Cool Hunting

Floating Garden, a new freshwater aquarium concept by Benjamin Graindorge and Duende Studio, tackles waste management, the primary concern of aquariums, with an innovative, 100% natural filtering system.

By enlisting two forms of natural filtration, gravel-bed filtration and aquaponics, the set-up removes nitrates, thereby eliminating the need for harmful chemicals and frequent water changes.

In the first instance, tank water flows over a tray where it passes through a thin layer of river sand, which forms a host environment for the aerobic and anaerobic bacteria to transform azote into nitrates. Nitrate-enriched water then flows over a layer of plant life, whose substratum of roots serve to extract the nitrates, both feeding the plants and purifying the water.

Floating Garden will be available in a plastic and ceramic production version beginning in the spring of 2010. For serious aquatic aesthetes, a limited series of 10 prototypes will be produced through rapid prototyping and offered with a tinted glass aquarium (price on demand). The prototype will be on view and available for special order at Forum Diffusion beginning 25 June 2009.