# beginning my background



## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

beginning my very first background soon !! wanted to know if anyone had any techniques that they use that they think would make it less difficult for a 1st timer. also, any pictures would be greatly appreciated to help me get an idea. i was considering making the background outside the tank on egg crate, but im not too sure. 

thankssss


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> beginning my very first background soon !! wanted to know if anyone had any techniques that they use that they think would make it less difficult for a 1st timer. also, any pictures would be greatly appreciated to help me get an idea. i was considering making the background outside the tank on egg crate, but im not too sure.
> 
> thankssss


i have only done GS with silicone and coc0 and its worked so far
just dont rush any of it (that seems to be the rule of PDF's haha) and itll be fine

ive always made mine, in tank


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## Kevin_T82 (Aug 10, 2009)

I too am starting to build my first vivarium. I was surfing youtube and found a five part series on how to build a vivarium. This is the first video of five: YouTube - How to Make a Frog Vivarium and Background PT1

I think its going to help me. I'm actually going to start on it tomorrow (8/14). I'm also going to post pix on here as I take on this endeavor. Hope this will help.


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## laylow (Apr 6, 2009)

HunterB said:


> just dont rush any of it and itll be fine


I have also done several inside the tank. STUDY STUDY STUDY. Play around with different ideas and when you start you'll get it. Decide what type of frogs you want to get cause that will largely determine how you will do your tank setup.

I have always:
1) Silicone the glass
2)make a false bottom with egg crate (and wrap it with fiberglass screen)
3)build a space for a water pump (if needed)
4)start with the great stuff, do vines and ledges.
5)carve the gs. Dont go thick unless you need to (it only takes space away from the tank if its to thick)
6)resilicone the gs while its wet smash DRY coco fiber into the silicone f
7)soil and plant!!!

I think thats about it, let me know if im missing anything. I like using drift wood its a very hard wood and wont break down fast. . . I think the key to a nice Viv is study and time. The cool thing is if you dont love it, it can be redone!!!

GOOD LUCK


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## SmackoftheGods (Jan 28, 2009)

It seems like making the background outside the tank would possibly hinder you a little bit. Seems like all tanks have a lip around the top, so in order to get the background in the tank you'd have to make the background a little smaller than the actual size of your tank. This would diminish the space of the tank (not greatly, but a little) and unless sealed very well could potentially result in frogs behind your background.

My suggestion is to go into the Member's Frogs and Vivariums section and look up build journals. There are quite a few people who post build journals, there will be a plethora of information and pictures for you.


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

this all helps soo much thank youu. i already cut my egg crate for the bottom so i think im going to use the excess left over and experiment with the gs, since i bought wayyy more than enough, to see which way works better for me with the gs/cocofiber/silicone. 

also how do you think i should go about adding the wood to the background?


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> this all helps soo much thank youu. i already cut my egg crate for the bottom so i think im going to use the excess left over and experiment with the gs, since i bought wayyy more than enough, to see which way works better for me with the gs/cocofiber/silicone.
> 
> also how do you think i should go about adding the wood to the background?



when your GSing, simply place the wood into it. when the GS sets, so does the wood


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> when your GSing, simply place the wood into it. when the GS sets, so does the wood


well that soundssss simple enough. i may possibly be starting tomorrow, not sure yet. ill definitely have more questions though. just gotta experiment a little bit beforehand so i get the hang of it. thank you!!


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

yea
its really not as hard as it seems at first and the end result is always rewarding

haha feel free to keep asking questions...i need to feel like im doing something besides having no social life =)


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> yea
> its really not as hard as it seems at first and the end result is always rewarding
> 
> haha feel free to keep asking questions...i need to feel like im doing something besides having no social life =)


wellll then in that case lol how big should i make the holes for plants? and how many should i put in. its 18x18x24 and i plan on having either leucs or azureus [leaning towards leucs though] i think right now im having the most difficult time grasping that concept - of how im going to actually get the plants in there properly lol


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> wellll then in that case lol how big should i make the holes for plants? and how many should i put in. its 18x18x24 and i plan on having either leucs or azureus [leaning towards leucs though] i think right now im having the most difficult time grasping that concept - of how im going to actually get the plants in there properly lol


Most people do about 4inchesin diameter. What a lot of people do is put some 4inch diameter pots or plant baskets in to the GS (like I told u how to do with the wood) so their just"built in"

How many? Now that's something I really can't answer haha it depeneds on ur choice, u wanna give anice lush look without over planting
Black Jungle Terrarium Supply
Josh's Frogs- Herps Feeders and All The Reptile Supplies You need
Cloud Jungle Epiphytes - Plant Catalog
http://littlefrogfarm.com/store/

Search the plants on these and see what ya like..its all about personal prefrence..
And with leucs u could prolly do 3 in there while azureus are best in pairs


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

how should i prepare the wood? or is it ok the way it is if i bought it from a pet store ..?


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Some soak their wood in a bleach to water solution of 1 cup blech to 1 gal of water or bake itat a high temp in the oven for like 10-15 mins

It really dependson how safe u feel with it


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## frogfreak (Mar 4, 2009)

I've never bleached Mopani from a pet store. I just soak it to get some of the tannins out.


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

frogfreak said:


> I've never bleached Mopani from a pet store. I just soak it to get some of the tannins out.


Oops haha I didn't kno we were talking mopani..musta missed that
I ment wood that was found local and such haha


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## laylow (Apr 6, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> also how do you think i should go about adding the wood to the background?


I have added wood to all my backgrounds. Something i've found is the more you add the easier to finish ha ha, you dont have to put silicone and coco fiber on the whole background only parts lol. It is very good for your broms and airplants to have wood to anchor to. The roots seem to do better and you'll have less plants die if they are anchored to wood compaired to the gs IVE found. Again thats what works best for me

Dont worry about all the steps just focus on one step at a time and it will turn out ha ha dont worry about plants TO MUCH just one step at a time. The first viv i built, i finished the hard scape then said huh . . . now what types of plants. It turned out awesome! You'll be fine!


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

awesome thankss !! i did my gs today and cut the egg crate and pvc for the bottom. i put a nice piece of wood into the back and it fits well =]]


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> awesome thankss !! i did my gs today and cut the egg crate and pvc for the bottom. i put a nice piece of wood into the back and it fits well =]]


Well that's good haha
Next comes the false bottom and hardscape which is basically where the real fun starts haha


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Well that's good haha
> Next comes the false bottom and hardscape which is basically where the real fun starts haha


i enjoy it lol its something different that sitting on the computer all day like a loser ^-^ haha nah i like building things and making things and putting things together so it should be fun. and better yet, i pretty much convinced my parents to let me build them one once im done with mine! theyre getting into this almost as much as i am haha 

so for the false bottom should i silicone the pvc to the bottom? im not sure what to do for that so that its stable.


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> i enjoy it lol its something different that sitting on the computer all day like a loser ^-^ haha nah i like building things and making things and putting things together so it should be fun. and better yet, i pretty much convinced my parents to let me build them one once im done with mine! theyre getting into this almost as much as i am haha
> 
> so for the false bottom should i silicone the pvc to the bottom? im not sure what to do for that so that its stable.


Illhav you kno that I do allmy internet stuff from my phone so ha! I don't sit on the computer...ever haha
And yes id silicone the pvc


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Illhav you kno that I do allmy internet stuff from my phone so ha! I don't sit on the computer...ever haha
> And yes id silicone the pvc


ill have youuu know that i wasnt even refering to you but i guess that just shows your insecurity, so HA! lol jk. 

i have to wait like a week or 2 before i do the bottom but alright because no one was really giving me a straight answer about siliconing the pvc. is siliconing even a word?

so i got these frogs from this place in brookstone [ idk if you know what it is, its a store with like, futuristic stuff and really convenient weird thing and whatnot ] . it comes with 2 frogs, a snail , bamboo, gravel, and 'living rock'. the frogs are dwarf african clawwed frogs- theyre really cute. its terrible though, theyre in this tiny container so lately whenever i feed them they fight. but like neither one gets hurt. its weird. i have to get a bigger thing for them. just felt like sharing that bit of information  theyre really funny though theyre in water so like theyll swim and just decide to stretch out all of their limbs and float in the middle of the water like superman or something. so funny lol


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> ill have youuu know that i wasnt even refering to you but i guess that just shows your insecurity, so HA! lol jk.
> 
> i have to wait like a week or 2 before i do the bottom but alright because no one was really giving me a straight answer about siliconing the pvc. is siliconing even a word?
> 
> so i got these frogs from this place in brookstone [ idk if you know what it is, its a store with like, futuristic stuff and really convenient weird thing and whatnot ] . it comes with 2 frogs, a snail , bamboo, gravel, and 'living rock'. the frogs are dwarf african clawwed frogs- theyre really cute. its terrible though, theyre in this tiny container so lately whenever i feed them they fight. but like neither one gets hurt. its weird. i have to get a bigger thing for them. just felt like sharing that bit of information  theyre really funny though theyre in water so like theyll swim and just decide to stretch out all of their limbs and float in the middle of the water like superman or something. so funny lol


Lol suuure u weren't
And I pretty sure siliconing is a word..maybe..
And fun story haha u should put them in a biggertank...maybe 10gal?


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## nathan (Jul 24, 2009)

Have you siliconed the GS after it dried and added the cocco fiber? If not a good tip would be to wrap your wood in plastic an tape it so you dont mess up and get silicone all over it, although I've found that if a little gets on in a few spots once the cocco fiber is on it it doesnt look that bad . . . anyways good luck and wheres the PICS?!


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Oopshaha
I just noticedin your post that u said u were gonna put em in something bigger
Diregard my last post then haha

And nathan is right^
Iforgot that part haha


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

nopee just GS'd it. i did it about 3 days ago, but last night when my bf was over he came up with the idea to make a ledge out of the GS so i did that and i think itll be pretty good once its all neat and carved and whatnot  but thats actually a GREAT idea. never wouldve thought of it - im definitely going to use that method, thankss! and dont worrry ill get some on here sooon. i sent some from my phone to my email so hopefully those'll upload, but they might be too small to see. idk, ill try it though! =]

and hunter, last post disregarded. lol


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> nopee just GS'd it. i did it about 3 days ago, but last night when my bf was over he came up with the idea to make a ledge out of the GS so i did that and i think itll be pretty good once its all neat and carved and whatnot  but thats actually a GREAT idea. never wouldve thought of it - im definitely going to use that method, thankss! and dont worrry ill get some on here sooon. i sent some from my phone to my email so hopefully those'll upload, but they might be too small to see. idk, ill try it though! =]
> 
> and hunter, last post disregarded. lol



these are the first 2 i sentt to myself. ill try to get more =]


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Looks good so far 
What size is that? Looks like an 18x18x24...or did u mention that already? Haha
Can't wait to see it coco'ed


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Looks good so far
> What size is that? Looks like an 18x18x24...or did u mention that already? Haha
> Can't wait to see it coco'ed


youre good lol yep 18x18x24

and i havent worked on it any more than that so far =[
school does that to a person lol but at least i know that the
GS is completely cured =] i hope to begin working on it soon,
maybe tomorrow. hopefully ! =]


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> youre good lol yep 18x18x24
> 
> and i havent worked on it any more than that so far =[
> school does that to a person lol but at least i know that the
> ...


I was wondering what happened to this thread
Get crackin haha


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> I was wondering what happened to this thread
> Get crackin haha


yes sirr ! lol yeah i started school and in addition to that 1 of my bosses
just got into a MAJOR accident. he got hit by a car while on his motorcycle.
hes gonna be out of work for at least 5 months. and thats addition to another
asst. manager leaving and 2 other people going away to college. so ive been
working way more than normal. but hopefully ill be workin on it tomorrow ! =]
more pics to come soooonnn


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## frogfreak (Mar 4, 2009)

It's looking really good


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

frogfreak said:


> It's looking really good


thank you !!! 
hopefully ill get done with it before the next DECADEEE lol


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> yes sirr ! lol yeah i started school and in addition to that 1 of my bosses
> just got into a MAJOR accident. he got hit by a car while on his motorcycle.
> hes gonna be out of work for at least 5 months. and thats addition to another
> asst. manager leaving and 2 other people going away to college. so ive been
> ...


Sounds like you'll have all the money u need to finish this haha
Have you decided what's destinedto livein this? Did I miss that part? Haha


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Sounds like you'll have all the money u need to finish this haha
> Have you decided what's destinedto livein this? Did I miss that part? Haha


oh i do. i actually already bought everything besides the frogs and plants and bugs lol my only problem is time. i found an 18" light strip that came with the t8 bulb. its nice, and was only like 30$. got lucky with that one.

and yes. im pretty sure ive decided on a leuc trio =] theyll enjoy the height more than the azureus will so i told my mom that im going to make her her own viv and put azureus in them lol bc she wants me to get those but i want the frogs to be happy so ill just get them a 10 gallon from my work for 8 bucks.


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> oh i do. i actually already bought everything besides the frogs and plants and bugs lol my only problem is time. i found an 18" light strip that came with the t8 bulb. its nice, and was only like 30$. got lucky with that one.
> 
> and yes. im pretty sure ive decided on a leuc trio =] theyll enjoy the height more than the azureus will so i told my mom that im going to make her her own viv and put azureus in them lol bc she wants me to get those but i want the frogs to be happy so ill just get them a 10 gallon from my work for 8 bucks.


That's always nice haha I have 5 different vivs that I need to go light shopping for next month haha

And I wish my mom would ask me to make her a vivhaha she just complains when she sees new stuff coming in the door haha

But for azureus id go with a 20gal


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> That's always nice haha I have 5 different vivs that I need to go light shopping for next month haha
> 
> And I wish my mom would ask me to make her a vivhaha she just complains when she sees new stuff coming in the door haha
> 
> But for azureus id go with a 20gal


yeahhh i found it at a 'mom and pop shop' but they have like, sooo many diff. kinds of lightss lol

and yeah my mom is just as much into animals of all sorts as i am. thats actually where i get it from lol 

but hmmm maybe ill do thumbnails then. she doesnt want anything bigger than like 10g. i can just fix it to be tall not wide. idk it wont be for a while lol i gotta work on gettin my ownnn frogs first !


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> yeahhh i found it at a 'mom and pop shop' but they have like, sooo many diff. kinds of lightss lol
> 
> and yeah my mom is just as much into animals of all sorts as i am. thats actually where i get it from lol
> 
> but hmmm maybe ill do thumbnails then. she doesnt want anything bigger than like 10g. i can just fix it to be tall not wide. idk it wont be for a while lol i gotta work on gettin my ownnn frogs first !


Yea, you could do a pair of vents in a 10gal vert
Haha and I kno what ya mean, I'm thinking about the breeding habits of a frog whose viv I don't even own while I have 5 here ready to be worked on


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Yea, you could do a pair of vents in a 10gal vert
> Haha and I kno what ya mean, I'm thinking about the breeding habits of a frog whose viv I don't even own while I have 5 here ready to be worked on


haha yeah thats how i am too. could be both a good and bad quality lol
kk just gotta finish my hw and then ill start workin on itt =]


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> haha yeah thats how i am too. could be both a good and bad quality lol
> kk just gotta finish my hw and then ill start workin on itt =]


Haha homework? Bleh. Tank building? =)haha


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Haha homework? Bleh. Tank building? =)haha


EXACTLY! lol so i started carving last night from like, 9 - 11. finishing it now.
then siliconeeeeee whoohoo. is it safe to do the silicone right after carving ? or should i like...wait lol i figured itd be fine but thought i should make sure just in case. its not like the gs isnt cured .. its been sitting for about 2 weeks haha


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

ok so i got a new phone and the camera isnt so great but this is the aftermath of the dremeling. its hard to see but there are ledges for the frogs and nooks and crannys and a few spaces for plants also. ^-^


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> ok so i got a new phone and the camera isnt so great but this is the aftermath of the dremeling. its hard to see but there are ledges for the frogs and nooks and crannys and a few spaces for plants also. ^-^


the easiest one to see is the big plant hole on the middle left thats touching the wood. idk i think it came out pretty decentt


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## frogfreak (Mar 4, 2009)

Let's get some silicone on that puppy  You're ready. Looks great!


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

frogfreak said:


> Let's get some silicone on that puppy  You're ready. Looks great!


thankss !!! you actually make me feel like its NOT going to come out horrible hahaha

i was told to bake my dirt so im baking my dirt now lol just gonna let it cool for a little while them gonna get to it ! im excited =] i gotta order my bugs soon though. and advice on fruit fly cultures ? ive done lots of research and know a lot of tricks but theres no thing as too much information. for the most part anyway ... lol


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## frogfreak (Mar 4, 2009)

Vivs don't come alive untill they're planted. It makes a huge difference. I look at mine when they're foamed and am never thrilled. When the plants go in, well that's a different story. The fun part


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Looks good =) now the coco! Haha


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Looks good =) now the coco! Haha


thanks. goin outside to silicone right noww !!


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

well THAT was messy ! knew it was going to be messy, but not THATTTT bad lol

done for the night. am i able to do touchups tomorrow or should i wait til mondayy ?


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

I've always done touch ups the next day, that stuff sets pretty fast


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> I've always done touch ups the next day, that stuff sets pretty fast


awesomee ! thanks . im going to go do the touch ups now. hopefully ill get some pictures up soon.

also, i wanted to know if you knew what the little pink-transparent-ish tree frogs are. i have them outside my house and everywhere, we usually get them around the rain season. theyre really tiny. i was holding one last night lol ill show you in a pic . i just wanted to know if you knew what it wass because theyre everywhereee.


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## jubjub47 (Sep 9, 2008)

I usually do touchups after about an hour of curing. That way I get it all done in one day and I never have any issues this way.


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

jubjub47 said:


> I usually do touchups after about an hour of curing. That way I get it all done in one day and I never have any issues this way.


hmmm. idk ive been working on it for like 3 days now. for some reason the cocofiber isnt totally adhering. but i think this was my last touch up it looks alright so ill just get plants and let the moss grow and everything.


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

sooo now when should i get the plants ? how long should i wait after the cocofiber/siliconing before i put them in ? and should i order them or try to find some place local to get them ? thankss lol


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## boogsawaste (Jun 28, 2008)

Did you push down on the coco when you were dumping it on the silicone? haha I usually wait at least a couple days (probably best a week haha), or whenever the vinigar smell goes away before I plant. haha Got any new pictures of it? haha




(Sorry about all the "haha's" I couldn't resist  )


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

boogsawaste said:


> Did you push down on the coco when you were dumping it on the silicone? haha I usually wait at least a couple days (probably best a week haha), or whenever the vinigar smell goes away before I plant. haha Got any new pictures of it? haha
> 
> 
> 
> ...


hahaha its finee. but yeah i pushed down a lottttt. i touched it up twice. i figured if the 2nd time doesnt work completely ill just deal and the rest will eventually be covered by moss. and alrightt thatd be easy. it looks good but the pictures dont come out too well so ill post some [ im at school now so i have to wait til i get home ( my teachers are awesome and let me use their computers )] lol but yeah ill sit it up and try to get some n post them later =] and the haha's are fine. i do it too lol

usually its with questions though. i ask like, 27 questions in one post lmao


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

io wait like a week
and u can start plant shopping as soon as u want


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> io wait like a week
> and u can start plant shopping as soon as u want


yayyyyy !
noww. for substrate im using gravel then cocofiber. should i boil the gravel or can i just rinse it in hot water ??


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

the background, then the false bottom w/screen

so in layers its gonna go pvc, egg crate, screen, gravel, cocofiber, then mag leave but i dont have those yett ^-^


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## frogfreak (Mar 4, 2009)

Well...that turned out real nice didn't it 

My first one looked like crap 

Now the fun part! ha ha ...I had to


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Id boil to be safe
And id mix the coco with orchid bark or something airy like it

Hehe ilike itso far =)


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

frogfreak said:


> Well...that turned out real nice didn't it
> 
> My first one looked like crap
> 
> Now the fun part! ha ha ...I had to


Thanks !! im very pleased with it. excepttt there are a few spots where the cocofiber didnt adhere properly. im a bit ocd so its annoying. not SO ocd where im gonna go fix it a million times though. lol and also my ledge is JUSTTT too small to fit a cocohut. thats annoying too - it wouldve been perfect there. oh well .haha but thanks =] soo should i boil the rockss do you think ?? im prob gonna do the rocks and cocofiber tonight also. im so excited lol


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Id boil to be safe
> And id mix the coco with orchid bark or something airy like it
> 
> Hehe ilike itso far =)


wait so then whats the difference between the substrate and gravel? i though gravel was substrate. so cocos substrate ? so from top to bottom 
coco - screen - gravel ?

and thank youuu! =] im pretty fond of it myself. lol ^-^


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> wait so then whats the difference between the substrate and gravel? i though gravel was substrate. so cocos substrate ? so from top to bottom
> coco - screen - gravel ?
> 
> and thank youuu! =] im pretty fond of it myself. lol ^-^


No no haha

Gravel bottom
The screen
Then coco haha
Sorry for the confusion haha our definitons of substrate must be different


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> No no haha
> 
> Gravel bottom
> The screen
> ...


i knoww lol thats what i saiddd =p i said top to bottom coco then screen then gravel. but i also have the false bottom with the pvc and egg crate. but ty- i wouldntve put the screen inbetween the gravel and coco and it wouldve gotten all messed up. thankss !!


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> i knoww lol thats what i saiddd =p i said top to bottom coco then screen then gravel. but i also have the false bottom with the pvc and egg crate. but ty- i wouldntve put the screen inbetween the gravel and coco and it wouldve gotten all messed up. thankss !!


You would've had a mold explosion later haha
Though, if u added springs...they'd love you haha


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> You would've had a mold explosion later haha
> Though, if u added springs...they'd love you haha



ooh yum. lol haha so i ordered my plants last night.

4 broms, wandering jew [red], creeping charlie pilea, alocasia polly, and some pothos. sound good? anything else i need? with the pothos, i was given mixed answers. yes and no. so i just got it because the only reason i was told not to get it was because itll take over the tank, but as long as i cut it it should be fine. plus, i could always use it for other vivs that i make, so i figured id just get it for $2. why nott . lol

next is the bugsssss


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## boogsawaste (Jun 28, 2008)

Amanda0192 said:


> i wouldntve put the screen inbetween the gravel and coco and it wouldve gotten all messed up. thankss !!


I've made plenty without a divider between the substrate and the drainage layer with no real bad effects. My 44 which has been up and running over a year still doesn't have one and it's separated just fine. I used pea gravel which is tighter than something like hydroton though so it depends on that also.


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> ooh yum. lol haha so i ordered my plants last night.
> 
> 4 broms, wandering jew [red], creeping charlie pilea, alocasia polly, and some pothos. sound good? anything else i need? with the pothos, i was given mixed answers. yes and no. so i just got it because the only reason i was told not to get it was because itll take over the tank, but as long as i cut it it should be fine. plus, i could always use it for other vivs that i make, so i figured id just get it for $2. why nott . lol
> 
> next is the bugsssss


hehe now the fun starts


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

boogsawaste said:


> I've made plenty without a divider between the substrate and the drainage layer with no real bad effects. My 44 which has been up and running over a year still doesn't have one and it's separated just fine. I used pea gravel which is tighter than something like hydroton though so it depends on that also.


it seems messy though. but ive decided not to put the gravel in it because im not doing a pond or anything so its fine really with the screen then cocofiber and im gonna get jungle bed also. but thank you ^-^

should be gettin my plants tomorrow. YAY !


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> it seems messy though. but ive decided not to put the gravel in it because im not doing a pond or anything so its fine really with the screen then cocofiber and im gonna get jungle bed also. but thank you ^-^
> 
> should be gettin my plants tomorrow. YAY !


Haha I miss that excitment haha
I haven't ordered plants in months =(
Soon though haha my mantella tank needs planting...


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Haha I miss that excitment haha
> I haven't ordered plants in months =(
> Soon though haha my mantella tank needs planting...


i know lol im soo excited. do you think thats enough though?
someone told me i should still order some more. idk maybe ill see how much
it really is when i get it and THEN order more depending on how much i get.
it seems like a lot though.

awww i was thinking about getting mantellas. maybe ill start another one a few months after my leuc viv. and the azureus one for my mom hahaha
but is there anything different in keeping mantellas ? or their the same as 
pdfs, just different species ..? theyre really pretty ^-^


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## boogsawaste (Jun 28, 2008)

Amanda0192 said:


> it seems messy though. but ive decided not to put the gravel in it because im not doing a pond or anything so its fine really with the screen then cocofiber and im gonna get jungle bed also. but thank you ^-^
> 
> should be gettin my plants tomorrow. YAY !


Here's a pic of one of mine without the divider. Kind of hard to see but you couldn't tell the difference between this one and one with it. However, since you are not using gravel I guess the whole point is moot anyway. One thing about gravel is that it's too heavy to begin with so I'm switching over to hydroton.


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

boogsawaste said:


> Here's a pic of one of mine without the divider. Kind of hard to see but you couldn't tell the difference between this one and one with it. However, since you are not using gravel I guess the whole point is moot anyway. One thing about gravel is that it's too heavy to begin with so I'm switching over to hydroton.



i didnt get the pictures - they didnt post. and yeahh it is moot but anything is always helpful because like ive said i plan on starting another viv in several months after my leuc viv is done, and i think im going to do a pond so id use
the divider. 
with the plants- is there any specific way i should plant them until im ready to put them in my tank? and how often should they be wateredd??

thank youuuuuuu


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

im in my pottery class and have nothing to do because im an aide for her this
period and she has a substitute lol its great . the site isnt blocked because no
one else ever goes on it so all of my frog sites work ^-^ hahaha


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> i know lol im soo excited. do you think thats enough though?
> someone told me i should still order some more. idk maybe ill see how much
> it really is when i get it and THEN order more depending on how much i get.
> it seems like a lot though.
> ...


Its always better to go back and order more, then it is to look at thevivand realize uover planted it....

Mantella generally like cool temps, though a few like it warmer such as Expectata(that's what I'm getting) they also do very well in group settings
Marc Staniszewski's Mantella FAQ
Mantella Frogs


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Its always better to go back and order more, then it is to look at thevivand realize uover planted it....
> 
> Mantella generally like cool temps, though a few like it warmer such as Expectata(that's what I'm getting) they also do very well in group settings
> Marc Staniszewski's Mantella FAQ
> Mantella Frogs


Mantella madagascariensis is my favorite. that was the onee i was looking at. ill do more reasearch on them  although itll be a while before i actually get them so i should just worry about it in like, maybe six months haha


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

soo i did the the bottom of the viv. honestly, i love it. lol the picture isnt so good but it looks realllly niceeeeee ^-^


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## fleshfrombone (Jun 15, 2008)

Hey right on, looks great so far, can't wait to see it planted. I've been doing this for several years and I'm still working on a background 3 months later so I'm impressed.


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Nice background haha
I wish my first one woulda been half that good haha
Plantsnext! Hehe the fun part


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## eos (Dec 6, 2008)

Looks good so far


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

thanks guys!!! dont mean to be cocky, but im pretty pleased with it myself.
and it doesnt look half as good in the picture as it does in person haha ^-^
i should be gettin my plants tomorrow or tuesday though. i ordered my plants
like 4 or 5 days ago and they said itd take 1-4 days to get it but i only got 1
out of the 2 packages yesterday - the mag leaves. so HOPEFULLYYY i get the
second one tuesday. but thank youu !!


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

hey guys!! just planted my viv. ill send a pic. i think its a bit underplanted though. it looks worse in the picture because of the lighting, but idk what else to put in there.


how often should i mistt them ? and how moist shouldd the substratee be?
ty =]


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> hey guys!! just planted my viv. ill send a pic. i think its a bit underplanted though. it looks worse in the picture because of the lighting, but idk what else to put in there.
> 
> 
> how often should i mistt them ? and how moist shouldd the substratee be?
> ty =]


Hmmm...there will be somegrowing in but yea, id get a few more plants
Looks good though


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> Hmmm...there will be somegrowing in but yea, id get a few more plants
> Looks good though


thankss ! what other plantss ? i really like the alocasia polly thats my favoritee.


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Amanda0192 said:


> thankss ! what other plantss ? i really like the alocasia polly thats my favoritee.


any others haha
its your tank, pick ones ya like


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## Amanda0192 (Aug 7, 2009)

HunterB said:


> any others haha
> its your tank, pick ones ya like


lol TY ! yesterday i wrapped the top of the viv [ mesh ] with saranwrap because the humidity level wasnt staying up and i was worried the plants wouldnt lastt without the moisture. its pretty good now, going anywhere bettween like 75-85% and the temp is around 75-80 degrees F.
is that good ? too high ? eventually before i get the frogs im going to get glass for the top. also, the flies will get out everywhere because i didnt wrap the part where the light is lol so ill probably get on that soon.


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