# My First ViV!!



## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

Hey Everyone,

So I am somewhat new to Dendroboard, only been on here a few months. I got into the idea of possibly buidling a Vivarium in my room, and joined this forum to get some more info to sway myself one way or another. I was quickly in full on build mode after only a few days of research and consideration if this was actually an undertaking I wanted to take on. Bottom line is I have been loving it and am just about complete with my build. I wanted to share with everyone my accomplishments and struggles along the way and just my overall experience in building a Vivarium for my first time and what ive learned since. So here it goes..


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

So the tank is a 26 gallon bow front Aqueon. Approx. dimensions are 24''W/22''H/10''-15''D. Here are a few pictures during my planning stage. The cubby hole that the tank will be sitting in was a spot I had an old tube TV sitting in for years. As you can see, I found a tank ideal to fill the gap and covered up the wood with a green tapestry to make it more aestetically appealing. I had to figure out the best way to use these great piece of driftwood I purchased. Ended up sawing it directly down the middle and using it GSed on the background nicely. I also used a method of using a 3'' PVC pipe to create a waterfall. I loved this method. This i copied almost exactly from another post I found on here (cant recall the memers name to give props!). The tube will stretch the height of the tank and be pushed into one the corners. I cut away a few slits to hold the slate into place while I siliconed it all into position. I used the same silicone to do the glass on the background and side walls. This was just to add more to grab onto when applying the GS and to black out the glass to prevent light from getting in.


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

I finally finished my hard scaping on the background! This took a lot of time and planning, as it is the most perminent step and really dictates the look of the tank. I dropped the water fall into the right corner and used a different foaming spray more intended for sculpting waterfalls. This is just more waterproof than the normal Great Stuff. I only GSed the walls 5'' and up because water and substrate will be covering up that bottom portion. Here are some pictures with the back wall and 2 sidewalls covered up. My driftwood and some other wooden branches fixed into positons along with a jungle pod compliments of BlackJungle.com. This step was a huge step for me! I liked how it turned out a lot...


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

After the GS background dried, I started the covering process. For the step, I used a 50/50 mix of organic sphangnum peat and coco fiber substrate. The other half of it was brown GE silicone mixed 50/50 with a xylene solution so it could be painted onto the background easily. I very liberally applied the peat/cocofiber mix. I did this over the course of 2 days, vaccuuming out the excess and then reapplying the silicone solution with more peat to fill in any gaps that were missed. I also forgot to mention, in the prior hardscaping step, I used very small clay pots along with a few PVC elbows to create planters into the walls so plants could be easily stuck into the background. The main planter hole in the BG in the center, I just dug out using a knife and spoon. Lots of hiding places/planter spots on the background now!! It really started to come to life in this step. While I had the peat/coco mixture and the silicone solution mixture ready, I used a few cleverly tied nylon ropes to make some vines to be used later. This I also learned from another post on here I found. Just dunk the rope into the silicone and then dunk into the peat. Hang to dry! Works great and is easy!! You will see the vine in the tank in later pics....


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## easternversant (Sep 4, 2012)

That tank looks great but I'm a little concerned about the Miracle-Gro bag. I'd make sure that is 100% organic with no fertilizers, no pesticides, no herbicides, and no perlite before continuing.


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

Finally got my base in!! The layers of my base are as follows: 3'' of clay hydro balls for drainage, a fiberglass screen, 1-2'' of lump charcoal to help with filtration and drainage, the same 50/50 cocofiber/peat mixture, and then some really fresh looking frog moss from zoomed along with sheet moss from homedepot. I also used a big white piece of quartz about the size of a softball to help sererate the substrate from the water section. On the water side I just used fish tank pebbles and some smaller rocks I found at home depot as well. I did my best to have a few inches of water (about 4''-5'') while not water logging the substrate. The waterfall really turned out great! After adding the base and moss to the substrate and background, the tank really started to come to life.....Thoughts??


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

The waterfall was a little too high and splashed and made a little too much noise for my liking. I drained the water to get some nice clean clearer water in after the first fill. I took this as an opportunity to added a few more pieces of slate to break the waterfall's fall some, in hopes to lessen the amount of noise and splashing that it created. I just grabbed a few choice pieces of slate and pressed them into the GS. I used guirella glue to ensure they stay in play and then covered up any evidence of glue with extra slate and some moss. I like the look better now too! Filled the water back in and then added some fish! I had purchased a few exotic show guppies from my local pet store and put them into the water section. These little guys looked really nice and hopefully will be breading soon! Fingers crossed!!


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

easternversant said:


> That tank looks great but I'm a little concerned about the Miracle-Gro bag. I'd make sure that is 100% organic with no fertilizers, no pesticides, no herbicides, and no perlite before continuing.


Thanks for the comment Easternversant. The picture you are commenting on is a screen shot I grabbed from another members post. I had the some concern as you have, that the additives may be harmful to my tank inhabitants. The peat I used has no miracle grow or any additives at all and is 100% natural sphanum peat. That picture just helped with the supplies needed. I also recommend a peat with no additives at all!


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

My first plants! My buddy who originally got the thought of making a viv came by. He has been my mentor and Q/A guy since day 1. Gotta thank him again for all the help. I asked him to grab a few clippings from his tank (he has 3 tanks active and has built of 200 vivs in the past 6 years!) and some leaf litter that I could use. He showed up with 6 beautiful clippings and a bag of leaves to give to me. What a nice guy right?! He brought me a few nice vining plants, a nice tropical that you cannont see yet because its still underground, and really nice dwarf brom. I do not know the exact name of all the plants at the moment but can find out. The cocohut is hardly noticeable in all the foliage going in....more plants on the way...


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## Sammie (Oct 12, 2009)

Only six cuttings? A good friend would give at least seven I reckon
No but seriously, that's a pretty nice tank. The water feature is really neat looking. 
And welcome to the hobby, I hope you enjoy it for many years to come


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

And the rest of my plants showed up yesterday! Compliments of Joshsfrogs.com. I also ordered some red wigglers to help with filtration in the sub. I tossed about 8-9 into the soil which quickly burrowed their way into the sub. The plants I got was Josh's 10 gal tropical package and I picked out a nice begonia and a cryptocoryne wendtii to help fill in the rest. I really like how the cryptocoryne filled in the water section, great for more fish covereage/hiding areas and also something for a floating frog to use for a rest if he finds himself in the water by accident. I feel like I learned pretty quickly the best way to put plants into your tank from watching my buddy and trying it myself after. Remember, this is my first vivarium and first attempt to do anything like this! I am here to learn still so give me pointers please! Thanks for looking everyone, more pictures and updates to come in the near future. This just needs to grow out for a few weeks before frogs are added. I am definitely going with some dendrobadies, either tincs or azureus....we will see soon!


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

Sammie said:


> Only six cuttings? A good friend would give at least seven I reckon
> No but seriously, that's a pretty nice tank. The water feature is really neat looking.
> And welcome to the hobby, I hope you enjoy it for many years to come


Thanks Sammie!! I appreciate the comments a lot! Its nice to see people are actually looking at my post and even better are commenting on it! But yeah, the selfish guy only gave me 6 clippings...for free! haha, jokes on him tho because one of the vines I cut into 2 pieces, so there are actually 7 clippings planted now! You like the positioning of everything? Any suggestions?? Thanks again for the comment and props!


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

A few more pictures. I also wanted to mention that I ordered an all glass lid to help with humidity as well as make it much tougher for the little froggys to escape. This added a lot of viewing area and made a huge difference in humidity. Amazon.com is a great place to order these lids and other like accesories. I first made sure I found the right part# off of the Aqueon website so I had one that fit properly. More to come.... Comments please!! Thanks again guys/girls


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## Sammie (Oct 12, 2009)

I like the positioning, you don't want it dead center as it usually looks unnatural.
It's hard to tell if somethings "missing" as it haven't had time to grow in. Perhaps I would ad a fern right under the variegated Neoregelia to make it "pop" more. Maybe something bushy on the ground along the background.


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## xIslanderx (Dec 8, 2012)

I know you mentioned the "driftwood is from black jungle", but what kind of wood is it? It could pose a problem if its grapewood, but I cannot tell the difference in that photo.
Otherwise, looks good. 



Dart_Man said:


> I finally finished my hard scaping on the background! This took a lot of time and planning, as it is the most perminent step and really dictates the look of the tank. I dropped the water fall into the right corner and used a different foaming spray more intended for sculpting waterfalls. This is just more waterproof than the normal Great Stuff. I only GSed the walls 5'' and up because water and substrate will be covering up that bottom portion. Here are some pictures with the back wall and 2 sidewalls covered up. My driftwood and some other wooden branches fixed into positons along with a jungle pod compliments of BlackJungle.com. This step was a huge step for me! I liked how it turned out a lot...


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

xIslanderx said:


> I know you mentioned the "driftwood is from black jungle", but what kind of wood is it? It could pose a problem if its grapewood, but I cannot tell the difference in that photo.
> Otherwise, looks good.


Thank for responding to my post XIslanderX!! So let me clear this up, because after re-reading what i wrote, it seems a little confusing. So only the jungle pods were from blackjungle. All of the wood I bought was from a local pet store. The main log you are probably asking about is Malaysian Driftwood that i sawed in half. Every other piece of wood in the tank is Cork. The 2 banches sticking out of the background were listed as cork in the sealed package they came in but kinda look more like mopani to me. Its going to be hard to confirm now. I think based on what ive been told and what ive read that these types should all be ok in a tropical viv. Sorry for that confusing sentance you commented on....there were definitely 2 points squeezed into one sentance. Thank you for the comment, keep 'em coming!!


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

Please keep the comments coming! I could really use any feedback i.e. what you like/dont like, suggestions, praise/concerns, anything I should look forward to or try something different. Anything helps! Thanks everyone for your time and for looking!!


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## easternversant (Sep 4, 2012)

I reaaaaally like the hardscaping on this viv! Well done man! I didn't see it in your posts, what frogs are you planning on putting in there?


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

easternversant said:


> I reaaaaally like the hardscaping on this viv! Well done man! I didn't see it in your posts, what frogs are you planning on putting in there?


Thank you again for the comment and even more for the compliment easternversant!! I hard some sketches and pictures in my head but it really turned out better than I was expecting after spraying the GS and adding everything onto it. And the base really tied it all together so nicely! Anyway, I am planning on having either D.Tinctorious or D.Azureus, I know they are very similar but I am still undecided on which one exactly. Probably just get with a couple tinc cobalts or something along those lines from Josh's or from someones classified on here. Planning on 4-5 (leaning toward 5), thinking that gives each plenty of space to themselves yet they will still be somewhat visable. Again, the tank is a 26 gal bow front meauring approx 24W/22H/10-15D. And I hope I have more than enough on the background (now and when its fully grown in) for plenty of climbing.... Thoughts?? Thanks again for the post!


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## easternversant (Sep 4, 2012)

Dart_Man said:


> Thank you again for the comment and even more for the compliment easternversant!! I hard some sketches and pictures in my head but it really turned out better than I was expecting after spraying the GS and adding everything onto it. And the base really tied it all together so nicely! Anyway, I am planning on having either D.Tinctorious or D.Azureus, I know they are very similar but I am still undecided on which one exactly. Probably just get with a couple tinc cobalts or something along those lines from Josh's or from someones classified on here. Planning on 4-5 (leaning toward 5), thinking that gives each plenty of space to themselves yet they will still be somewhat visable. Again, the tank is a 26 gal bow front meauring approx 24W/22H/10-15D. And I hope I have more than enough on the background (now and when its fully grown in) for plenty of climbing.... Thoughts?? Thanks again for the post!


I'm not an expert on tinctorius (azureus are actually tinctorius, just fyi), but I've heard they don't play well in groups. So, 4-5 is probably a lot for for a 26 gallon. Hopefully someone else with more tinc experience can chime in.

And by the way, feel free to add your approximate location to your profile and find some local groups!


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

I figured out how to post pictures in a much more viewable/user friendly format....and another nice update pic!


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

More picture updates with the better uploading format....Enjoy! Keep up with the feedback please, Thanks for looking!


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## derekmorway12 (Sep 24, 2012)

the waterfall with the rocks and pipe looks great


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## volcano23000 (Feb 22, 2012)

You know what I don't like about this tank?

The feeling of jealousy I get when I look at it!


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## RobR (Dec 24, 2011)

Looks awesome! I like how you did the waterfall. If your looking to do tincs you would probably be best to stick to a pair,between their aggressive territorial nature and the limited space of a 26 gallon with such a large water feature. I've subscribed to this thread to reference for my next build.


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

derekmorway12 said:


> the waterfall with the rocks and pipe looks great


Thank you Derekmorway12! The waterfall really came together very nicely, from siliconing the slate in place all the way to getting it into the GS background. I really like how it worked out, better than I anticipated. Its a 3" tube, so big enough to fit my arm into and easily fit the pump down to the water. After the slate was in place to my liking, all I did was silicone the hose from the pump to the top hole I drilled into the PVC to ensure the water source stayed in place and wouldnt fall out at any point. There was a good amount of trial and error testing the way the water flowed down the rock (added more piece of slate, letting it dry, and then testing again with water in the sink) but it was all part of the fun. All done with PVC from home depot, a big piece of slate from my garden with a little hammering and then boiling the rock pieces, some black GE II silicone, and a little handy work making the slots with my Dremel tool. Very cheap and easy to make! I hightly recommened this method to anyone who wants to make a nice water feature! ....... I will have to find the thread I learned this method from so I can give the man some credit here. If anyone wants more info on the build process, feel free to ask!! I am happy to explain further. Thanks again for the compliment! Any other feed back would be appreciated.


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

volcano23000 said:


> You know what I don't like about this tank?
> 
> The feeling of jealousy I get when I look at it!


Thank you Volcano23000 for the compliment! I really am happy with how it turned out. I had a vision and some sketches on paper but really wasnt sure how it would all come together in the tank. All I knew was that I wanted to use the stump I split in half on the background, the waterfall in the corner with a water feature, and that big piece of quartz to be a sort of a basking platform near the water. After those major pieces were in, the rest just fell into place. Finishing the background and base were both very rewarding, as you could guess. Anymore thoughts/suggestions you could throw my way? Again, this is my first Vivarium and I still have a lot to learn......more pics to come as plants grow and when froggys go in. Stay tuned! and keep the feedback coming please!


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

RobR said:


> Looks awesome! I like how you did the waterfall. If your looking to do tincs you would probably be best to stick to a pair,between their aggressive territorial nature and the limited space of a 26 gallon with such a large water feature. I've subscribed to this thread to reference for my next build.


Thanks RobR! I noticed you live in Syracuse....not far from Buffalo! Kinda cool....Anyway, I really appreciate the compliment and suggestions. I still am undecided which kind of frogs would do best in there. Yes, its a relatively small tank, but it has a ton of climbable area and tiers to the BG, and is more of a vert bow front to help maximize the space. I guess I really dont know how much space frogs need or what numbers make sense with species. I liked tincs because they are a little cheaper and more of a beginner species from what Ive read, but could use some guidance. I suppose I could be swayed to something else, something more suitable for my space. I really wanted more than 2 frogs (somewhere between 3-5) but am looking for some suggestions and advice. Also was planning on getting froglets to Juvis (anywhere from 3-6 months) so not sure at what age tincs really need to be separated into pairs. Anyone care to chime in? I could use some help in this section.... 

As to touch on my construction phase, I am more than happy to elaborate more on the process and supplies etc. I know this is "My first Viv" but I had a great teacher (close friend whos built over 200 vivs) and a fantastic resource in Dendroboard.com for all of my research needs. I spent a long time making sure I knew what I was doing BEFORE starting anything. I would love to help pass along any information along with adding more pictures of any portion of this build. If anyone is interested, Please Ask!!

Thank you again for the feedback! Keep it coming please!!


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## RobR (Dec 24, 2011)

Sent you a pm. If you want to make the drive out I can set you up with springtails, isopods and fruit flies. I don't know it all but I'll share all that I do.


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## GP dynamite (Feb 19, 2013)

easternversant said:


> That tank looks great but I'm a little concerned about the Miracle-Gro bag. I'd make sure that is 100% organic with no fertilizers, no pesticides, no herbicides, and no perlite before continuing.


That looks like a screen cap of motydesign's build.

Really nicely done. Looks great


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

GP dynamite said:


> That looks like a screen cap of motydesign's build.
> 
> Really nicely done. Looks great


GP dynamite, you hit the nail on the head. The vine idea I used was from MOTYdesign's sticky thread. That was literally a picture of my monitor with my camera and uploaded like the rest of my pics. His walk through is a very in-depth helpful guide that I referenced for sure. I used the most interesting "vine" that I made, while only using one out of the 10 or so that I made. I have more if needed but I want to see how the tank grows in before adding more accent pieces or plants...which I am dying to add more of course! ... I am working on my patience. Have any suggestions for me GPdynamite? I could use a little guidance on where to go from here or tweaks before adding frogs. Thanks again for the comment and compliment!!


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

RobR said:


> Sent you a pm. If you want to make the drive out I can set you up with springtails, isopods and fruit flies. I don't know it all but I'll share all that I do.


Thanks again RobR. I dont need to know "it all" but anything helps of course. I will PM you back shortly....


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## GP dynamite (Feb 19, 2013)

I don't have any suggestions. It looks just right as it is.


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

As promised, I wanted to thank Defica for his construction thread "40 gallon viv w/ waterfall" This is where a lot of my inspiriation came from, especially the waterfall idea. Check it out, he did a great job.


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## mollbern (Feb 10, 2013)

Nice! Love that waterfall. You really pulled it off. Figuring out the water pump and drip output is the next step of my build. Trying to get the water to run down a piece of wood - hopefully it'll go how I'm imagining! 

Was it hard to get the path of your water output how you wanted? 

Also, I'm a big fan of ledges. I'm loving your upper ledges full of moss.


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## Los3r (Feb 20, 2013)

Very nice! Y might be able to do a small group of leucomelas. I hear they like to use every inch of space available


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

mollbern said:


> Nice! Love that waterfall. You really pulled it off. Figuring out the water pump and drip output is the next step of my build. Trying to get the water to run down a piece of wood - hopefully it'll go how I'm imagining!
> 
> Was it hard to get the path of your water output how you wanted?
> 
> Also, I'm a big fan of ledges. I'm loving your upper ledges full of moss.


Thanks Mollbern. I really enjoyed building the waterfall and then seeing how well it worked for me. I am defininetly pleased with the end result. 

As to getting the water to flow how I wanted, as I mentioned before, there was some trial and error, but it was not too difficult at all in the end. First, I have a Hydor 200 pump with an adjustable water flow (0-70 GPH). It is nice and small and is plenty strong for moving the water through the waterfall. I wouldnt go any bigger at all, and make sure you get one that has an adjustable flow rate. I purchased it from a local pet shop but here is a link to one I found on amazon.com :

Amazon.com: Hydor Centrifical Pump 70 All-Purpose Pump for Aquariums and Terrariums 70 GPH - Original Pico Evolution 200: Pet Supplies 

After I had all my supplies, I found 4 main slate pieces for the different tiers, cut slits with the dremel so they fit securly, and siliconed them in place. From there, used the smaller slate to fill in the gaps between tiers and to start diverting all the water down the center and to hide the tube. This took about 3-4 attempts, each time testing the water flow in my sink (filled it up about 5 inches and placed the tube with the pump in it to simulate my water depth) and then letting it dry and adding more silicone and slate (I had a small fan to help speed up the drying process of both water or silicone depending what I was waiting for to dry). With enough silicone and slate, you are forcing the water where you want it, just make sure you fully fill the cracks so it wont leak out behind and cover up your silicone with slate so it is as invisible as possible. The tube had a ton of excess silicone on it on the backsides of the slate, all which was covered up when GS'd to the BG. I was very liberal with the silicone toward the end, really heavily applying it where water was escaping and smearing it and forcing it into places with some popsicle sticks. Just make sure you wear some rubber gloves! Just keep placing slate, siliconing, stacking slate on top, and repeat until you have created a sort of funnel to ensure no water will escape around the sides. Mainly building up the left and right edges. Slightly angled pieces help a lot too to make sure it flows in the right direction. Also, when securing the rubber hosing inside the PVC tube, try to angle your hole downward so the water doesnt shoot straight out at a 90 degree angle. I could have used this tip prior to my drilling, would have saved me some trouble trying to deflect the water down, instead of shooting clear over everything at first! I eventually got it to flow properly but that would save you some trouble. Silicone the hose into place once everything is complete and make sure there is enough room to yank the pump out by its cord if you ever need to get to it later (3'' PVC should be fine). And a few thin slits will have to be cut in the bottom few inches of the PVC so water can flow easily, but small enough where frogs or fish wont fit! Remember, it doesnt need to be perfect...choas is expected in nature! 

The GS hardscaping turned out great as well. I really wanted a lot of perching ledges and climbable areas since my tank was limited in size. Just a little more GS in areas or adding some planters in the walls or even just tossing in some accent pieces, all helped immensely. I also got a bit moss happy when decorating too (moss really enhanced any small perch a great deal)! Home depot sells plant tying wire (ill check the actual name later) which is basically a roll of green twist ties. This really helped when adding moss to areas that the moss wouldnt sit on by itself. They can be easily hidden too and pushed right into the GS. I really like how it turned out.

Here are a few better pics the help see what I am talking about:
































































This got a bit wordy but I wanted to try to be as descriptive as possible. Please feel free to shoot me some more questions about anything else or if you need me to explain something better, I am more than happy to help and explain more. Thanks again for the positive comments! Happy building


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

Los3r said:


> Very nice! Y might be able to do a small group of leucomelas. I hear they like to use every inch of space available


Thank you for your comment Los3r! The more I think about it, the more I am leaning toward Leucs. I figure there will be time in the future for Tincs in a more suitable tank for them (not that they wouldnt be ok in here, I just want more than 2 frogs in my first tank) I have heard a lot about Leucs being very bold, good in groups, and active climbers...all things that excite me! How many would you recommend with my space and layout? Any other comments or suggestions regarding the frogs or tank? Thanks again for your post!


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## Los3r (Feb 20, 2013)

3 or 4 maybe. Hopefully someone with more experience than me speaks up .0


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## Defica (Mar 5, 2013)

Looks great! I'm planning out a bow front build at the moment. They look so clean. Very nicely done.


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## kitcolebay (Apr 7, 2012)

I'm a few days late stumbling across this! Beautiful viv! Like already mentioned, the hardscape, the slope, and the waterfall look awesome. Very nicely done for a 26g! 

Leucs are always a great choice(in my opinion). A pair, maybe a trio, of tincs would be nice too. I'd say go with what your heart tells you. Just try not to put too many in there where you'd have any aggression issues.

Once again, beautiful display!

-Chris


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

Defica said:


> Looks great! I'm planning out a bow front build at the moment. They look so clean. Very nicely done.


Thanks Defica. Does the waterfall construction look familiar? haha. Thanks again for putting your post up. But yeah, I also really like the look of bow fronts. Lots of viewable area. I was just looking at a 46g bow for a possible second tank. Corner bows look great too. Let me know when you start your build! Id love to see it.


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

kitcolebay said:


> I'm a few days late stumbling across this! Beautiful viv! Like already mentioned, the hardscape, the slope, and the waterfall look awesome. Very nicely done for a 26g!
> 
> Leucs are always a great choice(in my opinion). A pair, maybe a trio, of tincs would be nice too. I'd say go with what your heart tells you. Just try not to put too many in there where you'd have any aggression issues.
> 
> ...


Thanks a bunch Kitcolebay. I am very pleased with the end result (well its never really finished but ya know). Now I am just wanting to build another! 

But frogs first......So, as I said before, Tincs or Leucs are at the top of my list for contenders. I also have been thinking about Auratus the last few days, mainly because I hear they do great in groups, easy to breed, and love water features. So I am trying to weigh the positives and negatives for all 3, and im having a hard time deciding. I would try to do around 5 Leucs or Auratus, or 2-3 Tincs. Leucs are bold, love to climb, and do well in groups. Tincs are bold, most aestetically appealing (IMO), but are agressive in groups. Auratus like I said already, are great in groups and love water features. So I am wondering how well Auratus or Tincs do with climbing and a lot of vertical space. Or how Leucs or Tincs do with a large water section. Etc etc etc, obviously I have a decision to make, but could use some suggestions to help me decide. Hopefully I am under the right understanding of these varying characteristics. Pics should help give you or anyone else enough to give me a good suggestion. Give me your thoughts on which direction to possibly go or if I am misinformed. Thanks again for your post!


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## frograck (May 1, 2005)

Your right that if you choose Tincs you'll ave to limit yourself to a pair due to agression.

In my experience, auratus will use all that tank space, as will leucs. Also in my 
Experience, when given good cover, super blue auratus are very bold. I keep meaning to make a video of mine to show how visible they are.


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## Dart_Man (Mar 23, 2013)

So, its been just under 2 months since this thing has been up and planted. I wanted to get some updated pictures posted to show some of the growth as things are filling in. Frogs should be in next week!! Getting a group of 4-5 superblue auratus froglets from Frograck.com ...... I just wanted everyone to enjoy my viv as much as I have been! 

Give me your thoughts please and thank you!!








cocohut hiding in the foliage







Waterfall getting over taken by creepers and such







More foliage...some of my favorites







Amazonica, brom, fig...







Fig growing in doing its things...creeping along....I like seeing new growth 







....another angle of the waterfall...







Overhead shot near the cocohut







Begonia Hatachoia and rabbits foot fern lookin really nice!







I would live here if I were a PDF....DIBS!







Brom brom brom brom....and my fav amazonica







and another nice shot of the waterfall and all its fans keeping close


So there are a bunch of updated pictures for everyone to enjoy! I hope you all like what I have going so far. Please shoot me some feedback of any sort. Next update when frogs have arrived!! Stay tuned.....

Thanks for looking!


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## xTimx (Mar 14, 2013)

That waterfall......wow!! Amazing job! Do u have any shots of the whole tank in one pic? I love ur design and I hope u dont mind that I take a few snippets here and there from it!!?? :-D

cheers! 

xTimx


Edit: im using a phone and it shot me to the last post. I didnt realize there were more pics!! Haha


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