarantee I can give as formulas change all the time): http://www.homedepot.com/buy/ge-sil...door-caulk-brown-ge5080-12c.html#.UI8o88XA_ng
Coco coir/fiber (NOT "husk"; you want the fine stuff. I recommend compressed bricks as it is WAY cheaper that way): http://www.joshsfrogs.com/substrate/coco-fiber/exo-terra-plantation-soil-3-pack.html
Planters to embed in the wall.
Pieces of wood to embed in the wall.
Disposable gloves (I recommend $1 pair of kitchen gloves as the tiny ones tend to rip, especially when you are mashing silicone into tight corners of foam).
Hot glue and zip ties.
Serrated knife for cutting/shaping/etc dried foam.
PVC if you have any piping/tubing running through.
HOW TO:
1) Cut egg-crate to shape. (You CAN substitute styrofoam 1/4" here; but BE WARNED: Styrofoam does not hold up weight under larger sizes and also does not hold up wood/weight that "hangs" as well as the egg-crate does. NOT recommended except for small projects with little weight on them!)
Test your planter and wood layout now and realize there will be approximately 1-2" INCHES of foam covering your edges (things will be bigger than they seem!)
2) Hot glue or ziptie (if using plastic planters) to the egg-crate. NOTE: Make sure your planters have holes in the BOTTOM where water will collect can drip through.
Zip-tie any components to make ledges or other such shaped areas.
If you are going to have any wiring or tubing (such as for misting systems) running up BEHIND the wall, I ***HIGHLY*** recommend running it through a piece of pvc and hot-gluing the pvc to the egg-crate setup from behind. The extra few minutes of headache now will save you HOURS of repairwork later if something goes wrong, trust me!
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-XVUvn38Y5Po/TxpG0SffLuI/AAAAAAAACq4/8iH8H0VDg2c/s951/IMG_2060.JPG
In the upper corner of the image, where the orange mark is, you can just barely see my 2" PVC for running all my wiring through. Sorry I don't have a better image
3a) If you have any particularly large pieces being combined at an edge, you should foam the edges first and let it dry to secure those shapes.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-xhsKgwVRXes/TpjAYCCYncI/AAAAAAAACo0/WAqzf2Wbrs8/s951/IMG_1689.JPG
3b) "Rough-in" the egg-crate outline with foam working from cracks/corners outward. AVOID putting foam near openings for now. If your project is large, this is the time to consider using "large gap" foam. While foaming, you want to work slowly and try to make most of your lines in the same direction, but occasionally put a little bit of foam on top/in other directions just to make it look random.
Remember the goal here is just to "fill" our outline. Let this dry at LEAST 3 hours, ideally overnight.
WARNING: The foam expands as it dries. If the area is wet or moist, it will *greatly* inhibit the expansion of the foam (and consequently will take forever for it to dry). Make sure it is in a dry place!
4) Once the rough-in has dried, test your placement of the false wall as well as the resulting position of the planters. If anything needs to be cut out and removed (or perhaps layout changes taken into consideration) now is the time.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-...MI/AAAAAAAACzI/u6Xw2D3YwL8/s1268/100_0015.JPG
Almost always, you will need to cut down the outer edges as it will have expanded into a curved finish but your "place" will usually be a straight-edge. Since the egg-crate under it is straight, this can be done easily with a knife.
5) Go back and use regular foam to fine-tune gaps and make sure everything is secured. You will likely need to add additional foam around heavy-wood pieces or larger planters (remember they will be heavier once filled with dirt and watered!)
Once your final layer is done, let it dry at least 24 hours.
6a) Optional*: I like to cover the foam with a quick run of brown paint just to prevent any spots from showing up in the future. Entirely optional. (I use Behr All-Weather Deck Stain rated for snowstorms).
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-...6I/AAAAAAAACpg/bxuM5we9-dg/s1268/IMG_1687.JPG
6b) Once your foam is dry, we are ready to apply silicone and coco (dirt). Make sure your coco is DRY (and I mean DRY!) or it will not stick to the silicone and the whole thing will be a waste of time. This particularly applies if you bought a compressed brick as that coco really holds moisture (I literally bake mine before I use it). Some prefer to buy the bagged kind to avoid this hassle.
Starting with one corner, work in small sections (like 6"x6") and coat it with silicone (using your fingers to get it into the cracks). Use just enough silicone to cover the surface of the foam; you do not want a thick "layer" or anything like that.
6c) Mash an excess amount of coco onto the square you just siliconed (use WAY MORE coco than you need and MASH it down as if you were trying to compress it into the wall).
6d) Continue this until the entire piece is covered. Let dry 24 hours.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-...UI/AAAAAAAACys/z26wG-YONbQ/s1268/100_0027.JPG
7) Once dried, flip over the wall and "pat" the back repeatedly. A lot of the coco you had mashed into the wall will fall off and white spots will be shown. Simply repeat the above method to "spot fix" these. Let dry another 24 hours and tap the back again until sufficiently covered.
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-...gI/AAAAAAAACyw/bLUdkjHiQks/s1268/100_0028.JPG
White spots visible after tapping.
8) You're done! Plant away!
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-...FI/AAAAAAAACy8/rDBYAPiHXHI/s1268/100_0031.JPG
IMPORTANT NOTE:
The foam is a "closed cell" foam meaning the inside is ...well foamy like you'd expect....but the outside is "rubbery". The outer layer, combined with the silicone, is moderately water REPELLANT. However, you can easily combat this by cutting a slit into the wall to expose the absorbent interior and then covering it with moss for a good place to grow plants. This is not necessary however; the surface of the wall will hold a good amount of moisture and plants will root into the cracks pretty easily on their own.
I have at least 2 walls with this method going on 1+ year without showing any signs of damage.
---------------------------------------
FALSE ROCK: (Method 1)
Materials:
Styrofoam (1/4")
Concrete
Knife
NOTE: I do NOT recommend this method but others like it so I share it here.
1) Cut foam to a (very rough) shape of your rock. Glue multiple pieces together if necessary to make thickness desired.
2) Mix concrete batch.
3) Coat foam in concrete. Due to the aggregate in concrete that makes it...well, concrete, this gives you very little room for adjusting and is only good for BIG fake rocks. You will NOT be able to fine-tune the look of the rock, and all-in-all, if it is anything that would fit in a reasonable sized display, in my humble opinion, it will not look good on its own.
4) If you have skills, paint it to look like a rock. (I have seen others use this method with amazing results but it is beyond my talent so I use Method 2, below).
FAKE ROCK (Method 2):
MATERIALS:
Cement (NOTE on the difference between Cement and Concrete: Cement is just the grey "stuff". Concrete is Cement plus other aggregates: like gravel, pebbles, etc).
Styrofoam (1/4" or 1/8" for fine details)
Styrofoam cutter (you need one for this technique if you want to make "smoothed river" type rock, a knife cut does not give the fine-smooth finish needed)
Paintbrush
Glue
1) Cut styrofoam to general shape, gluing pieces together if necessary.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-...lI/AAAAAAAACrY/kDFCMo3Ez9w/s1268/IMG_2128.JPG
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-...4I/AAAAAAAACrM/q6dEN7XLC-8/s1268/IMG_2218.JPG
2) Using a styrofoam cutter, fine-tune your "rock" shape (does not work with a knife, you need to end up with a smooth edge!)
3) Prepare a batch of slightly watered down CEMENT (**NOT** concrete!). It should just be like watery grey paint. Using a paint brush, paint the cement onto your foam structure.
Make sure to get the ENTIRE outer layer covered. If there are any cracks/gaps/seams, get cement either into them or cover them up with it if they are small.
Allow dry 24 hours.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-QL3qWKZY3sg/Tzr2MKsSemI/AAAAAAAACrE/8GdRgbwCVWw/s951/IMG_2216.JPG
4) Repeat step #3 adding a second coat of cement, but this time make the coat thicker allowing you to add texture as desired.
Allow 24 hours to dry.
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-KKtYKh0qQuU/Tzr2Ml194NI/AAAAAAAACrI/Rx6uekMCMWo/s951/IMG_2217.JPG
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-...uI/AAAAAAAACrw/ecSDYhIT-co/s1268/IMG_2220.JPG
NOTE ON CEMENT / FAKE ROCKS:
Cement leeches into water for a period after it is first poured. For AQUARIUMS, it is recommended that you either soak the fake rock for upwards of 6 weeks or cover it in an epoxy.
However, in our case this is a smaller concern. Nonetheless, you will want to soak your concrete setup for at least several days with water changes.
If you wish to SEAL your rock using an epoxy, I personally use US Composites epoxy ($95/gallon, it is not cheap!). One gallon will last a long time however.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-mxoPAZtn2ys/T3ETSiYdCGI/AAAAAAAACm8/jynRZOxOx8s/s951/IMG_0008.JPG
Both of these rocks (lower right and lower left, in the back) are coated in epoxy. It is difficult to see the detail in the photos, but the rocks are glossy although the effect is not very noticeable in my opinion. This may also be due to the location of the rocks in my setup (they are not in the primary visible places).
I have heard of other users pouring light amounts of sand on top of the epoxy while it is drying to give it more of a matte finish, and although pictures look good I have no first-hand experience with that technique.
---------------------------------------
General link to all albums: https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/110155970065283198485/albums
If you have any questions regarding safe materials, techniques, or would like pricing on custom built orders, please don't hesitate to contact me at [email protected]
Good luck!
The following is my personal method for making false dirt/rock walls for chameleon setups:
FALSE DIRT:
Materials:
Lighting "egg-crate" or louvre: http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...=lighting+diffuser&storeId=10051#.UI8occXA_ng
Expandable Foam "Great Stuff" (Get the red can, standard stuff mainly; for larger projects consider using the black "large gap filler" for a base layer): http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1401725&cagpspn=pla
Silicone (do NOT get mold inhibitors; nothing for bathroom/kitchen use!; GE Type 2 I have personally used for over 2 years now without problems but thats the best guarantee I can give as formulas change all the time): http://www.homedepot.com/buy/ge-sil...door-caulk-brown-ge5080-12c.html#.UI8o88XA_ng
Coco coir/fiber (NOT "husk"; you want the fine stuff. I recommend compressed bricks as it is WAY cheaper that way): http://www.joshsfrogs.com/substrate/coco-fiber/exo-terra-plantation-soil-3-pack.html
Planters to embed in the wall.
Pieces of wood to embed in the wall.
Disposable gloves (I recommend $1 pair of kitchen gloves as the tiny ones tend to rip, especially when you are mashing silicone into tight corners of foam).
Hot glue and zip ties.
Serrated knife for cutting/shaping/etc dried foam.
PVC if you have any piping/tubing running through.
HOW TO:
1) Cut egg-crate to shape. (You CAN substitute styrofoam 1/4" here; but BE WARNED: Styrofoam does not hold up weight under larger sizes and also does not hold up wood/weight that "hangs" as well as the egg-crate does. NOT recommended except for small projects with little weight on them!)
Test your planter and wood layout now and realize there will be approximately 1-2" INCHES of foam covering your edges (things will be bigger than they seem!)
2) Hot glue or ziptie (if using plastic planters) to the egg-crate. NOTE: Make sure your planters have holes in the BOTTOM where water will collect can drip through.
Zip-tie any components to make ledges or other such shaped areas.
If you are going to have any wiring or tubing (such as for misting systems) running up BEHIND the wall, I ***HIGHLY*** recommend running it through a piece of pvc and hot-gluing the pvc to the egg-crate setup from behind. The extra few minutes of headache now will save you HOURS of repairwork later if something goes wrong, trust me!
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-XVUvn38Y5Po/TxpG0SffLuI/AAAAAAAACq4/8iH8H0VDg2c/s951/IMG_2060.JPG
In the upper corner of the image, where the orange mark is, you can just barely see my 2" PVC for running all my wiring through. Sorry I don't have a better image
3a) If you have any particularly large pieces being combined at an edge, you should foam the edges first and let it dry to secure those shapes.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-xhsKgwVRXes/TpjAYCCYncI/AAAAAAAACo0/WAqzf2Wbrs8/s951/IMG_1689.JPG
3b) "Rough-in" the egg-crate outline with foam working from cracks/corners outward. AVOID putting foam near openings for now. If your project is large, this is the time to consider using "large gap" foam. While foaming, you want to work slowly and try to make most of your lines in the same direction, but occasionally put a little bit of foam on top/in other directions just to make it look random.
Remember the goal here is just to "fill" our outline. Let this dry at LEAST 3 hours, ideally overnight.
WARNING: The foam expands as it dries. If the area is wet or moist, it will *greatly* inhibit the expansion of the foam (and consequently will take forever for it to dry). Make sure it is in a dry place!
4) Once the rough-in has dried, test your placement of the false wall as well as the resulting position of the planters. If anything needs to be cut out and removed (or perhaps layout changes taken into consideration) now is the time.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-...MI/AAAAAAAACzI/u6Xw2D3YwL8/s1268/100_0015.JPG
Almost always, you will need to cut down the outer edges as it will have expanded into a curved finish but your "place" will usually be a straight-edge. Since the egg-crate under it is straight, this can be done easily with a knife.
5) Go back and use regular foam to fine-tune gaps and make sure everything is secured. You will likely need to add additional foam around heavy-wood pieces or larger planters (remember they will be heavier once filled with dirt and watered!)
Once your final layer is done, let it dry at least 24 hours.
6a) Optional*: I like to cover the foam with a quick run of brown paint just to prevent any spots from showing up in the future. Entirely optional. (I use Behr All-Weather Deck Stain rated for snowstorms).
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-...6I/AAAAAAAACpg/bxuM5we9-dg/s1268/IMG_1687.JPG
6b) Once your foam is dry, we are ready to apply silicone and coco (dirt). Make sure your coco is DRY (and I mean DRY!) or it will not stick to the silicone and the whole thing will be a waste of time. This particularly applies if you bought a compressed brick as that coco really holds moisture (I literally bake mine before I use it). Some prefer to buy the bagged kind to avoid this hassle.
Starting with one corner, work in small sections (like 6"x6") and coat it with silicone (using your fingers to get it into the cracks). Use just enough silicone to cover the surface of the foam; you do not want a thick "layer" or anything like that.
6c) Mash an excess amount of coco onto the square you just siliconed (use WAY MORE coco than you need and MASH it down as if you were trying to compress it into the wall).
6d) Continue this until the entire piece is covered. Let dry 24 hours.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-...UI/AAAAAAAACys/z26wG-YONbQ/s1268/100_0027.JPG
7) Once dried, flip over the wall and "pat" the back repeatedly. A lot of the coco you had mashed into the wall will fall off and white spots will be shown. Simply repeat the above method to "spot fix" these. Let dry another 24 hours and tap the back again until sufficiently covered.
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-...gI/AAAAAAAACyw/bLUdkjHiQks/s1268/100_0028.JPG
White spots visible after tapping.
8) You're done! Plant away!
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-...FI/AAAAAAAACy8/rDBYAPiHXHI/s1268/100_0031.JPG
IMPORTANT NOTE:
The foam is a "closed cell" foam meaning the inside is ...well foamy like you'd expect....but the outside is "rubbery". The outer layer, combined with the silicone, is moderately water REPELLANT. However, you can easily combat this by cutting a slit into the wall to expose the absorbent interior and then covering it with moss for a good place to grow plants. This is not necessary however; the surface of the wall will hold a good amount of moisture and plants will root into the cracks pretty easily on their own.
I have at least 2 walls with this method going on 1+ year without showing any signs of damage.
---------------------------------------
FALSE ROCK: (Method 1)
Materials:
Styrofoam (1/4")
Concrete
Knife
NOTE: I do NOT recommend this method but others like it so I share it here.
1) Cut foam to a (very rough) shape of your rock. Glue multiple pieces together if necessary to make thickness desired.
2) Mix concrete batch.
3) Coat foam in concrete. Due to the aggregate in concrete that makes it...well, concrete, this gives you very little room for adjusting and is only good for BIG fake rocks. You will NOT be able to fine-tune the look of the rock, and all-in-all, if it is anything that would fit in a reasonable sized display, in my humble opinion, it will not look good on its own.
4) If you have skills, paint it to look like a rock. (I have seen others use this method with amazing results but it is beyond my talent so I use Method 2, below).
FAKE ROCK (Method 2):
MATERIALS:
Cement (NOTE on the difference between Cement and Concrete: Cement is just the grey "stuff". Concrete is Cement plus other aggregates: like gravel, pebbles, etc).
Styrofoam (1/4" or 1/8" for fine details)
Styrofoam cutter (you need one for this technique if you want to make "smoothed river" type rock, a knife cut does not give the fine-smooth finish needed)
Paintbrush
Glue
1) Cut styrofoam to general shape, gluing pieces together if necessary.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-...lI/AAAAAAAACrY/kDFCMo3Ez9w/s1268/IMG_2128.JPG
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-...4I/AAAAAAAACrM/q6dEN7XLC-8/s1268/IMG_2218.JPG
2) Using a styrofoam cutter, fine-tune your "rock" shape (does not work with a knife, you need to end up with a smooth edge!)
3) Prepare a batch of slightly watered down CEMENT (**NOT** concrete!). It should just be like watery grey paint. Using a paint brush, paint the cement onto your foam structure.
Make sure to get the ENTIRE outer layer covered. If there are any cracks/gaps/seams, get cement either into them or cover them up with it if they are small.
Allow dry 24 hours.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-QL3qWKZY3sg/Tzr2MKsSemI/AAAAAAAACrE/8GdRgbwCVWw/s951/IMG_2216.JPG
4) Repeat step #3 adding a second coat of cement, but this time make the coat thicker allowing you to add texture as desired.
Allow 24 hours to dry.
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-KKtYKh0qQuU/Tzr2Ml194NI/AAAAAAAACrI/Rx6uekMCMWo/s951/IMG_2217.JPG
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-...uI/AAAAAAAACrw/ecSDYhIT-co/s1268/IMG_2220.JPG
NOTE ON CEMENT / FAKE ROCKS:
Cement leeches into water for a period after it is first poured. For AQUARIUMS, it is recommended that you either soak the fake rock for upwards of 6 weeks or cover it in an epoxy.
However, in our case this is a smaller concern. Nonetheless, you will want to soak your concrete setup for at least several days with water changes.
If you wish to SEAL your rock using an epoxy, I personally use US Composites epoxy ($95/gallon, it is not cheap!). One gallon will last a long time however.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-mxoPAZtn2ys/T3ETSiYdCGI/AAAAAAAACm8/jynRZOxOx8s/s951/IMG_0008.JPG
Both of these rocks (lower right and lower left, in the back) are coated in epoxy. It is difficult to see the detail in the photos, but the rocks are glossy although the effect is not very noticeable in my opinion. This may also be due to the location of the rocks in my setup (they are not in the primary visible places).
I have heard of other users pouring light amounts of sand on top of the epoxy while it is drying to give it more of a matte finish, and although pictures look good I have no first-hand experience with that technique.
---------------------------------------
General link to all albums: https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/110155970065283198485/albums
If you have any questions regarding safe materials, techniques, or would like pricing on custom built orders, please don't hesitate to contact me at [email protected]
Good luck!
