# First Vivarium - Build Log



## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

I've kept snakes, leos, and cresties before, but this will be my first frog vivarium.

I was given an old 33 gallon aquarium which is 36"L, 12"W, and 18"H.

Today I started by giving it a wash with vinegar and water, then sized two layers of egg crate and two layers of weed barrier.

I set those aside and put a layer of silicone on the back wall of the aquarium, then attached the extra egg crate I had left over. This will act as the anchor for my Great Stuff wall. (I've been reading lots of the past threads on builds and you guys are a gold mine)

I've got two bags of orchid blend (fertilizer free) from Canadian Tire and two bricks of coconut coir. Probably not quite enough yet, but we'll see. I plan on running it as a planted viv for several months before any frogs actually go in it. 

I'll be using it to test my arduino controller project, and once that's stable in go the critters


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Today I'll be laying down the first layer of Great Stuff. 
After it cures, should I roughen up the surface before applying the second layer? Or will it bond to itself without issue?

I'll be carving the final form to give it a good surface for the silicone/fiber coating.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

A layer of foam is now down on the back of the tank.
It used one 20 oz. can, and there was a tiny bit left to fill in a few gaps. It's a little thinner at the bottom of the tank, since I'll carve more of that away when I put in the plaskolite and the cloth.

The leaves in the second image are from knotweed, which is hugely invasive on our property. At least those big leaves are good for something. The coin is a toonie, for size reference.

I'll be cutting down some of the stalks too, since once it's dried out it will make excellent places for frogs to explore and hide. I'll keep enough stocked to last through to next summer, since it will break down in the moisture. That will give the springtails and other critters extra nutrition in the soil.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

The tank, viewed from the back. You can see the silicone with the plaskolite embedded in it, and how the Great Stuff filled in around it.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Drainage tube for the tank. Rather than drill into the bottom this PVC will go down the back corner. It's notched to allow water to flow into the bottom. It will have the weed barrier cloth tied off around it so it doesn't fill up with solid matter. I ran the dremel around the pipe about 1.5 inches up so it can be tied off there.

Then a siphon hose can be inserted down the tube as needed.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Last night I left two bricks of coconut coir to soak in 6 liters of water, and broke them up this morning. I just added two bags of orchid mix, and gave it a thorough scramble in a large garbage pail.

Since I still had two syringes with mushroom spores in them I added Enoki and Lion's Mane to the mix. Occasional flushes will add some variety to the tank, and they should create their own little pockets that they dominate.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

I'm having a hell of a time finding aquarium safe silicone around here.
Nobody carries it. Not Wal-Mart, Home Depot, or other local hardware stores.

At Home Depot they did show me a 30 ml tube of Loctite aquarium safe sealant, but it's 10 dollars. To do the back of my tank with that would cost a minimum of 200 dollars. Nuts!

Every single tube of silicone sold around here says "Not suitable for use below the waterline or in aquariums". 

So I guess I will have to order it online. At least it's not much more expensive than the generic silicone.

I wasn't too concerned about the small tube of silicone I used to anchor the plaskolite to the back of the aquarium, since it will be sealed off from the rest of the tank, but really don't want to risk using any of the stuff in the hardware stores here if it's not up to the task.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Since there's a few threads mentioning that people use the 100% silicones without issue and I don't need to have any below the water line I just grabbed some of that today. It has no mold inhibitor in it so hopefully that's enough for it to be safe.

In other progress I've been using a dehydrator to collect and dry leaves from the giant knotweed. Not sure how quickly leaf litter breaks down, so stashing a pile of it in the cupboard 

For the surfacing of the Great Stuff in the back of the tank I picked up another block of coir and just soaked it. The dehydrator fits over the top of the bucket so using that to quickly dry out the coir so it's available to use sooner


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## skoram (Apr 20, 2015)

I'm impressed with the amount of thought and planning you've put into this. I'm in the initial planning stages of my own first vivarium so your build log has been (and I'm sure will continue to be) very educational for me. I'm also curious to see your Arduino controller setup. Can't wait to see how everything turns out.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Thanks  I'm combining a lot of great info from here, youtube, and another herping friend who puts up with all my questions. 
Tonight I took a japanese pull saw to the foam and flattened some of it down. I also trimmed two inches of foam up from the bottom of the tank, and cut down some of the excess that might interfere with a lid.

Using examples from this forum I cut down some 1 inch PVC into 1 inch long segments to create standoffs for the plaskolite (egg crate).
The weed cloth will be sandwiched between and on top.

Next some planting features will be carved out and then built up around the lower half with additional Great Stuff.

I was going to put a drain in each planter using aquarium tubing, but while working with the PVC tonight I had another idea.

If I carve out places to put lengths of PVC I can have them fitted flush to the bottom of the planters, and the top of the plaskolite. Then I can seal them into the wall of foam. The bottom of the PVC will have weed cloth to allow drainage, and the PVC tube itself will have soil in it. This will give plants the opportunity to extend roots for extra resources, and all the drainage they need not to flood.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Cutaway for the drainage tube. For example there's some aquarium hose running down it. The notches at the bottom will allow the water to flow in and the siphon or pump to pull it out. A new application of great stuff will fill in the cutaway.

The plaskolite up top is just there to see if the PVC fits.
A 2x2 square of plaskolite can be cut away to accomodate a 1 inch PVC pipe cleanly.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Considering various lid solutions: glass, acrylic, and the hardwood in the picture.

I have a couple of table leaves that aren't being used, and if I remove the extra wood and metal hardware it will sit down on the tank with a nice gap at the front for ventilation. Then I'd have to create a fruit fly barrier for that gap.

I'm not sure at this point if there are any cons to the wood if I seal it with a good waterproof epoxy. I can drill out and route what I need for lighting and sensors.

Any input on the wood solution?


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

While I have plans in mind for a no-drill system, I've still been doing reading on setting up a bulkhead system and how to drill the glass cleanly.
Checking the prices on locally sold diamond bits results in $30 to $60. Ouch.

Meanwhile these bits on BangGood are much, much cheaper. From $1.32 to $9.29.

My only issue is what kind of quality these bits will be coming out of China. I suppose they don't have to last anywhere near the amount of time the brand name ones do for the price, since I won't be drilling glass regularly. Those are damn good prices too. Hmmm.


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## martini5788 (Aug 10, 2015)

Honestly if you want really
Good diamond drill bits for glass I would get a kit from glassholes or look at different reef sites


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## Encyclia (Aug 23, 2013)

I am not sure you need good bits. I think they all probably work about the same for the first few holes. This has been true of all the ones I have bought. I am guessing the difference comes in with how many holes they drill before they get dull. How many holes do you need to drill? My Ebay ones did probably 20 before they started to get dodgy. That was worth the 5 or 6 bucks I spent. When I need to drill some more holes, I will spend another 5 or 6 bucks. Another way to think of it, anyway.

Mark


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

I ordered the ones from BangGood last night. At that price it was worth getting half a dozen different sizes for 10 bucks total. They should get here in about 3 weeks. 

I will include a report on them in this log.


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## Encyclia (Aug 23, 2013)

I think that's a good call. I think once you get the technique down, there is very little difference in the final results between fresh bits of almost any price. Most of the time, the collar on the bulkhead hides any cosmetic boo boos  It's technique that prevents breakage, in my experience, not the quality of the bit.

I think you were wise to save your sheckels.

Mark


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## martini5788 (Aug 10, 2015)

Encyclia said:


> I think that's a good call. I think once you get the technique down, there is very little difference in the final results between fresh bits of almost any price. Most of the time, the collar on the bulkhead hides any cosmetic boo boos  It's technique that prevents breakage, in my experience, not the quality of the bit.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



That's a good point. I come from a reef background, and I've read so many threads about drilling, but most of which are on very expensive tanks, and not a glass lid that is easily replaced. 


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## Encyclia (Aug 23, 2013)

Exactly. To give you a point of reference, I had drilled maybe 10 holes in my life before I had to drill all the bulkheads for my Mist King nozzles. The holes I had drilled before were 1.25 inch or so. I never broke one tank in drilling these holes (drainage with bulkhead fittings), even though I had never drilled glass before. Pumilo's excellent tutorial helped a lot. Look it up on this site if you haven't seen it. I had to drill 26 holes for the nozzles. They were all about a half inch or so. I broke one piece of the thinnest, crappiest glass available at Lowe's and I just slapped some silicone on the cracks and let the bulkhead fitting hold it together ;-) 1 break out of almost 40 holes was not too bad, I didn't think. One day, I may pay the $5.50 to replace the glass I broke and redrill it ;-) All of that was with budget Ebay-quality bits.

Mark


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

That was one of the tutorials that got me thinking I might actually be willing to drill holes too. I was going to work around that at first. But with all the great resources here my confidence in the build process has been increasing


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## martini5788 (Aug 10, 2015)

A lot of people put plumbers putty over the area they are going to drill and that makes it more stable and less likely to crack as well. 


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## Encyclia (Aug 23, 2013)

Yeah, I used plumber's putty as a dam for a reservoir of engine coolant. Worked great. Just clean the tank out really well when you are done.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Do they use it while soft, or let it set so that the grinding action of the bit no longer skates on the glass once you've carved out a bit of the hard putty?


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## martini5788 (Aug 10, 2015)

They do it once it's dry from what I have read 


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Makes sense. I'll pick some up when it's cutting time.

My only worry when it comes to putting a bulkhead in the bottom is that I have no idea what the origin of this tank is. I got it from my cousin, and she was given it by a customer who knew she had fish at home. So whether the glass is tempered or not, I wouldn't know.


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## martini5788 (Aug 10, 2015)

CaseyWagner said:


> Makes sense. I'll pick some up when it's cutting time.
> 
> 
> 
> My only worry when it comes to putting a bulkhead in the bottom is that I have no idea what the origin of this tank is. I got it from my cousin, and she was given it by a customer who knew she had fish at home. So whether the glass is tempered or not, I wouldn't know.



Do a google search. Easy to test whether it is tempered or not prior to drilling. Polarized sunglasses or 3d glasses 


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Looks like it's safe. Did the test with the laptop and my polarized sunglasses. No striping.

A neat thing that happened is that the glass changed the polarity of the laptop screen by 90 degrees. If I look at the laptop wearing sunglasses the screen turns black if I turn my head 45 degrees to the right.
If I put it behind the glass then I have to turn my head 45 degrees to the left for it to turn black.
None of the striping appears though.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

For lighting I'm thinking the 20 watt Jungle Dawn Glow and Grow might be the way to go.

I liked the design of them, and Nate's mounted smaller ones look really sharp.
The 20 watt looks to be the perfect size for the 36Lx12Wx18H tank.


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## thane (Sep 11, 2014)

Just read through this whole thread. I have not attempted a great stuff background myself (I just did a cork bark mosaic), so I don't have any input on that.

My thought on the different lids you were thinking about is glass might be your best bet. The risk with acrylic is warping. I don't know if I've seen anyone do a straight wooden lid. It might look nice if you can get it right, but you'd really need to make sure to waterproof the bottom somehow, making sure it won't get moldy or rot AND not leech any chemicals into the tank. For example, I've read people don't even use resinous woods (untreated) in their tanks for fear the aromatic resins harming the frogs. If you're going to use some sort of treated lumber you'd really have to seal it off somehow with some sort of foo-grade type thing. I would think it would just be easiest to do glass. This appears to be a top-opening conversion, so you'll need to have ventilation. The way I would do it if all of your access is going to be through the top is to make some vent/screen inserts using "build your own windowscreen" type kits (come with 4 corners, then you cut the sides of the frame to size), and for the glass you could use one or two big pieces with an aquarium or piano hinge. That's just my two cents. You appear to be pretty creative and handy, so I'll be interested to see what you come up with.

My thoughts on the jungle dawn light - I know these are good lights, and popular. Were you planning on getting two of these though? The problem with getting only one is it's 17" long, so it's only going to span half the width of your tank. If you put that in the middle, the plants on the outside are going to kind of bend towards it. It might work for creating gradients, shadowy places for frogs to hang out, but might look a little screwy too. 

I would look at getting a 36" LED bar or get 2 of those jungle dawn lights to span the width. I just purchased this one from Finnex for a 40 breeder conversion. It was the best combination of price/brightness I could find. I also have 2 24-inchCurrent Satellite LED+ on my other tank, which is 24X24X28. Those are nice but cost a little more.

Not sure if they ship internationally, but NEHerp has a nice chart at the bottom of this page suggesting how many of each bulb type to use for different sized tanks. I found this useful in choosing my own. 

I will look forward to seeing updates on this. It looks like you're putting a lot of thought into it, kind of doing your own thing and thinking creatively. I'll be interested to see what you come up with. I appreciate that you're documenting everything along the way also.

Thanks,
Thane


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Thanks for the info. I had planned on starting with one of the 20W Jungle Dawns during the breaking in phase of the tank (I won't be putting frogs in it for a while) and adding more light, like moonlights, etc. as I went.
The Finnex lights look awesome though. If my RC heli stuff sells soon I'll probably order those  Much obliged.


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## thane (Sep 11, 2014)

Forgot to add - if you don't just want an out of the box solution, I have seen a few builds where people built their own lighting rigs using CFLs, halogens, etc...

This is one of the most impressive builds I have seen recently: http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/190465-x-large-exo-build-2.html#post2052865 and I believe he just used this lighting for inspiration: http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/815318-post173.html

I personally chose LEDs because I didn't want anything that would run too hot, and I liked that they're low energy and long lasting, and the aquarium bars are very low profile. However one downside is they are so bright that I think it's made the frogs shyer while I'm waiting for the plants to grow in and give them a little ground cover. The frogs I have mainly like to hang out in the shadows, although they're getting bolder over time. So I'm kind of trying to figure out how to make the plants happy while giving the frogs some shady areas too. That's one thing that impressed me about the above build - he's got some high light plants that are thriving in there, and has decent coverage with the spotlights, but still plenty of shadowy areas, which I think creates a dramatic effect too.

Just throwing a few more ideas out there for you to mull over.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Wow, that's a nice looking light setup.

I've also thought about building my own lighting rig from scratch. First getting the reels of LEDs on strips at the appropriate K ratings, then laying them out in alternating strips.

Since the goal is to have everything Arduino controllable anyway, having strips with the daylights, grow lights, and moon lights alternating and switchable in one panel would be nice.

Based on a project I saw for creating a lighting system for photography I'd build a frame that fits the top of the aquarium, and put a backing on it. Then, using a sheet of foamcore from the dollar store, create a white reflective backing. (Though since this would be on for hours at a time I'd probably just use a good paint on wood, so there wouldn't be heat issues with the foamcore).

Then mount the glass or acrylic inside the frame. Could be more likely to get away with the acrylic and not worry about warping if it's build into the frame and well supported.

Ventilation holes could be drilled as well, with a couple of uniseals preventing fruit flies from getting into the lighting. and screening in front of the fan. I'll be using SP rated computer fans to ensure that there's good forward pressure into the tank.


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## thane (Sep 11, 2014)

I can't quite picture everything you described in my head. It sounds like an interesting setup. If you're comfortable dealing with all the electronics, here's another one I've seen recently that was really impressive, but beyond my skill level: http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/246610-comprehensive-guide-practically-build-wifi-controlled-diy-led-unit.html

The only things I'd mention are the computer fan is nice - I don't have one because I couldn't figure out how to do it nicely, so I just tried to make the vents big enough there would be some circulation within the tank, but from what I've read the plants really benefit from it. I've read some people say it's best to have it mounted inside the tank, just circulating air within, rather than blowing air out or into the tank.

I would personally avoid acryllic, as I have heard it will warp even if you put it in a nice frame. Just today someone was talking about that: http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/247162-40-vert-acrylic-front-hmmmmm.html

I think you might be overthinking the fruit fly thing. If you use a good stainless steel screen for your vent, and your doors are pretty tight, they shouldn't be escaping much. It seems you're worried about them crawling all over the top. I will see a handful of them crawling up the sides and top, but they all fall down. I'd estimate about 90%+ just stick to the bottom of the tank.

I hope that makes sense. Again, just some thoughts. You can take them or leave them.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

I haven't had a chance to do anything with the tank for the last week since I'm currently out of funds.

I'm going to end up cutting away all the yellow great stuff I used, as it's too bubbly to apply silicone cleanly. It was really wasteful just to get a couple of inches covered. Live and learn. The white stuff I had put down worked well though.

I don't know that I'd recommend putting a computer fan right inside the viv. Unless there's a water resistant model out there I wouldn't trust anything electrical in that environment that's not designed for it. Nice thing about a 3 wire fan is that you can use the 3rd wire to regulate the fan speed with a microcontroller.

I'm going to visit a nearby gardening store and see what they carry or can get for plants. The big box stores have squat at the moment.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

So I haven't been working on my setup lately. Haven't had the funds or the space.

I've got all my arduino parts here now, and I'm a little stumped about how to get them to all work together. The sensors work fine, the relays are perfect for the job, but the TFTLCD shields I got use all available pins on the Arduino boards. So I don't have any extra IO to work with.
I've read a small blurb about being able to run the sensor IO off the same pins as the LCDs because they use different levels of resistance, but it was just a sentence or two on another article, and I haven't found a good guide on it yet.

Once I do figure it out I'll make all the info available though.


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Been a while since I posted. My viv was on idle for the winter. 
I left my substrate mix in our outdoor storage for the winter, which should have done a nice job of killing off anything in it.
Planted a nice pothos in it, which has been growing nicely. Annoyingly I picked up some fungus gnats, which LOVE the humidity and are just thriving in the soil.
So I have some dry ice ordered and will be doing a CO2 saturation of the tank when it arrives tomorrow.

My arduino project took a hit, due to my TFT LCD no longer displaying properly. I've ordered a standard 2 line text display which will use less pins anyway. 

A friend sent me his raspberry pi to work with, and I've installed RasPiViv on it, but I'm going to surprise him and mail it back with working relays and outlets on it to control several of his cages.

With the ease of setup for the Raspberry Pi I may just go in that direction myself and use the arduino parts for other projects.

Does anyone know a good source for bromeliads in Canada? I checked the place out in Richmond, BC but they no longer ship their retail sales any more  Only locally.

I found a local store that just happened to have a brom by luck, but it's as tall as the tank, so there's not really a place to put it. Unless I could start chopping bits off and growing out the cuttings?

Anyway, fun stuff. Hope to be back posting regularly, and with auratus soon


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Hmm. Turns out Understory has some a good selection of viv plants (no broms though) for good prices. 

Guess I'll pick up some of those while I continue my search


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Finding glass around here to do the lid was a huge pain in the ass. It was pretty much finished windows or auto glass. But I found the last company still doing regular cut glass and god my lid parts.

Made a living hinge with silicone and printed a handle on the 3D printer.

Right now I've got a 5 gallon bucket of maple leaves under the dehydrator.

Froggies arrive today, with special guests -- cresties! Had to run out and get some 6L tubs for the cresties, but they're good to go too


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## CaseyWagner (Aug 3, 2015)

Yay!








ARGH. What's up with the BBCode for youtube?


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