diy rocks for retic enclosure help

[catgirl2]

so I made rocks I stuck to the button of my pvc enclosure with expanding foam, and I covered that in drydex spackling with 2 layers of it and painted over it with acrylic in 2 coats. it all cured and had days to set, but now that I put the heat on, the rocks are all mushy. I wanted to put her in the enclosure tomorrow but that has me all worried. I really really don't want to redo everything. would that be okay for her or should I put caulking on it or something else? I couldn't find drylock here so I didn't use it and this all should be reptile safe. I just don't know why it's mushy. I can almost break through it

[chairman]

Unfortunately, your problem was with using spackling. It absorbs moisture unless it is completely sealed with a couple good coats of polyurethane, drylok, etc. Acrylic paint isn't good enough- fun fact, the drywall used in your bathroom is supposed to be different from that used in the rest of your house because of the moisture it is exposed to.

Your best fixes will be recoating your rocks with a thin concrete slurry, then repainting, OR sealing the rocks with polyurethane.

[YungRasputin]

why not just use natural rocks? this is what i do, is free - or perhaps i am misunderstanding this

[chairman]

I use natural rocks as well.

Most natural rocks will weigh in excess of 200 pounds per cubic foot. Some enclosures are designed to carry that weight and some are not. For enclosures that cannot carry that much weight then artificial rocks are an option.

Also, some large snakes can move rocks with enough force to break the glass doors of cages. Artificial rocks are a safer alternative.

Light-weight volcanic rocks are a natural alternative for lighter rocks.