# wardian case southern variabilis build



## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

I've been working on a new viv for my trio of southern variabilis, and it's finally making some progress. Anyway, here are some pics, it's been planted about a week or so with probably 15-20 different varieties (got a huge hook up from Mantellaprince20) of vines, begonias ferns and who knows what else. Now I just need to get a couple of broms, some leaf litter and it will pretty much be ready for the frogs. 


and after plants:


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## Umbra (Nov 29, 2013)

That's a beautiful case! The scape is gorgeous as well. Should be awesome to watch it all grow in!


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## rigel10 (Jun 1, 2012)

The case is wonderful, but be sure that metallic material is frogsafe and that there is enough ventilation. Very nice!


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

Thank you both. Most of the inside case is now glass, and the small area of metal is completely sealed with silicone. Ventilation is what I'm working on now


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## Fantastica (May 5, 2013)

Beautiful! I have a really small wardian case I can do just about nothing with. Very jealous.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I537 using Tapatalk


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## jebb (Dec 21, 2013)

Very nice, I have a lot of interest in making vivarium functional art pieces, did you buy the case as is or alter its look in some way?


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## FroggyKnight (Mar 14, 2013)

Looking great! 

Out of curiosity, what type of wood are you using in the tank? I can't quite tell.

John


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

The basic look is the same. I modified the inside to make it frog proof and I'll add some hidden leds so from a casual glance it will appear the same as new.


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

It was called java wood. Hadn't heard much about it so I'm hoping it holds up. Seems like a good hardwood. I think it's intended as a parrot perch.


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## FroggyKnight (Mar 14, 2013)

Thanks! I have heard of Java wood being used in aquariums, so I think it should hold up alright. I would like to try it some time, maybe in my next viv….

John


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## VivNoob (Aug 19, 2013)

I'm curious if you could give me any info on the tank itself?


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

Not sure what you are looking for, but I'll throw some info out and see if I can answer what you are looking for. It is a powder coated metal, the glass box part being roughly 18x18x22 inches. It comes with three sides of glass and glass doors, none of which is frog proof as is. Sits maybe 6.5 feet high. I bought it used on a local classified ad, and I believe the person I bought it from ordered it online. She had bought it for a fake plant or an orchid in a pot or something, not intended as a terrarium. I couldn't find this exact one online, but this website: Terrariums, Garden Trellises, and Bird Feeders for Sale at H. Potter has a decent selection, although they are extremely expensive. The one comparable in size to the one I have is $599 (nowhere near what I paid, $80. I wouldn't be surprised to hear that originally mine cost somewhere in that neighborhood or more. Not sure why they are ridiculously expensive). I knew the basics of what I wanted and looked for about a year to find mine at a price I was willing to pay. A lot of the bigger greenhouses that have garden decor also sell similar things, again for quite a bit of money. If you google wardian case you can sift through the history lessons and usually find a few for sale.


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## VivNoob (Aug 19, 2013)

pgravis said:


> Not sure what you are looking for, but I'll throw some info out and see if I can answer what you are looking for. It is a powder coated metal, the glass box part being roughly 18x18x22 inches. It comes with three sides of glass and glass doors, none of which is frog proof as is. Sits maybe 6.5 feet high. I bought it used on a local classified ad, and I believe the person I bought it from ordered it online. She had bought it for a fake plant or an orchid in a pot or something, not intended as a terrarium. I couldn't find this exact one online, but this website: Terrariums, Garden Trellises, and Bird Feeders for Sale at H. Potter has a decent selection, although they are extremely expensive. The one comparable in size to the one I have is $599 (nowhere near what I paid, $80. I wouldn't be surprised to hear that originally mine cost somewhere in that neighborhood or more. Not sure why they are ridiculously expensive). I knew the basics of what I wanted and looked for about a year to find mine at a price I was willing to pay. A lot of the bigger greenhouses that have garden decor also sell similar things, again for quite a bit of money. If you google wardian case you can sift through the history lessons and usually find a few for sale.


Thanks for the info, The reason I asked is i found the exact same one on Craigslist. They want $75 for it, which seemed like a good deal. I was curious of its brand or any info on that exact model cause yours and the one on Craigslist are the only ones i have been able to find any pictures of


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## rigel10 (Jun 1, 2012)

I really like your project - with the necessary precautions to make the viv frog safe. It would be nice in a corner of my living room between my furnitures of old walnut.


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

vivnoob, I hope you were able to pick that up off craigslist. Seems like a great buy. Rigel10, thanks, I am a huge fan of anything made of walnut. I redid the floors in my house with some reclaimed urban walnut. 
I did a little led project on the tank today. Picked up some hit lights waterproof led lights. 6000k, they are 4 watts, 260 lumens a foot. I figure I have 14 feet or so. I'm hoping it will make some broms look great! Price wise they were pretty cheap. 16 feet of lights and a power supply for 55 bucks on amazon. Here are a couple crappy cell pics:


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## VivNoob (Aug 19, 2013)

Looks great.. And it was gone before I got to check it out

Sent from the woods of New England


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## Alexmenke92 (Nov 19, 2013)

I really like this idea. What exactly did you do to treat / frog-proff it?


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

The inside of the tank is mostly glass. I rebuilt the inner chamber, so basically the decorative parts that make it what it is are just for show. There was a small bit of metal that was at the bottom the tank where I couldn't cover it will glass, but it was covered in a layer of silicone.


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

Finally got some broms for the tank. Mounting plants on a branch in a tank with a small opening may be the Bain of my existence! Anyway, here are some pics:


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

Crappy cell phone pics. I'll try and break out the real camera for some shots once I go collect some leafs.


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## rigel10 (Jun 1, 2012)

I love the "art nouveau style" of your viv!


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

A few better pics of the viv with some scrub oak leaf litter added. A little work on the door and the broms settle in for a few days, then the frogs get a new house!


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## froggorf (Nov 22, 2008)

Beautiful vivarium, once those broms fill in no doubt that will be a paradise for your southerns!


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

Well, I continue to tweak this tank trying to get it ready to move my southerns into it. Ended up buying some hygrolon and a bit of epiweb to add to the branches to get more epiphytes going, and more or less convinced myself and my wife that I will need a mistking to get the moss to grow like I would want. Also bought an orchid for the tank today. Found a new greenhouse/plant shop in town and the owner seemed knowledgeable about plants and felt like the orchid he sold me would be a good choice for the tank (hope he is right!) Its a dendrobium micro chip. Couldn't find much on this species to corroborate him, but found similar ones that seemed to be doing well. We shall see. Mounted it to the epiweb/hygrolon sponge and pushed it into a nook of the branch. I will probably need to mount a fan sooner rather than later, but this will be good motivation to get that done. Also added a type of living hinge to the door after dropping and breaking the last one I had. The black strip of the hinge doesn't stick out too bad, and it will protect my feet from another falling piece of glass. Anyway, on to the pics: 
Here is a close up of the hinge:


The whole door, with a clear handle attached:


Here it is with the outer doors closed:


A few different angles of the interior: (also notice the sweet chunks of cacao leaf litter from the free sample that Dendrobati gave out)


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## Heartagramtc (Jul 24, 2011)

That's a sweet looking tank!

Also what plant is this?
http://i1265.photobucket.com/albums/jj515/pgravis/IMG_5136_zps79d74aa9.jpg


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

Thanks. I believe that is a begonia limprichtii. But I'm not 100% sure


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

As if I need further proof that everything about this hobby is addicting, I just bought another one of these tall stands. Needs the full modification overhaul, but it gives me a fun project and more importantly...I have to decide which frogs will be living in it!! Early contenders are varederos, arena Blanca vents or some sort of pumillo. So many choices!


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## rigel10 (Jun 1, 2012)

Given that variabilis are yellow, for color scheme I would put a nice group of red of orange frogs. Arena Blanca are group frogs, unlike Varadero and pums.


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

I agree some red/orange would be good variation. I love the arena blanca's, but have rarely seen them for sale. I guess I have plenty of time to find and pick something out. I have a huge soft spot in my heart for Costa Rica, and often joke that I should have been born there, so something similar to blue jeans excites me some. Keep the suggestions coming in, even if they weren't on my list!


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

The first pic of wardian case version 2:


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

catching and moving frogs from an overgrown tank into their new home had to be one of the most stressful things i've done!! 2 down, 1 to go (hiding in the darkest recesses of the old tank...trying to let it calm down and come back up). Hope they do ok. One jumped to the floor and nearly made it into a cold air return before I scooped it up. Don't want to have to do that again.


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

3 of 3 in the new tank, with the 3rd being by far the easiest to catch (clear tube method worked on this one!). Now I need to keep my face off the glass and let them settle in, easier said then done!


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

A few pics for today:


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## rigel10 (Jun 1, 2012)

Very nice! I think they are happy frogs. I look forward to the new viv.


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

Thanks. Found this one just hanging out in an air plant:


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

Pretty excited for the update that will happen to the tank this week. 

First time having one of these, and I'm pretty excited to get it set up. 
In addition to that, I built my fan to increase air movement inside the tank, which will hopefully help with the moss taking over the hygrolon:




I plan on mounting it on the ceiling with magnets that are attached to the fan and the others on top of the glass. I've been testing to see how well it would hold for a couple days now, and I think it will be ok. Any feedback on this would be appreciated. I will get some new pics up once it is all installed.


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

Mistking is in!! I need to secure the piping in a couple of places to quiet it down, but I'm really happy with it. I programmed it for 3 settings: 5 seconds in the morning, 5 in the early afternoon, and 15 seconds about 3 hours before the lights go off. Seem ok? Also, I'm not really happy with the way the ventilation fan looks inside the tank. It's a huge (ok, that is probably an exaggeration, but it definitely changes the lines of the tank!) distraction because the tank is a 360 degree view with no background. Not sure what i'm going to do about it. Maybe i just need to sit on it for the night. Pics/vid tomorrow


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## pgravis (Dec 29, 2010)

Not a ton of change, but things continue to fill in and grow. Two of the frogs are much more active in the new tank, whereas one likes to stay low and in the leaf litter. It has a little cave in the litter that it has hollowed out near the glass, so at least I can keep tabs on it. Saw some eggs on a leaf near the area that it spends most of its time, so maybe I will be lucky and a little froglet will crawl out at some point! Still need to get some moss spores to cover the hygrolon with, if the vines don't do it first. 
Thanks for looking


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