# First Paludarium Construction (75 gallon)



## TWA (Apr 3, 2011)

Okay, I'm pretty much new to dart frogs, as I've only had a few since November, but I have since started, and almost completed my second vivarium, which is actually a paludarium I suppose. I'm not sure about posting pictures, so we will see how this goes.

I started with a 75 gallon tank off craigslist, which I siliconed a PVC pipe in the corner for hiding wires for the filter and heater. I also siliconed rocks onto the back of the tank as a background to the water feature.










I cut PVC pipe to six inch length and used them and acrylic sheets to construct the actual land part, which I sealed with great stuff and silicon so it is stuck there. I also started the background of great stuff, which to my mistake I applied without laying the tank on its side (a lot a lot of carving) the flower pot is just holding it down while things cure.










I applied cocofiber after I completed the great stuff application and carved for hours to get a semi level working area for applying the silicon and cocofiber










I used the substrate mix that worked for me in my first vivarium, just topsoil and sphagnum moss, over an inch of aquarium rocks for some drainage I guess.










Filled with water and added a brom, I put java moss on the rocks so the small drop from land to water isnt noticable. I also threw some petrified wood into the tank.










More broms I ordered online, along with mondo grass (?)










Water portion when completed. I took the plants out of the pots as well. (I will be taking out the water hyacinth, its growing there until I can put it in a friends pond)










One of the frogs that will be going in it eventually (Picture is slightly blurry) :









I'll update when I progress if anyone is interested, feedback is welcome and tips are of course appreciated.


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## FwoGiZ (Jul 8, 2008)

Nice looking viv!
I like how you planted the water area.

You might encounter a few problem tho...
you pump isnt sealed away from the dirt, rocks, etc! It might get easyly clogged.
Also, there are no drainage on your land part from what I understand! You should have used eggcrate+fiberglass mesh so the soil doesnt get soaked!

Lastly, I am afraid this vivarium isn't suited for a leuc..these frogs are not the best swimmers and I'd be even more afraid it would get stuck under that underwater cave!!

Leaf litter over your soil is a VERY good idea too for many reasons!

Don't give up, you should read a bit more before undergoing another viv!


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## TWA (Apr 3, 2011)

Mmm, the leuc not being able to swim was a concern, I forgot to mention that I will have leaf litter later, once I actually start to plant the land portion. The dirt is held back by rocks on the acrylic, which isn't the best but I havnt had any issues with dirt falling into the water. (Moss covers the rocks holding dirt back). I didn't use a false bottom because I wouldn't have much room to plant anything that would grow vertically, which I wouldn't not have liked at all.
Maybe I won't put my leucs it, I don't know. The moss keeps things from going under the cave, that's a nonconcern, however I don't want them to swim out into no where and drown out there. You don't figure the leuc could make it to the petrified wood? If not, is there a type of frog this would be suitable for? Semi frustrating, but that'll be alright.


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## FwoGiZ (Jul 8, 2008)

I built many very similar vivarium as yours, and there are MANY non dart frogs that would be more than happy in such a viv! 

I would still be concern on them going under that acrylic sheet tho... I am not sure I understand how moss is blocking the way under.

A false bottom wouldn't be higher than this current setup, its basically the same as your, except the water can go thru, and roots too! So basically, your setup has much less planting capacities, along with the fact you'll need wetfoot plants!

An healthy frog will have no problem coming out of the water via that driftwood, but if something ever happens, this is a very high danger of death for your frog...!

Like I said, I made many vivarium like this one, using different method of trying to make sure there is no dirt in the water, and there pretty much always is some that will manage to get in there! 

Pretty much any kind of treefrogs will be good in this viv if you add big foliage and more driftwoods in the planted area, like white's tree frog which are actually pretty nice to have, and cheap! Very sturdy frogs.
You could literraly have a colony of Fire bellied toads too!!!

Basically this is a very polyvalent setup, good for most treefrogs, toads, and frogs except darts!

This is more like a vivarium to me than a palludarium 

What plants are you gonna use for land part?


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## TWA (Apr 3, 2011)

Well I don't know now, the plants I was going to use were just going to be transferred from my other tank because the substrate is the exact same, but now I'm not sure if I want to because I'm not sure if Ill put my darts in it. Thanks for the reply though, I guess I've got stuff to think about. I won't want anything other than darts, so this might just become a terrarium if it comes down to it with the water portion for fish or tads when my frogs decide to breed. It's got a sponge filter, along with another filter that could be removed, so that's a bonus to this whole thing.


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

FwoGiZ said:


> Lastly, I am afraid this vivarium isn't suited for a leuc..these frogs are not the best swimmers and I'd be even more afraid it would get stuck under that underwater cave!!


This is extremely exaggerated,
Darts usually only drown - in my expierence from using various water features with darts, from fighting and wrestling into the water or without having proper access out. They may not swim like bull frogs but they can get out of a water area like this quite easily if there is wood running out of it. I know many people just hear they cant swim and worry but it isn't nearly such a dire situation as it might seem


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## TWA (Apr 3, 2011)

Anyone else chime in on the drowning leuc issue? I figured when I made it that the frogs have no reason to go in the water, so they wouldn't, and if they did there's wood right there for them. Any input on this is helpful, this was pretty expensive for a terrarium, Ha!


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

its a 75 gallon, so theres plenty of land area for a few leucs. Youve got that piece of what looks like featherstone in the back that makes a nice little ramp, so Im sure they could get out if they fell in. My only critique is the ability of the frogs to get UNDER that false bottom area... you could put a slab of thin slate over that, and still allow water passage, but prevent frog access.


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## TWA (Apr 3, 2011)

I'll block off the majority of access to under the land portion then, thanks for the reply.


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