Hardscape Buying Guide

Hardscape Buying Guide
Hardscape is a vital element in aquascaping: it is the bones of the aquascape – if you get the hardscape right the rest of the scape will fall into place easily and effectively. We have a very wide variety of hardscape so we thought we would create this Hardscape Buying Guide to help you navigate our selection and make the right choice for your aquascape.

Terminology
Hardscape = anything used to form the structure of your aquascape – normally wood or/and stone.
Layout Materials = another name for hardscape.
Inert = will not affect the water chemistry of your aquascape.

Quality Control
• All our hardscape is tested and suitable for use in aquascaping.
• We only select hardscape pieces that are a suitable size and shape for aquascaping.
• Our range of hardscape is wide and varied so you can achieve a huge variety of looks.
• We have a large amount of each type of hardscape to ensure that there is always a lot of each material to choose from.
• This means that there is a much higher chance that you will find the ‘perfect piece’ for your aquascape.

Our Range of Hardscape…

Stone
ADA Manten Stone
• This stone has a wide variety of colours when underwater – from browns to lilacs.
• It is considered by many scapers to be the most beautiful stone in aquascaping.
• Inert.

ADA Ryuoh Stone
• Gray-silver in colour with white flecks.
• Strong, stoic silhouette.
• Quite dense.
• May slightly increase the hardness and pH of the scape, although only to a manageable level and this can be counteracted by using ADA Aqua Soil.

ADA Seiryu Stone
• Blue-grey in colour.
• Interesting texture.
• Good for growing cuba on.
• May slightly increase the hardness and pH of the scape, although only to a manageable level and this can be counteracted by using ADA Aqua Soil.

ADA Yamaya Stone
• Dark grey colour.
• Quite small pieces suitable for nanos or medium sized tanks.
• Simpler form – smooth, angular, river washed effect.
• Great value stone.
• Inert.

TGM Fossilised Wood (otherwise known as petrified wood)
• This stone is genuine fossilised wood so it has an interesting colour and texture from the preserved grain of the wood.
• Very dense so sinks very easily.
• Creates a very natural, soft look.
• Inert.

ADA Dragon Stone
• Light brown-red in colour.
• Interesting texture with lots of nooks and crannies.
• Ideal for planting Hemianthus callitrichoides ‘Cuba’, riccia fluitans and mosses in.
• Inert.

TGM Blue Stone
• Blue-grey-green in colour
• Exceptional value
• Can be split/broken down into smaller pieces
• Comes in a wide variety of sizes from XS nano pieces to XXXL pieces weighing over 50kg – please contact us for these pieces.
• Can be used on its side to dam in banked up substrate
• Inert.

Lava Rock
• Red-brown colour.
• Light weight, low density.
• Rough, porous texture.
• Ideal for planting mosses on.
• Inert.

Graded Gravels
• These are gravels in various sizes that can be used to add an element of variety to your aquascape.
• Create a more natural effect.
• Add interest to your scape – graded gravels are the perfect finishing touch.
• ADA Aqua Gravel LL is the largest graded gravel available – the stones are the size of small river pebbles – around 5-8 cm long.
• All our graded gravels are inert.

Wood
ADA Horn Wood
• Rich, warm dark brown colour.
• Very dense so normally sinks easily in water.
• Interesting shape and form.
• Available in a wide variety of sizes.

Redmoor Root Wood by size or Redmoor Root Wood by individual piece
• Light brown colour.
• Interesting, spindly, spidery form like natural roots in a river bed.
• Creates a very natural look.
• May need to be tied down for a while or soaked in water before using to prevent the wood initially floating.

We also have additional types of aquatic hardscape that are only available in store, so visit our Wrexham store for even more hardscape choice and variety, or phone us on 01978 265 090.