Marimo Ball Vase...Thing...

So, I've been wanting to make one of these things for the longest time. At first, I wanted to have a tank that only consisted of marimo balls, and possibly some shrimp, AND NOTHING ELSE... I envisioned little shrimp grazing on marimo balls, that were drifting and rolling in the water... pretending that each shrimp had their own marimo ball to graze on, like little floating grassy planets

Well, that "tank" turned into a cylindrical vase, and I think I really like how it looks! It's simple, and it's exactly how I wanted it to look, just marimo balls floating around :DI'm still contemplating if I want to add shrimp. I probably WON'T because I think that the combination of bubbles and such a small space would stress them out, especially if the marimo balls collided with one another. hahaha... Anyway, here's a video of how it looks.

NOTE*
These are all FAKE marimo balls, in that they are artificial. They're just those fuzzy craft balls that you can buy at a craft store. They TOTALLY look like the real thing, and at a fraction of the cost. The best thing, is that they won't ever die, AND . . . they aren't harvested from their home lakes, so it's helping mother nature out, in a way.

im not seeing the pic

nick_76, it's a youtube video...

It reminded me of Bubble Tea  

hey, didn't you tell me that fake marimo balls were called moss balls? Name change? Just kidding:lol!:   super cool idea and nice accessory to a cool little tank

lloyd378: LOL!! Well, yes. Fake Moss Balls are just styrofoam balls covered in moss. These things are "artificial marimo balls" ...at least, that's what I would call them lol!! =D

I know.... I was just giving you a hard time. No matter what you call them, it's a cool idea!

Now thinking way outside the box; you have ever considered making a larger vase/ tank with those fake balls and also a couple of those fake jelly fish? You'd have a crazy contradiction and also a great conversation starter in your hands

lloyd378: This is as large as it gets, for the vase. lol, the vase is like 3 feet tall I think. I haven't seen any other vases larger than that... but yeah, I would definitely try that out if I could.

As for the jellyfish, I dunno...the fake ones look a little "too" fake, in my opinion. Hehehe

Way cool PokeSethiroth! Seems you have a knack for water/aquatic art. I would enjoy having something like this in my home. I wonder how it would look under different colored lighting or if it would look dumb? You know something that rotates between blue, red, green, white lights??

fishNAbowl: I want to experiment with different colored lighting, but the only concern I have is that the marimo moss balls won't really show much color, since they're already green, so...let's say if you have a light that's shining red, then the green would just look like a darker green. If the light turned yellow, the green would look lighter, etc.

But I'm guessing that the bubbles would reflect some of the light, (I'm imagining those huge bubbler tube things that have those plastic fish in them) . . . I used to have one as a kid, and it had a color changing LED at the bottom, which made the bubbles look colorful, so that MIGHT actually work.

PokeSephiroth wrote:fishNAbowl:

But I'm guessing that the bubbles would reflect some of the light, (I'm imagining those huge bubbler tube things that have those plastic fish in them) . . . I used to have one as a kid, and it had a color changing LED at the bottom, which made the bubbles look colorful, so that MIGHT actually work.

This is what I was thinking when mentioning the colored light. Not so much changing the color of the balls but an entirely different illumination in whole.

Just a thought

It just might work I just gotta find one to try it out. lol!

PokeSephiroth wrote:It just might work :DI just gotta find one to try it out. lol!

Don't they make some sort of LED bubble wand? Think they have them @ Denny's pet world. I don't know how that would look though stuffed at the bottom of your vase.

Wow! That is so pretty. I often see those tall cylindrical vases at craft stores and wondered what people made with them. The motion of the artificial marimos is very hypnotic!

Also, the tank to the right is really wonderful.

Good job on both!

fishNAbowl: Oh yeah, the do make those, unfortunately because it's a "wand" it would lay vertically, and then the lights would shine out through the sides. Hehehehe... what I think I would want, is some sort of submersible fluorescent-like tube, that changes colors. Then it would be like a water changing column of water! Bwaaaaaaahahahahahaha!!!

Pneumostome: Thanks! I have several videos of the tank that's beside the marimo ball vase. It used to be a fireplace, but since we never use it, we converted it into a fish tank

Here they are in order from latest to when it first got set up

This might work, though they seem to be only in one color:

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Problem is, wouldn't the bubbles keep them up at the top all the time?

Gryphon: The bubbles create a current of water that rises up to the top, and then eventually goes down once it reaches the top, because of that, the marimo balls follow the current, which allows them to float to the top and sink to the bottom. Eventually some of the Marimo Balls will just stay at the bottom, but I kinda like that effect of having ones that are just at the bottom, kinda just "chillin" while there are "active" ones that are moving around in the vase

Sounds like it'd just be easier to get a green lava lamp lol

now where's the fun in that? =P

Ehhh I'm lazy lol

Ahhahaha, well there you go ... OR... you could pay someone to make one for you! Ahhhah!

Here's an update on the Marimo Ball Vase, I addeda white background to help make the Marimo Balls easier to see. I also added sand, just for aesthetic purposes. Another thing I added was a plastic straw, that helps keep the airline tubing "blend in" more, so that it's "hard to see" so to speak. There is ONE real Marimo Ball in there, can you spot it? Betcha you can't =P

Is the real one the little tiny one? No wait its the medium one.... or is it the....  

DMD123: hahaha it's one of those!

I knew it!  

That's a great idea, looks cool as an accent to your tank next to it.

You might be able to do this as an upside-down fishtank as well.... except for the bubble part. That would be cool if you figured out a way to get that to work...

LuminousAphid: Thanks! Hmmm... an upside down tank, that would look neat, but yes, the bubbles would become a problem. I would probably have to use a power head to get some water moving, so that the marimo balls don't stay in place. =P

DMD123 wrote:Is the real one the little tiny one? No wait its the medium one.... or is it the....  

I was going to guess "that one" right there!


NeatO Poke, this really puts in perspective how big that vase is!

fishNAbowl wrote:

DMD123 wrote:Is the real one the little tiny one? No wait its the medium one.... or is it the....  

I was going to guess "that one" right there!


NeatO Poke, this really puts in perspective how big that vase is!

Thanks! Yeah it's pretty tall. Like 3 feet tall I think. looks like a mad scientist lab hahahha