# coloring drylok?



## shibbyplustax (Feb 28, 2011)

I wanted to paint my GS background before adding peat mixture so missed spots arent as noticable. I ran out of non toxic paint though. I have a ton of extra drylok for ponds but its gray and i want brown. Anyway to add some coloring to make it brown thats also reptile safe?


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## DendroRachel (Jun 21, 2011)

I've done some research on the same thing - mix in acrylic paint into the drylok to dye it. I just finished painting a layer this way about 5 minutes ago


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## Melo (Mar 6, 2011)

ive read you can also use concrete dye, but acrylic paint is probably easier to find and will definetly have the colours you are looking for


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## ncc2015 (Aug 4, 2011)

Acrylic is way cheaper at my michael's you can get small bottles for about $1 for the cheapest ones. Here's a great vid of how he paints his landscape if you skip near the end. He goes in detail step by step. I think I will be trying the same technique when I start building my terrarium to make a small water feature in it and possibly a background.


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## ryan10517 (Oct 23, 2010)

yup. just mix in plain old acrylic paint with the drylok in small portions. It can be a really versatile way to coat different things for vivariums. Check out my buttress root tree thread, and ETS the silent killer threads to see some of the stuff i've made. I'll also be making a drylok tutorial video sometime soon.


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## shibbyplustax (Feb 28, 2011)

ncc2015 said:


> Acrylic is way cheaper at my michael's you can get small bottles for about $1 for the cheapest ones. Here's a great vid of how he paints his landscape if you skip near the end. He goes in detail step by step. I think I will be trying the same technique when I start building my terrarium to make a small water feature in it and possibly a background.
> 
> 
> ‪How to make a waterfall (rainforest theme)‬‏ - YouTube


Love that video, i use those techniques in painting pretty much everything in my viv. Thanks for the replies guys.


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

Do you have to seal the rock after you put the drylok+acrylic paint on the foam?
Or is it good to go right after you use the drylok?


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## ryan10517 (Oct 23, 2010)

DragonSpirit1185 said:


> Do you have to seal the rock after you put the drylok+acrylic paint on the foam?
> Or is it good to go right after you use the drylok?


so long as you completely coat whatever it is you're coating in the drylok/acrylic mix, it will be water resistant (not sure about being completely water proof if submerged underwater for long periods. I would imagine it would be, but i can not back this up with any information). you do not need to coat it with anything more if being used above water. Just simply rinse it off well before putting it in your tank. Drylok is frog safe. I have read the MSDS sheets, and the only thing that could potentially cause a problem is crystalline silica, and the only way that could cause anything is if you sanded the drylok a lot and inhaled the dust somehow. This is why drylok is great. Its practically plug-and-play. Waaaaaayyyyy easier than grout or concrete!


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## DendroRachel (Jun 21, 2011)

in the video that was posted by ncc2015 he guy coats his acrylic with a sealant and then again with silicone.... I'm not sure if both or even either individually are necessary. his are for a waterfall and then a pond that will contain the water so I'm assuming that is why he did it. 

Later today I am going to finish the rock waterfall i made from foam, acrylic tinted drylok, and some acrylic accents - I think I'll silicone the parts the water will run down (I carved a little stream into it) but not the rest. If it isn't necessary I would rather leave it looking as natural as possible - not shiny and glossy from silicone.


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## shibbyplustax (Feb 28, 2011)

DendroRachel said:


> in the video that was posted by ncc2015 he guy coats his acrylic with a sealant and then again with silicone.... I'm not sure if both or even either individually are necessary. his are for a waterfall and then a pond that will contain the water so I'm assuming that is why he did it.
> 
> Later today I am going to finish the rock waterfall i made from foam, acrylic tinted drylok, and some acrylic accents - I think I'll silicone the parts the water will run down (I carved a little stream into it) but not the rest. If it isn't necessary I would rather leave it looking as natural as possible - not shiny and glossy from silicone.


you deff should seal whatever is going to be submerged with silicone otherwise it may start to deteriorate underwater after a while. i found that at first the silicone does look alittle glossy but overtime a film of algae, moss or beneficial bacteria will develop and take away some of the glossyness. another way i like to get rid of that is just sprinkle some very fine sand over the siliconed parts before they dry. this not only takes away from the shine but it also gives it a textured look.


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## stephen-mcginn (Sep 26, 2010)

remember to make sure that the acrylic paint is non toxic...how long did you wait til you guys put the frogs in with the drylock background?


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## Spud (Jan 9, 2009)

I also use acrylic paints to color drylok.

I seem to have good luck with this painting method:
Painting Rock Faces Using Acrylic Washes - YouTube

Here are my results from the first time I tried it on some rocks i carved - I am pretty satisfied with the results.


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## the_deeb (Apr 21, 2008)

I used cement coloring pigments to tint the drylok that I used to paint the roots in my build (see link in my sig). 










In my experience, this worked really well as a final coating for the fully submerged sections of the build (no need for additional sealing). Held up perfectly fine underwater with no apparent ill-effect to the inhabitants or plants.


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## MA70Snowman (May 18, 2010)

the_deeb said:


> I used cement coloring pigments to tint the drylok that I used to paint the roots in my build (see link in my sig).
> 
> In my experience, this worked really well as a final coating for the fully submerged sections of the build (no need for additional sealing). Held up perfectly fine underwater with no apparent ill-effect to the inhabitants or plants.



good to hear but what type of time frame are we talking about?


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## the_deeb (Apr 21, 2008)

The tank was only set up for a year (which is a little depressing to think about) but the drylok showed zero signs of breaking down in that time. I've come across other aquariums where drylok-coated backgrounds have been in service of several years with no problems.


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