apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

The Floating Garden concept was created by Duende Studio. It's actually more than a concept. The one we feature here is a limited edition prototype. However, it is available for purchase and will be commercialized next year. Designer Benjamin Graindorge created a miniature ecosystem for apartments and smaller places. The main problem of any aquarium is the way that waste is eliminated. The way that Graindorge decided to proceed was with a 100% natural way of doing this using aquaponics and a gravel-based filtration system.

Gravel-based filtration lets water seep through a 2" layer of sand. Bacteria and larger impurities will be taken away as well as nitrogen, which in turn will become a nitrate. It's then that aquaponics come into play. The roots of the water-based plants will use the nitrates to grow. Once the two parts of this operation are completed, the water is recirculated into the aquarium. That's why it's called a floating garden. The plants themselves serve as a way of using the waste generated by the aquarium as a food. We think it's pretty cool. [via Trendsnow, photos by Duende Studio]