Make Fake Rocks for Your Pond

This is a simple instructional on how to make realistic, lightweight rocks for your outdoor pond, or anything else you had in mind.

Steps

  1. Bend the chicken wire fencing into the shape that you need. Cut, fold, bend, do whatever you have to do to get it into the shape you want. Be sure to wear leather gloves for this!
  2. Set the wire frame down on a piece of plastic. You'll be using the cans of foam insulation for the next step (possibly up to 3 cans).
  3. Spray the cans of insulation onto the wire frame. Don't make too much of a pattern out of it(i.e. doing it all in even rows.) Let the foam grab and "sink" around the wires of the frame. Cover it completely, leaving the inside hollow. Allow to sit for 24 hours.
  4. Add water to your grout mix, making it a little bit thinner than you normally would (about like cake batter). The reason you use grout mix instead of concrete mix is the absence of gravel in the grout mix. How many rocks to you see in nature that have smaller stones sticking out of them?
  5. Take your strips of burlap, and one at a time, dip them in the grout mix. Swirl them around to make sure every bit is covered. As you pull the burlap strips out of the grout mix, pinch your fingers on either side of it, and run them down it to "squeegee" off the excess grout.
  6. Lay these strips down on your wire and foam frame. Try not to let them wrinkle anywhere. Try to push them into as many crevices in the foam as you can. As you lay each strip down, overlap it over the previous one just little bit. Use the grout mix to smooth the edges. Cover the entire wire and foam frame with these strip until no foam is showing through. If your frame starts to bend from the weight of the grout, use something to prop up the inside of it such as a stick, to help maintain it's original height. Allow to dry for at least 24 hours. If some of the edges of the burlap are still showing, mix up a small batch of grout, thicker this time, and use your hands to smooth it on over these spots.
  7. After all the grout has had time to dry, your rock will have its shape and details, but it will be one solid color. You will need to paint it. You can use whatever colors you want, but use flat paint. If you use glossy paint, it will give your rock a "plastic" fake look.
  8. Use a clear coat matte spray paint to seal it. Use several layers on it, making it thicker in the spots where the water is going to run (if it's going to be under continuous running water). You can also use a lacquer, but make sure that is will hold up under continuous running water and outdoor conditions.



Tips

  • After your rock is in place, try to find some rocks with moss already growing on them to place around it, encouraging the moss to grow on your fake rock. This will add to the realism.
  • You can find more info on building rocks in this manner on the web, and also variations on it.
  • Instead of chicken wire and expanding foam insulation, you can use the pink foam board insulation, and use a foam cutter to cut the edges into the shape you want. Hollow out the middle a little bit by sanding it down by hand. Then start with the burlap and grout mix, wrapping it completely around the foam board. You can place some small scrap pieces of foam under the burlap to give it an irregular appearance.

Warnings

  • Wear leather gloves while handling the chicken wire. The cut edges of it can be sharp, and will cut very easily!
  • Wear latex or vinyl gloves while handling and mixing the grout. It can be very hard to scrub off your hands.

Things You'll Need

  • Chicken wire
  • Expanding foam insulation
  • Burlap material cut into strips about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} by {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}
  • Grout mix
  • Flat spray paint (whatever colors you prefer)
  • Clear coat or lacquer

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