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Why do we put red dye in the mix?
Many people have asked why we dye our artificial rock. The decision was made after we spent about one year developing the most natural looking rock. We found out that just using the natural color of concrete (mixed with our other secret materials) that the rock turned an ugly color of blackish grey. After many experiments we decided that by dying the concrete closer to the natural color of the habitat it still got darker but we had a better looking rock in the end. The coralline was still very distinguishable as it grew on the rock but the background color enhanced the appearance of the finished product. The other motivating factor was that at a later date we could easily prove that this was man made rock simply by breaking one in half and looking at the pink color inside. In no way were we trying to deceive anyone into thinking that this was actually coralline growth, the coralline growth is obvious as it is a different shade of purple ..... in the end, it simply made the rock look more natural for your tank!
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Making a lump of wet concrete look like a piece of
live rock is not easy. We have three people trained to do that very thing.
After we mix the special ingredients that gives our rock it's
unique appearance, the artist molds the rock with his hands in our "sand box" and lets it dry.
The following day the rock is turned over and the other side is formed and set to dry.
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We can make over 2,000 lbs. per day. Once the concrete is hard we then put the newly formed rocks on pallets to cure in the sun for at least two weeks. This allows the rock to harden even further before placing it in the sea where might break down if planted too early. We currently have over 200 tons in the water at various stages of development. We are able to "plant" about 5 - 6 tons per week using our current methods. We have been making rock since 1998. The first of our man-made rock hit the market in September 2000 after it was in the ocean for two years.
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We also make the "fragmounts" that we use for our coral farm in the same way. here you see the boys making about 1000 pieces.
These mounts must be placed in the water for several months in order to cure the
concrete. We have found that if we use the mounts too soon the
coral growth at the base rejects the mount until the ph equalizes to that of the sea.
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 These photo's will give you a close up view of the appearance of our man-made rock. As you can see, we also make large samples that we call "cultured show rock".
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Once the rock has cured in the sun for the right amount of time we load it
on the truck for the journey down to the coral coast were we put it in one of our several farm sites.
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When the rock reaches the farm site it is
loaded on a bamboo raft that we call
"bili bili" and floated out to the site for placement. After that a diver takes over to properly wedge the rock under ledges and areas where we can maximize the coralline growth.
The rock will rest here for a period of 18 - 30 months.
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One of the farm sites at low tide the day after it was placed on the reef. The following day a diver will take over and make sure the rock is properly placed and it will be completely submerged to begin the long wait till harvest.
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Periodically we check the rock to make sure mother nature is doing her job. This also helps us monitor when the rock will finally be ready for market.
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The final product! As you can see significant coralline is established after approx.
two years in the ocean. Now all we have to do is convince the dealers that this rock has customer demand from the hobby.
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