# First paludarium construction questions: techniques and what to buy



## Apri (Mar 19, 2013)

Hi all, I am a beginner to making paludariums. I've been doing a good amount of research, and have compiled some questions. But first, some background info!

I have a 55 gallon breeder with no hole drilled in the bottom. I therefore want to make something that is sort of a shelf, like this: http://i1187.photobucket.com/albums/z381/megamax42/IMG_1476.jpg

I would like it to look rocky instead of made with coco husk to look like soil. I was thinking of having all of the plants be aquatic, and the rock part to have lots of little caves and hiding places. I really don't want to handle water-soaked substrate that will just drown any poor land plants (because I don't have a hole in the bottom to drain the water under them).

However, I don't know anything material-wise. What is the foam stuff that everyone seems to use? How do you carve it? And what do you think would be the best way to make the foam look rocky? 

And I don't know the best sort of equipment to maintain the tank. Recommendations for water heaters, water filtration, pumps, heat lamps, lighting, and foggers would be great.

I'm not sure what I would like to have living in here, something that will spend time on land and in the water though. Maybe a red eyed crocodile skink or two? Not sure. I'm sure those guys would love to hide in little rock caves and tunnels I might make, and they like to swim i've heard. Just not sure if they'll try eating any fish I have in there! Any recommendations for that are also greatly appreciated. 

Sorry for so many questions! This forum seemed like a nice place to ask though.


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## volcano23000 (Feb 22, 2012)

I am a noob at this hobby lol but here is my 2 cents. Be careful with the water pump.... I learned the hard way  my froggy got stuck an drowned). I would close off the pump and make 100% sure there aren't any holes to squeeze through. Also, i don't know if this is true or not, but i assume some water heaters might be dangerous for the animals (one in my fish tank has malfunctioned once and killed half of my fish before i noticed). Look for good quality ones...not necessarily whats cheap. I don't know the answers to your other questions, sorry.
Good Luck!


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## Apri (Mar 19, 2013)

volcano23000 said:


> I am a noob at this hobby lol but here is my 2 cents. Be careful with the water pump.... I learned the hard way  my froggy got stuck an drowned). I would close off the pump and make 100% sure there aren't any holes to squeeze through. Also, i don't know if this is true or not, but i assume water heaters might be dangerous for the frog (one in my fish tank has malfunctioned once and killed half of my fish before i noticed). I don't know the answers to your other questions, sorry.
> Good Luck!


I'm not planning on housing any frogs, I forgot to mention! I just came here because lots of people seemed to know about paludariums.


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## volcano23000 (Feb 22, 2012)

Apri said:


> I'm not planning on housing any frogs, I forgot to mention! I just came here because lots of people seemed to know about paludariums.


Yah, i noticed after i typed it haha. It could stand true for other animals though...idk


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## volcano23000 (Feb 22, 2012)

You came to the right place though. Lots of people are very knowledgable on how to build paludariums/vivariums here


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## volcano23000 (Feb 22, 2012)

Apri said:


> Hi all, I am a beginner to making paludariums. I've been doing a good amount of research, and have compiled some questions. But first, some background info!
> 
> I have a 55 gallon breeder with no hole drilled in the bottom. I therefore want to make something that is sort of a shelf, like this: http://i1187.photobucket.com/albums/z381/megamax42/IMG_1476.jpg
> 
> ...


I dont know if you still check this thread or what but since no one else is replying, i will try. This is just from what i have heard and excuse me if i am wrong. The foam people use is called great stuff. You dont carve it, you just spray it how you like. If you want to make it look rocky, you can stick lightweight stones and pebbles to it before it dries and maybe pour gravel over to fill the gaps. I have never used it. If you want a rocky background it might be a good idea to just buy a rocky foam background from a company like zoo med or exo terra. Good lighting can be purchased from these companies as well. I havent kept crocodile skinks but i know a little about them. A quick google search revealed that they sometimes may eat fish. Also they tend to be shy. I have kept both lizards and frogs and i prefer frogs much more because the lizard i have currently is very shy and often not visible.as for the fogger, i use Repti Fogger by Zoomed and it works great. It is expensive but it lasts much longer than exo terra foggers if you follow instructions. I really hope this helps you. 
P.S. i fully recommend frogs but everyone has their own opinions. Good luck on your paludarium.


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## Froglet54 (Jan 17, 2013)

As volcano said its called Great Stuff or GS. It is easily carved with an old steak knife. To make it rocky wall try this but with the GS



aurvrrat said:


> I carved some styrofoam blocks in the general shape I wanted. Then mad a mix of various color grouts, mortar, vermiculite, and a little water ( took me a few days of tests to get mix right). A little sanding, tweaking with a mist bottle and some highlights with some other color grout and a little more mad skills and tweaking... And tada.... Cool rock.



But if this is your first tank go with a 20 and wait on the 55

And I suggest fire-belly newts


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## rackodac (Apr 2, 2012)

As froglet and volcano mentioned GS works perfect for rock backgrounds It can be sealed with drylock. You can also add cement die to drylock and even paint it with acrylic paint. All of these products will be safe for your animals after they dry. Also Hagen which makes all Exo Terra has some new awsome L.E.D. lighting that makes your tank look great and works better than most other lighting


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## Apri (Mar 19, 2013)

Awesome, thank you for your responses everyone. It's really helpful.

Do you think I should attempt one in a 20 gal first before the 55?


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## volcano23000 (Feb 22, 2012)

It is a good idea to start small but whatever you wish.


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