Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just bought a 20 gallon long tank, and wanted to try something a little more natural looking. What I need are a bunch of flat pieces of slate. I have seen someone here with them in his set up, and he said he found them at a hardware store. I have looked in pet stores, home depot, etc. I can't find anything resembling the pieces I want. Please, if anyone out there knows where I should turn I would be most thankful.

many stores that sell tropical and marine fish have pieces of slate.
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0.1 "Tremper" looking Albino Leopard gecko (Lex)
0.0.1 tiger crested gecko (peachs)
0.1 Red blood python (Rhianon)
1.1 Feral cats that we adopted (Fuzzy, and Bear)

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Thanks, I'll keep scouring my area for stores like this.

Build your own rocks. They are lighter weight & you can design them however you want. These are made with 3/4" polystyrene (similar to styrofoam) & cheap tile grout. You wil need grout sealer to keep it from chipping & peeling.

That actually looks really cool. However I'm not very savy when it comes to things of that nature. Could I perhaps bother you for a brief turtorial of the process? It might be a fun project for me. Also, I assume I can find all those materials at like Home Depot or something right?

Here goes:
1) buy the polystyrene at lowes or home depot. It comes in a package of 5 or 6 sheets. Usually in the insulation dept. Only costs about $5 & will make A LOT of fake rock! So you only need one package.
2) Pick up the cheapest grout you can find. I use the big 50 lb bag because it is only $10. I also get the kind with sand in it, although you could add more if you wanted. There is a lot of different colors to pick from, pick what ever floats your boat.
3) Get some grout sealer. I buy the kind in the yellow bottle. About $8- $12. Only need 1 bottle, follow the instructions on the bottle.
4) Get 1 tube of liquid nails the kind for projects.
5) break or cut the styrofoam into shapes you like, make adjustments before you liquid nail them together or grout!
6) Liquid nail the pieces together, let dry for 30 minutes or so.
7) Mix the grout according to instructions, make the 1st layer runny & paint it on to get all the cracks filled in. Make the 2nd layer thicker & paint it again after the first coat has dried. If you want you could go thicker or add even more layers.
8) seal the grout with grout sealant per the instructions on the bottle.

This is what the fake stuff looks like while coat one is drying.

Thanks man! You've been a big help. I'm going to head to home depot tomorrow and get this thing started up. I'll let you know how it comes out.

Where are you located? Should be able to find some locally in most areas. Give a call to a local school/college. Geology department can definitely lead you to a good spot.

Matt

I'm located in south florida. The college thing is a cool idea, thanks for the input.

I'm in Tallahassee. That is why I said "most areas", just in case you were in Florida. Not going to find any around here, though I have toted it back from New Mexico. If you are near FAU, drop an email to somebody in their geology department. I went to field camp with some people from there and I know they might have some lying around from past trips out west or GA/NC area. You would be shocked by the "tonnage" of rocks brought back by students that then think "why did I get this" or "why did I need 100lbs".

Matt

LOL, I'll be sure to check that out. Thanks.