egg crate

[freshfishies]

Okay...quite obviously a newbie because I'm going to ask a question everyone will think is silly I'm sure....
what is egg crate? I keep picturing an egg carton

[gemmate]

Okay...quite obviously a newbie because I'm going to ask a question everyone will think is silly I'm sure....
what is egg crate? I keep picturing an egg carton

Here is the picture and you can buy them in lighting department of Home Depot for about 10 bucks.

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[freshfishies]

ooooooh! haha! thank you

While I'm at it...what are the common uses for it?

[93GTCANADA]

people usually use them to put on top of tanks so fish don't jump out. but they are multiple uses for it.

[JD]

I use it for frag racks or to segregate my tank while maintaining flow. I put macro algae in one end of the sump and keep it there using the egg crate. I have also used it to separate aggressive fish too.

[garnpet]

It's also used in the bottom of tanks with large rocks.  It helps to disribute the weight of the rocks.

[ajm1961]

It's also a good idea to put some at the bottom of your tank, with the substrate and rocks on top of it, to keep some cichlids and other digging fish from destabilizing your rock structure.
Here's  a video link from Cichlid-forum that talks about installing 'egg crate' in your aquarium.
Cheers!

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/videos/eggcrate.php

[Rob Labonte]

IF ANYONE WANTS FREE EGGCRATE, I HAVE A PIECE THAT 2FOOT BY 3-4 FOOT?

GOING IN THE GARBAGE SOON IF NO-ONE WANTS IT.

[freshfishies]

Thanks for the info!

[mikerobart]

I have used it to build a frag rack, as well as a stand for my skimmer to get it in the proper water level 

[Hookup]

In a salt-system it is a really bad idea to use it under your rocks.  Not sure if the same end-result happens in fresh, i'd guess not from the above posts.

The squares make mini-zones that cannot get turned-over and cleaned.  Over time this creates buildup and starts to lean nutrients into the system like nitrate...   This has been identified as one of the most likely causes of "old tank syndrome" which is inexplicable crashing of salt-systems after several years of perfect running.

I strongly suggest you do not use them in this capacity.

[fischkopp]

The squares make mini-zones that cannot get turned-over and cleaned. 

That wouldn't be a good thing in any aquatic system, fresh or salt. In fresh water systems you can have plants that will use up those nutrient through their roots, and there are Malaysian Trumpet Snails (MTS - not to be mixed up with multiple tank syndrome in this case) that spend most of their life in the gravel-bed and turn it around all day long.