EowynJane Posted November 3, 2007 Report Share Posted November 3, 2007 Anyone here ever make their own cave? I've found several different plans, my 3 favorite are... The tile cave - big square of tile, snap, snap, snap, make sides and a lid, apply silicone and presto, cave. The coconut shell - buy a coconut, open it up and scrape it out with a spoon. Then use a nail and a hammer to make an entrance and presto.. cave. The clay pots - get two, silicone them together, smash out entrance... or maybe that should be switched around, I'm not sure, but presto - cave. My worries... I'm not terribly DIY inclined and I don't have a tile cutter/snapper. Does anyone know if stores rent them or if they will cut the tile for you? The article I read said Plecos and snails loved to suck on the cave... I don't mind feeding my BN, but I really don't want to feed the pond snails. Anyone know if this is true? I really don't think I have room in my tank for 2 clay pots and to be honest I think the pot one is my least favorite. What do you guys think? Are there any others I should consider? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nandopsis Posted November 3, 2007 Report Share Posted November 3, 2007 I made a few out of Lava rock. It looked more natural, but they are a pain in the @$$ to make. I used a drill and bit to make the entrance and cave part, by drilling many holes close together. Then took a grinding bit and took out the inside part. They look cool, but sure take alot of tome to make. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted November 3, 2007 Report Share Posted November 3, 2007 I love using clay pots. Cheap and easy, plus they come in a ton of sizes. I have a bunch in my grow out and breeding tanks. I also like coconut shells as they look a bit more natural and have a rough texture that java ferns and java moss stick to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowboy Posted November 3, 2007 Report Share Posted November 3, 2007 clay pots or a couple of rocks with a flat rock on top has worked well for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wibber Posted November 3, 2007 Report Share Posted November 3, 2007 Bit of a fan of the PVC pipe sawed in half lengthwise, siliconed to slate. If it's for breeding purposes I put on an opaque end. Otherwise, it's positioned against glass so you can actually see your pleco. Wouldn't want it naked in a show tank, but the shape contours the pleco's body and gives them an added sense of comfort and tactical edge with the ladies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted November 4, 2007 Report Share Posted November 4, 2007 I also use the Black 2" ABS pipes for caves. I dont' cut them in half though. Just cut them to about a 4-6" lenght and throw them in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hilary Posted November 4, 2007 Report Share Posted November 4, 2007 Here are two of mine! My boyfriend made the slate cave for me, I just brought him the slate and the silicone and he played around with it. It has two caves in it perpendicular to each other, the one of the right goes straight through, the one on the left is a dead end with two entries. Didn't really need any special tools...just a hammer and a sanding block to smooth any sharp edges. For the coconut cave behind it I siliconed the two halves of the coconut back together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted November 4, 2007 Report Share Posted November 4, 2007 I use slate tile and pile rocks on top,( Have a wet saw for the tile ), Flower pots with a piece of tile siliconed to the top cut an opening in the pot with a ceramic tile bit in a dremmel. ( bit is $10.00 at home depot) cover the pot with silicone and roll it in the same substrate you have in your tank stick a java fern or some java moss in the drainage hole of the pot. Or go on the hunt for some freeky looking driftwood with lots of twists , turns and holes in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BooUrns! Posted November 4, 2007 Report Share Posted November 4, 2007 I prefer to use elongated rocks placed side by side at slight angles to form a cavern between them. They look natural and give an escape route if someone bigger decides to take over (I don't keep any cave dwelling cichilds). I also use slate piles to form similar structures for my ropefish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James (Western Canada) Posted November 4, 2007 Report Share Posted November 4, 2007 Here is a link to an old thread off loachesonline...... http://aquaweb.pair.com/forums/archives/lo....cgi?read=13464 Another cheap way to make caves is go to Home Depot, buy some clay flower pots , then go to the back and have them cut the pots in half on the wetsaw for ceramic tile. Take your pots home and "goop" them up with aquarium safe silicone(I use Dow-Corning 732) then dip the pots in DRY aquarium gravel untill it adheres, then put lid on container & shakem !!I do this several times to get rid of the "pot" shape, and using the same gravel as I have in my aquarium, they blend in quite well. Its a little bit of work , but not that expensive. Beast is to get a couple friends to go in on materials, and bang out a few at same time. See pic attached of finished product.....PS : its a good idea to leave the caves for some time prior to submerging in aquarium so that the can "outgas" all the chemicals. HTH James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EowynJane Posted November 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 5, 2007 Hhhhhhhhmmmmmmmmmm..... more good ideas! Just when I thought I had made up my mind! I actually saw a post on another site where a guy had made the coconut one, drilled little holes into the top and threaded moss through it, really cool. I'll have to check with my husband and see what kind of saws and drills he has in the garage. I won't be able to get anything done now until after the long weekend (we're going away), so I have time to think about it. If anyone else has any other suggestions or ideas let me know! I'll let you guys know what I decide to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shai Posted November 16, 2007 Report Share Posted November 16, 2007 Here's a link to another method of building a slate cave. Even if you don't like the look of the finished product, it's probably still a good place to start method-wise. http://www.canadianfishforums.com/articles/slatecaves.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EowynJane Posted November 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2007 Nice! But a little out of my skill level right now! LOL Maybe I'll see if my husband can build me one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishx Posted November 19, 2007 Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 I just recently made 4 caves out of two coconuts. Used a knife to peel off everything. Used a hacksaw to score it and them a hammer and chisel to crack it. I made the mistake of emptying the juice before cracking it open - you're supposed to just whack it with a hard edge and it'll split easy, it's a pain if you empty it first but not as messy since you won't get any spill. Then i used a small hack save to cut out the entrance and drilled a few holes with a regular large sized drill bit. After that I boiled it a few times to get rid of the tannins (the stuff that will color your water brown) - make sure you do this!! Done! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EowynJane Posted November 19, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 19, 2007 Hahaha... I did all that ^ this weekend to with a few differences. We did drain the coconut before we opened it, even convinced my 14 year old step daughter to try the milk.. eeeewwww. Hubby took a knife and wacked it repeatedly to open it, now the blade of my biggest knife is all dinged up I told him to get a saw but he was having fun wacking it. I've boiled the heck out of it and the water still turns brown after just 1/2 hour of boiling, does it get any better or should I just give up now? I'm considering drilling a few more holes and attaching some moss with a needle and thread... it's a neat little thing I read on another forum, it looks really good when it's complete. But I want to de-snail the moss first and I can't find any alum (I'm going to check out another store tonight). How does your cave look? Did you defuzz it or leave it natural? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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