# Cubism and Vines



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Hi everyone. 

Just wanted to share some pics of my Viv that I'm in the process of creating. 

To start it's a 24" cube that I designed. I've been building these for a while now testing out the design and materials to make sure they hold up over time. 

Now that the kit is 99% refined I figured I would share some pics. The door is a single pane of glass with a living hinge (I prefer one pane with no obstructed view). It is sealed around all the edges with weather strip foam to keep FF's in etc. The vents are Euro (front bottom and on top of the cube) to keep the glass clear. The walls are polypropylene and the exterior frame is PVC. I selected black on this one because it's the look I like. I could have had the sides glass but again I like the look of this one and it cuts down on the cost nicely! 

The vines are GS covered in a Drylok mix. After reading decev's recent thread I was inspired to look into the Drylok as an option. The fish guys have used it on backrounds with success and it says it can be used for ponds and bird baths on the can!  I mixed Quikrete cement colorants (black and red) to make the white Drylok brown. Next I mixed in eco-earth to give the mix a good texture. I am very pleased with the results!

The buttress will be shaped and refined more and then either covered in a different drylok mix (color and texture) or it will be covered in clay. 

The rear wall has a sheet of eggcrate elevated just slightly off the rear wall and will be used like wire mesh in stucco. It will be covered with a clay mix (redart, bentonite, sand and peat). Not sure if it's needed but I think it will give the clay a good footing and reduce any possible cracks. 

That's it for today. I'll update more when I add the clay wall etc.


----------



## Energy (Jul 17, 2009)

Nice start! Keep us updated for sure on this one! Do you plan on selling pre-fabricated kits or something?


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

That's the plan in the near future. They will be like ARF's in the model airplane world. All the major components fabricated and all you will need to do is simply screw and glue and you are done (like most office furniture  ). You will just need to supply the silicone I and the pane of glass for the front door and the light on top. To be fair to Dendroboard I will wait to give too much info/details until I purchase an actual sponsorship.


----------



## cloons411 (Jun 15, 2009)

That is pretty slick. It would be just the right size for an end table for me. The GF says no more tanks/vivs. However if it is a functional piece of furniture what can she say then?


----------



## d.crockett (May 27, 2009)

David Brahms said:


> That's the plan in the near future. They will be like ARF's in the model airplane world. All the major components fabricated and all you will need to do is simply screw and glue and you are done (like most office furniture  ). You will just need to supply the silicone I and the pane of glass for the front door and the light on top. To be fair to Dendroboard I will wait to give too much info/details until I purchase an actual sponsorship.


That looks very nice! I definitely think you will find some interest for those!


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Thanks! I should make some more progress over the weekend. Next step will be the buttress and then the substrate and clay wall.


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Started work on the buttress today. Not exactly the way I wanted it but I think it looks OK.


----------



## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

very nice. is the pan on the bottom sloped to allow excess water to drain out and not collect?


----------



## NickBoudin (Nov 3, 2007)

Wow, great work!


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

frogparty said:


> very nice. is the pan on the bottom sloped to allow excess water to drain out and not collect?



Yes it does have a slight slope towards the front. I did not dill for a drain on this one rather I will just siphon off excess every so often. The space beneath the buttress will be filled with hydroton and I will have an access point to suck water out. I might still put in a hidden drain line with a valve...


----------



## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

If you are making these for production I would HIGHLY reccomend adding a drain w/valve toy our design. I think people would really like to have that feature and it would be a big convenience vs. the ol' siphon or turkey baster technique. I really think it would add to its appeal.


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Thanks for the input! 

I will look to add that as an option for people. One of the coolest qualities of the material is that it is VERY easy to cut/drill as opposed to glass and even acrylic. Basically I would like to offer them in kit form that you assemble and customize slightly for your own specific needs as you assemble it/them. You could easily add a bulkhead in the exact location for your requirements or I could pre-drill the position on a custom order. I'll have to think about the best way to offer this feature.....


----------



## Fishman (Jan 16, 2007)

Cool viv David, where do you find black flat stock PVC?


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Hi Dan,
The PVC only comes in white. I mill it and also drill for pocket screws so that the fasteners are hidden. It is then easily painted (if you want but it isn't necessary) using whatever color you like with regular latex paint and a roller, or spray paint. (I prefer semi-gloss to gloss) The polypropylene sheets that make up the entire interior come in an array of colors so no painting would be required (natural, white, black, green, brown etc.). 

Within the next week or so I should have a post in the sponsor classifieds detailing everything that comes with the kit, more details on the materials, assembly, and pricing.


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Quick update:

I mixed up some background! Peat, sand, sphag, Redart and Bentonite clays. It was really fun working with the stuff. I also placed in the hydroton and screen. I have an order on the way from New England Herpetoculture Supply so I will get some plants and moss in there tomorrow.














































I'll take some more shots after the plants arrive...Thanks for looking.


----------



## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

I like it. You should get some great moss growth on that clay mix


----------



## NickBoudin (Nov 3, 2007)

That clay looks awesome. Is it rock hard? Throw some java moss on there and it'll grow in a heart beat with a good mist system.


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Thanks for the compliments Nick and frogparty.

I ordered some tropical moss from NE Herp Supply to grow in there (among other plants). I'm hoping that it takes off as I really like the look of moss....it looks cozy!

The clay isn't rock hard but stiff like potters/modeling clay (maybe less stiff since it has so much peat and other things in it). Right now it feels like slightly stiff butter but I would expect that it wil stiffen up a tad as it sets. Because of it's "workability" and hypothesized nutrient/mineral upload it makes for a fantastic alternative to the standard background materials in this hobby.


----------



## Devanny (Jul 11, 2008)

I love it! The background looks great.
Where did you get the peat from? I have been having trouble finding any without fertilizers.


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Thanks! 

The peat came from a mom and pop garden center around the block. Most around here sell small bales of compressed peat with no additives.


----------



## Deli (Jun 24, 2008)

Lookin good =D Cant wait to see it planted...

Where'd you get the Redart? I've been to every arts and craft/pottery store here and no one seems to carry it


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Hey Deli... I was lucky enough to find it locally. There is a place in town that supplies local potters and they had the clay in stock. MUCH cheaper as I didn't have to pay shipping on a 50# bag.


----------



## frogfreak (Mar 4, 2009)

Very nice. I think you've got a winner there!

What mix ratio did you sue for the clay?


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Thanks!

It was approx 40% Peat, 30% Redart, 10% Bentonite, 10% Sand, 10% Sphag.


----------



## Maggotthegoat (Jan 29, 2010)

your clay wall will eventaly melt from misting or crack up if left to dry


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Actually it won't melt from misting. Clay holds it shape very well even with drip walls (look at Ed's posts). The clay will hold very well by itself but the plan is to also have plants rooted in it.

Did you have a clay wall "melt-away"?


----------



## Maggotthegoat (Jan 29, 2010)

i worked as a studio assistant in the ceramics department and it was one of my jobs to make clay all sorts and earthen ware clays and any ceramic clay for that matter will break under water on of the profesers that i worked for would build unfired clay pots and put water fountains in them and have them melt for her shows . its not gona be as fast from misting but the water will over time ware away the clay and drop into the water


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Interesting. How would you explain others having used unfired clay mix backgrounds for years without total erosion?

From one of Ed's posts:

"The tank shown in this thread red clay substrate 
has a mixture of about 50/50 clay bentonite and peat moss. Its been set up for about 5 years now with a constant drip wall on it for the first 4 years. The last year I've been "stress testing" it with a couple of extended droughts. The longest drought condition was 3 months and the bromeliad in the bottom right survived just fine (some outer leaf loss) and the mosses are currently making a comeback. "

Link:
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/47934-sodium-bentonite-mixes-3.html

http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/33471-red-clay-substrate.html


----------



## Maggotthegoat (Jan 29, 2010)

I have a clay drip wall set up in a 29 gallon test terraria where the drip wall runs 24/7 for over 2 years now and only had one or two pieces fall out of it (more due to me pulling some unwanted ferns out of it). In that test run, I used clay bentonite mixed with peat moss and tinted with concrete primer. The wall is broken up in several spots by several pieces of red shale that I glued in as outcroppings (flat piece cut to size) as well as several strips of tree fern fiber. As I noted above it has been up and running for a couple of years now and I actually had to thin out the excess ferns that grew from the peat and treefern fiber (including one tree fern). I am still running it to monitor how it hold up over time. The next task is to plant some bromeliads in it and see how they do (there is one very small neo at the base but that was more because I needed someplace to put it and its been there for about a year now and has pupped several times). The lighting over the tank is two 55 watt setups from AH supply. 

Depending on the slope wanted you can order the clay from a pottery supply place and rehydrate and use it. 
If you are going to have a lot of water running on it (more than a trickle), then you will need some kind of stabilizer in it or create it out of a sculpted material like hydrostone. 
Ed 

he is not using a strait clay wall he is using an armeture to support the clay and treefern fiber to hold it together you have the eggcrate holding the clay up and its not going to erode and collapace but a lot of water contious will melt it


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Maggotthegoat, I'll let you know how it goes . I'm not at all worried about it.


----------



## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

I wouldnt worry about it at all. Especially once you get plant and moss growth on it. Can't wait to see it planted


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

Update, and the desire to get back on track  ...

Got a nice shipment from New England Herp Supply....GREAT Service and the plants arrived in nice shape this cold Northeast morning!


----------



## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

I like it!! Simple yet beautiful. Im a big fan of the moss carpet look if Im working with bigger frogs. I would add a big magnolia leaf or 3 and maybe another terrestrial plant like a cryptanthus to it if it were mine


----------



## David Brahms (Oct 31, 2009)

frogparty said:


> I like it!! Simple yet beautiful. Im a big fan of the moss carpet look if Im working with bigger frogs. I would add a big magnolia leaf or 3 and maybe another terrestrial plant like a cryptanthus to it if it were mine


Thanks Frogparty! I like the "less is more" philosophy  I'll see how things grow and progress and maybe add some more later on.


----------



## RNKot (Jun 9, 2010)

Time to update


----------

