3D Background question

For those of you who don't (understandably) feel like reading my blabbering below: I'd like to seal a foam background's paint entirely to prevent peeling, which is something a few reviewers of the product complained about. How would I do that? With aquarium sealant or acrylic paint sealant?


Hey guys! I'm looking to do a really big tank revamp to make my little betta and RCS ten gallon take as beautiful and media-hidden as it deserves to be. To do this, I plan on putting my filtration equipment behind a slotted 3D aquarium background. I love all the diy videos and tutorials on how to make one out of foam and concrete but... my single apartment has rather limited space and being a college student I don't have access to a garage. Or tools. Or proper ventilation really. Anyway, I was really discouraged because most of the ones I found online were brown, and I want to do a gray tone style. But then I found this one:

It looks perfect. I love it really. Most of the reviews are good, but there's one or two complaining about paint peeling. Call me paranoid, but I'd rather reduce or nullify the chances of that happening considering that even if I could easily remove the background for another we're this to happen, RCS are clever little guys and they'll inhabit the filter portion of my tank in seconds.

So my question is, how do I prevent that from happening? I thought aquarium sealant but that's... that's not exactly a pleasurable experience working with. I'm sure it's too thick to spread easily and it will probably glop everywhere. This might also be a good time to point out I have the artistic skills of five year old using scissors as a pen. So painting it over myself really isn't going to turn out well. I'd really like to spray some kind of aquarium safe paint sealant all over it. Is acrylic paint and sealant aquarium safe?

 

Aerosol sealants are a no no. Take it easy paint it by hand. There are no corners in life

 

What about a natural one using drift wood or aquarium safe stones/bricks?

 

Teishokue: I appreciate the honest advice. I'll see what I can do.
outlaw: I'm rather ashamed to admit the idea had never occurred to me. Do you have any links of an aquarium safe brick? I guess I could put a tarp down in the corner of my apartment for awhile. actuallly, if I just did brick, I wouldn't need concrete, would I? I could just lay them in the tank. Maybe use aquarium sealant to hold any particularly troubling pieces together. Thank you very much. You've saved me a lot of trouble and money.

 

Here is a drift wood one I had made several months ago. I liked it because it still allowed the fish to swim in and out of it. This was beneficial as the tank is only 20G.




As for stone/brick. That isn't my forte but I did find a couple of examples;

Rock/Stone-

Stone but could be used flat against tank wall if just looking for a textured background-

With either of them, I would use aquarium safe silicone to adhere them to the tank wall and each other for structural support.


Or the one you had linked for Big Als if you are looking for something that is just done. No guess work needed. To prevent peeling, MAYBE give it a thin coat of aquarium safe silicone?

Depending on how good your cut is, I would probably just use a minimal amount to the back of the tank to hold it in place.


These are just a few examples of something I was thinking if space and resources are limited. I did "aquarium 3d background" search and you will see a few other options pop up.

 

outlaw, I've been thinking today about this a lot since I just finished my semester and am stuck here for a few days. I honestly still love the background that I linked, and one of the biggest limited resources for me is money. People are always claiming that the diy builds are cheaper, and I'm sure they are in large applications. I ran the numbers on the brick and rock ideas. They end up being more expensive than the Big Al piece because, when it comes to tools, I've got, like, three screw drivers sitting around here somewhere. Maybe. Everything else is for my car and quarantined to my trunk for all effective purposes with my aquarium because they the entire box was submitted to a acid shower when my old car decided she really didn't like the battery I had given her. So that's not gonna go anywhere near my tank. Anyway, sorry, I go off on tangents a lot.

The main point I'm getting at is that I would like to do the Big Al one and just coat it with a thin layer of aquarium sealant. My only problem is making the sealant thin. I've been looking for a few hours now with little direction on how to thin sealant. I've found absolutely nothing at all. Do you know of a method to make it thinner for easier application? Maybe mixing it with water or warming it. I'm pretty sure this stuff is highly flammable so the last one doesn't sound right.

 

Hey, no worries. By no means am I upset (for a lack of better word) about you not picking my choice/s.The ideas given are just that, Ideas to show you other options. I would do the same thing. Its all about what your comfortable with (time, tools, financially) and will be most happy with. We just see pictures of your tank when posted, you have to live with it.

As for the thin coat of sealant. (Make sure it is 100% aquarium safe. Either use specifically labeled aquarium silicone or make sure the tube says it is 100% silicone with NO mildew or mold additives)
What I have done in the past is just goop out a little bit at a time and use my finger to spread it around. If you don't use a glove (or if you do, I haven't tried it this way), you can get the tip of your finger wet to help prevent the silicone from sticking to your finger.

I would just do a small section on a piece you don't need to practice and then place into a bowl or cup to see how it will look under water. If your satisfied, coat the piece going into the tank making sure to let it cure before using.

 

outlaw, thanks! I'll give that a try. I'm doing all of this in January once I'm back from the holiday break. I'm okay if the sealant ends up being a ~little opaque on the surface since I plan on letting java moss claim the wall. I'll still test it on one of the sections I cut off to make it fit. My art skills may not be high, but I think I can spread this stuff fairly thin. And I'll just use a kitchen glove I think.

 

Spreading it out shouldn't be bad. I had to do it over some slate rock and even though there was barely any there, it was a nice thin coat. As long as you don't scrape it, I think it would work. lol

Good luck
Outlaw