Rock close to glass and maintenance

[keone]

Hi all,

First post so let me introduce myself first. I'm Danny, i'm a 55y/o living in the Netherlands. I stopped my saltwater tanks a few years ago, but now that I have some more time again i'm starting with a freshwater tank soon.
I bought a 90p and I am currently busy finding inspiration about how i'd like to scape it. I started browing the web for tanks that tickled my interest and i have this tank i find really pleasing (see pics I attached). Some may have a different opinion but that's the beauty of this hobby. I like it

I do not wish to completely copy this scape pictured in the photo's it's just a starting point for what I like visually. I like the canyon/ valley/ cave kind of layout this has

The question i have though, or actually concern, is about maintenance at the back and sides of the tank. Over time a lot of debris will fall behind the rocks and between the rocks and glass which is almost impossible to remove and maintain. Besides the fact that it is not a pleasing sight from the sides of the aquarium.

The idea that I came up with is to glue the first layer of rocks (saw the back end flat) to a thin piece of foam to avoid scratching the glass but also to prevent a gap from being formed between the visible part and the hardscape and fill up with detrimentals over time. The second layer i could fill with sand?

This was my initial thought, but I came here for advice. I hope you guys have some idea's.

 

[Andy Pierce]

You could fill gaps with sand - that sounds plausible to me. You're right to be worried. My first scape with the Shrimphaus had these types of 'uncleanable' areas which was a disaster. They filled up with organics and (I believe) led to a super-bad outbreak of black beard algae which ultimately necessitated a complete scape teardown and rebuild.

 

[Aqua sobriquet]

Not being able to clean behind hard scape is a problem I’m trying to mentally overcome with a new 90P I’d like to set up.
The only solution I can see at the moment is using an artificial hard scape made from Polyurethane foam sprayed directly on to the back of the glass and then decorated with sand etc. I’ve seen this technique used a few times since the 1980’s.
You can incorporate inlet/ outlet pipes or even a wier into the structure.
The only other solution I can think of is to just ensure any hard scape is well away from the glass. Any accidental movement during cleaning could result in disaster though. There are plenty of 3D backgrounds available. I haven’t seen any I like though and they would need to be sealed all round to stop any water getting behind it.
I’m keen to see what solutions others have found, together with a few pictures.

Edit: This is a picture in “Aquarium Plants” published in 1986.

 

[keone]

Thanks for the help guys!
I guess I need to rethink, - or throw this idea overboard and come up with a better maintainable scape.

I Appreciate the time you both took to send me your thoughts

 

[Ehcosbie]

Steve Scapes on YouTube talks about how he sets up tanks with hardscape butted up to the glass, in some of his Master Skills Series videos. Might be worth a look?

 

[G H Nelson]

Hi @keone
If I attempted something similar to the above image as an aquascape, I would leave a gap for a hose to gain access down the sides for mulm/crude removal.
Add sand to cover the bottom....as debris waste/crude tends to sit on the top of sand for easy removal.
You could add a tiny filter or powerhead into each side "if the gap is wide enough" for water movement/filtering.
I would use a black background film on the sides......and add a background light panel.

 

[Andy Pierce]

Check out this guy's scapes: GreyWorm. He has a number of techniques for what you're trying to do - seems you have a similar aesthetic. I love this guy's stuff but wouldn't dare try it myself.

 

[Aqua sobriquet]

Giving this some further thought. A piece of black acrylic sheet the same size as the back of the aquarium might be useful. It would protect the glass from accidental damage and could be slid out for cleaning?