... and win the AGA2006 aquascaping contest!

Sometimes you might want to use something from nature that is not suitable as it is to decorate your tank: for example a tree stump that floats or a large stone that’s too heavy for the glass tank. Taking a mould of the object and making a copy of the original can solve the problem. This way you can create an element that’s suitable for the tank, without solvents or any harmful ingredients, or which won’t float nor weigh too much. Hollow elements don’t even restrict swimming space for the fish. In fact, it even makes possible to have more fish in the tank because the fish can seek shelter in the caves of the hollow elements.

So, what is the moulding technique all about? I got my inspiration at the FISU 2004 meeting in Espoo, Finland where Sune Holm, father of Back-to-Nature aquarium backgrounds, was lecturing about the natural decoration of the aquariums. The seminar was mostly about making backgrounds from Styrofoam, but for me the most important and interesting part was the briefly mentioned moulding technique.

If you are interested in making the stones yourself, take a look at how I did it!