# Inspirational wood-dominated aquascapes



## George Farmer

Hi all

Please post your favourite driftwood dominated aquascapes!  (I'm shamelessly seeking inspiration for my next 60cm layout!)

Out of courtesy, please also provide a link to the original source.


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## Tom

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

I've always loved this, but there are lots of others I can't think of right now  Maybe not as dominated as you want, but I likes it anyway!







http://www.aquatic-gardeners.org/driftwood/AQ113-030-04_ava1.jpg


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## Antoni

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

Here are few that I particularly like..

But of course there are a lot more than could be shown   




http://www.adaindia.in/NAG9.html



http://www.adaindia.in/NAG9.html


http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...page=1&ndsp=4&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0&tx=124&ty=62

Regards and  great inspiration


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## George Farmer

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

Thanks, guys.  

Anyone else?


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## Garuf

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

http://bp3.blogger.com/_dLSVgS5AxBI/SIq ... scape2.jpg
Source: google


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## nayr88

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

Tom that an amazing tank! Really inspirational.

Garuf that 1st one is really cool, the wood on the front right looks like a rock, really cool shape.


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## Johno2090

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*





Kind of a bit of both wood and rock but this is by far my fave!


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## Stu Worrall

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

I cant find a picture of mine 

It was on here and it was a foreign member who had a 90x45x45 ADA style tank with custom light hanger for an MH which inspired me to get mine made.  It was a wood, bolbitus and moss scape if anyone recognises it


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## Stu Worrall

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

found it 





http://ukaps.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=3583&start=0&hilit=custom+cabinet


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## BigTom

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

Stu, that's my favorite as well - knew exactly which one you meant when you described it.


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## George Farmer

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

Thanks, guys.  Some real gems there - a couple I've not seen before.

The Luis Moniz 'scape is a real beauty - one of my all-time favourites too.

I think I will give the open sand and moss domination a try.  No rocks perhaps.  Probably Manzi.


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## George Farmer

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

A few more.  "Ryuboku" into Google brings up some nice examples.




http://www.tfhmagazine.com





http://www.pierwszeakwarium.pl





http://akvarisztika.budapet.hu




http://1.bp.blogspot.com


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## Morgan Freeman

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

3rd pic down. Hubba hubba!


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## nayr88

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

Nice post George, that 4th one is ugly as sin haha.

Moss, sand and wood  look forward to it mate


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## George Farmer

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*



			
				nayr88 said:
			
		

> Nice post George, that 4th one is ugly as sin haha.


The 4th 'scape is the 5th 'scape before water and other plants have matured...


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## Garuf

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

I actually prefer it before it's matured. 
I'll try and find a link to it, there's a gallery of nothing but amano's wood scapes on a flikr I've seen.


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## nayr88

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*



			
				George Farmer said:
			
		

> nayr88 said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Nice post George, that 4th one is ugly as sin haha.
> 
> 
> 
> The 4th 'scape is the 5th 'scape before water and other plants have matured...
Click to expand...


 

Didn't see that at all!!


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## NeilW

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

This sort of thing may be worth a 'sticky' but for each style of layout? Almost like a library/compilation of inspiration.


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## NeilW

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

This is my favourite layout   ;




source; http://www.aquadesign.pl/img/stones/kam036.jpg

My other favourites are the one by Luis Moniz (possibly my favourite tank EVER) and also this small but striking composition from Norbert Sabat;




source; http://www.aquadesign.pl/img/stones/kam001.jpg


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## nayr88

*Re: Post your favourite ever driftwood layout!*

Neil that Norbert Sabat tank is lusty!

Plus 1 for a sticky for inspiration on wood layouts


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## hotweldfire

These are probably my two all time fave scapes (wood or no).

This one for the sheer skill of building that piece of wood:







http://www.cau-aqua.net/index.php?option=com_zoom&Itemid=29&page=view&catid=258&PageNo=1&key=0&hit=1

and then this one:






http://www.cau-aqua.net/index.php?option=com_zoom&Itemid=29&page=view&catid=211&PageNo=1&key=0&hit=1


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## nayr88

The 1st one is a beaut, but I'm not fond of the 2nd. Sure I can see why it would appeal to some, its just not my bag baby!


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## LondonDragon

nayr88 said:
			
		

> but I'm not fond of the 2nd. Sure I can see why it would appeal to some, its just not my bag baby!


probably one of the best examples of how to create depth in an aquarium  if you study it carefully you can learn a lot from it for various scapes


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## nayr88

LondonDragon said:
			
		

> nayr88 said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> but I'm not fond of the 2nd. Sure I can see why it would appeal to some, its just not my bag baby!
> 
> 
> 
> probably one of the best examples of how to create depth in an aquarium  if you study it carefully you can learn a lot from it for various scapes
Click to expand...


I didn't comment on the depth, the depth is great, so is the health of the scape the plant choice is excellent I can see why people would love it but i do not.....


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## George Farmer

LondonDragon said:
			
		

> nayr88 said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> but I'm not fond of the 2nd. Sure I can see why it would appeal to some, its just not my bag baby!
> 
> 
> 
> probably one of the best examples of how to create depth in an aquarium  if you study it carefully you can learn a lot from it for various scapes
Click to expand...

It's also photographed using an UWA lens to further enhance the illusion of depth.


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## John Starkey

Mine is the same as Stu,s,

john.


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## mattb180

The wood in tank number one is incredible!! Where do they get those sort of pieces from!?


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## Omegatron

Im really loving this scape, adding it here so i can look back at it when the time comes i need inspiration 




Source: Lofty Spirit


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## Angus

In natural environments, beautiful feature pieces of drift and bog wood get covered by mosses stan, it depends more on where the piece of wood falls in than what it looks like, i do get your point about price and making value, but it is the individuals right to choose, after all it is their tank and they are going to be the main viewer.

In all forms of art there are artists that build their art on top of a beautiful base and partly cover it up in the process, i see nothing wrong with it.


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## Karmicnull

I also think that scapes are dynamic.  There are several I've seen here on UKAPS that started off with the hardscape skeleton very visible, and the scape looked fantastic.  Over the course of a year, the plants grow in until the wood is completely obscured.  And the scape looks very different, but still superb!  So there is I suspect an element of enjoying all aspects of the journey for many people.


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## shangman

I think the use of wood has different purposes for different tanks, and all are valid. For some it is the featured sculptural element in and of itself, in others it's the structure that allows the plants to grow into their own sculpture, others again it's a mix. It can be a place explicitly for fish to enjoy and live amongst, or purely for the aesthetic. Maybe it is to make something naturalistic, or something fantastical. It can be simple or complex, large or small scale. Bought or found. You can show as much or as little as you'd like...it's all interesting, and all evolving as the tank develops. And if course these can all be mixed together too!

For me this is what is good in the hobby, everyone has their own particular point of view and their own ideas about the aesthetics and requirements of a tank, and sets about making it reality. It's a great way to create - to have a theory and try it out, and to work on the tanks to make them exactly for you and what you love. Then along the way end up learning so much and discovering things that are even better than what you set out to do.

It's not about what other people do with their tanks, but about what you do with yours. Slagging off people's work that isn't your taste to your friends is always great fun though no matter the subject 😂 It's also an important part of working out your own style, realising what you don't like as much as what you do like. When I was an art/design student it wasn't until I realised what I was against that I realised what I was for to counteract it and argue my own case.

In my aquariums I like massive wood that fills the tank and creatures sculptural drama, light and shadow contrast, and means that I can add plants at every height and depth, creating  great habitats for my animals to live in. I like it with a good amount of plants growing on it, though still like to see some bare wood too to enhance the form. I also really love to see parts of the wood come out of the water creating this emergent zone, have that in all my tanks.

@Stan510 you should look up more blackwater tanks that have few plants so the (usually wood-based) hardscape is really on show. Often very nice, definitely a good one to try.


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## Courtneybst

I'm all for a mixture of styles and I think there's a versatility in using natural wood pieces that you wouldn't get from 2x4s. It allows you to make changes, for example if you decided that you want more of it exposed than you had planned. If you decide to rescape, you might choose to show off the bottom half of the wood that was previously hidden and vice versa. You might want to do use that wood later down the line in new scapes where you do want the wood exposed, it's almost like an investment. If you've used chair legs in that instance you're a bit restricted. Also from my understanding wood like that isn't really suitable for being in water anyway. Not to mention how strange it would look before getting covered.

I personally like to keep some of my wood hardscape exposed and some covered to give an aged appearance without losing it completely. At the end of the day, aesthetically pleasing or not it is an ecosystem and ecosystems are dynamic and ever-changing. Some enjoy seeing plants gradually take hold. 

The price that one pays for said wood is only really relevant to the purchaser! It didn't come out of my wallet.


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## PARAGUAY

I did go on a spending spree when Pets at Home had a 3 for2 on azalea wood a while ago most still in garage not used 😄 a couple of nice pieces from Aquarium Gardens and Scaped Nature. But plenty of locally sourced hawthorn ,oak , beech most lying about in garden. You dont get the gnarly look of manza but these woods look really natural.


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## Aqua360

Somebody please do a hardscape using 2x4's 😂


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## MichaelJ

Aqua360 said:


> Somebody please do a hardscape using 2x4's 😂


That is hilarious!  Yeah, and it needs to be splintered... the mastermind of that idea should step forward and take up the challenge! 

Cheers,
Michael


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## PARAGUAY

Aqua360 said:


> Somebody please do a hardscape using 2x4's 😂


Like under a bridge or pier🙂


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## Angus

Aqua360 said:


> Somebody please do a hardscape using 2x4's


Canal biotope... Cut a pallet in half and mount with silicon, bit of fishing line, a safe, few knives and a bb gun.

Sent from my BV5500Plus using Tapatalk


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## Hufsa

Angus said:


> Canal biotope... Cut a pallet in half and mount with silicon, bit of fishing line, a safe, few knives and a bb gun.
> 
> Sent from my BV5500Plus using Tapatalk


Dont forget the shopping cart and bike! (Maybe just for the biggest tanks..)


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## whimm

I agree, what would be the point in spending lots of money for wood that you would only cover with moss, unless you liked the process of transition before and after. But also good "aqua scapers" know what parts of the wood they use will be showing and what will be covered by plants.


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