# 20x20x30" 360° view viv build (pic heavy)



## choco (May 1, 2009)

Hey all, I'm finally building my 360° view viv, its been in the planning stages for the last year, and now that I've finally moved and settled into my new place, its getting built! 

All glass is 1/4" thick, except the lid, which is 1/8."

3D renderings:










The holes are all 1.5." The top row is 2" down from the lip and the bottom ones are 22" down, all on the single pane as pictured.





































I didn't bother to add the lid to the design, but its going to be a 20x20" combined, split at 8" in. 

I chose to make this a top loading viv for easier access to all sides. 

The centerpiece of my viv is this Madagascar drift wood, most of the plants will be mounted off of it, except my larger brom and the floor coverings.










Plants chosen thus far and in the transit:

Neoregelia Dartation Mini (image from my seller of my actual brom)









Neoregelia Guinea (image from my seller of my actual brom)









Dryadella cristata orchid (pic from seller)









Lepanthopsis astrophora orchid (pic from seller)









Trichosalpinx chamaelepanthes orchid (pic from seller)









All of my orchids aren't actually in bloom, but I wanted to provide pictures of what they'll be like when they are.

The rest of the plants going in my viv (don't know their names):

Awesome little ground cover that blooms year round with yellow flowers









My moss









Bulbis tilly's that've done well in my other vivs









Vine type of plant, seems to be a slow grower









And two other vine types I'm considering, the one on top definitely, but the bottom one is a little too voracious for this viv I think









I get my glass sometime next week, and all my broms and orchids should be here by weeks end 

I'll keep this thread updated as I build.


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## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

great plant selection, one thing i woudl do however is put ventilation holes on another side as well since this will be viewed from all sides, you will get better ventilation to have the glass cleared.


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## choco (May 1, 2009)

I thought about that, however I didn't want to take the chance that with the humidity levels dropping too low. I'm going to be experimenting with some fans as well to keep the airflow going, for both the orchids and tillys.

Once everything is finally setup and settled, this is going to be home to a group of red bastis.


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## chinoanoah (Mar 9, 2009)

I love it. Keep us posted.


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## Herpetology101 (Jan 14, 2010)

The Orchids and Broms are gorgeous good luck with your future endeavour!


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## choco (May 1, 2009)

Thank you very much! And no worries, I will ^-^

If anyone knows the scientific names of my unidentified plants, please feel free to shout'm out


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## james67 (Jun 28, 2008)

choco said:


> Vine type of plant, seems to be a slow grower
> 
> 
> 
> ...


first pic; pellonia (unsure of species)

second pic;
top: syngonium rayii
bottom: Scindapsus pictus

james


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## choco (May 1, 2009)

Finally started putting my big baby together...









The supplies I used to put my glass together...









Glass arrived, crate before opened, and then oh so well packed! I had to take 20 screws out before I could get the one side off to get the glass.

I didn't photograph the actual process of putting the glass together, but here's the finished product, taped up and siliconed together. It took two helpers to hold everything in place while I carefully fitted it all together and taped. Afterword, I just had to silicone, and one of the guys assisted me with things while I danced around the viv on the table bent half way over. Haha...


















Second photo has the pop for size reference. 

That's it for now, as this viv cures overnight.

Tomorrow I fill in the drilled holes with fitted screens (carefully siliconing them into place) and drilling specific holes in my log for my plants to rest merrily in.


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## Arrynia (Dec 27, 2009)

Excellent! I'm subscribing to this one!


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## choco (May 1, 2009)

I carefully cut my fruit fly escape proof screen (from REI) to fit the exact interior of the 1.5 diameter holes. 









To insert the screen in the ventilation holes, I first put a thin layer of silicone on the inside (photo on left). Once done, I quickly maneuvered each screen into place, lightly pressed and smoothed the screen into the silicone with a wet tooth pick.









My lid is actually two pieces of glass siliconed together (for easy lifting) So it doesn't slid as easily, or grate glass on glass, I siliconed around the top border as well.









Also started on the stump today, decided to hold off a bit on the drilling as I hadn't made its vertical stance yet. Here you can see I'm foamed it onto a thinner eggcrate cut to size. It will cure overnight, and this weekend I'll be cutting the foam back significantly, then putting black silicone and coco fiber to make it blend in (and protect against chemicals. Most of the 'stand' for the stump will be underground.


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## wimvanvelzen (Nov 1, 2008)

Very promising - keep us posted!


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## choco (May 1, 2009)

Log drilled with plants in place...




























With this done, and my leca _finally_ here, I went to work putting everything together.

There is about 6" of leca, a bit overkill, but I want to keep a higher water saturation in the bottom to make sure the humidity stays up if I'm away for a few days (I'll be hand misting, no auto mist system). On top of this, is a fine mesh screen, same kind I used for my vent holes.

The log is resting on top of the leca, and then 2" of substrate mix for the plants. The substrate is:

4 parts coco fiber
2 parts moss & compostable material
3 parts of my black medium (has higher nutrient value for plants)

Also, in my leaf/springtail zones:
1 part charcoal in certain areas
1 part clay

The rest of my plants went in nicely, didn't have any difficulty keeping the large brom up, which I was afraid might be a problem, but yay, it wasn't. I removed one of the brom's pups (had two) and placed it on the opposite side of the log, so its nicely balanced. There is plenty of room for it to grow out.

I have two kinds of ground cover, moss and the little yellow flowering plant. Currently the moss takes up about a fourth of the floor space, and the flowering one will need to grow out a bit more. The remainder of the floor space is leaf litter, as I want those little spring tails to proliferate! Hehe... I added some newer dead leafs to the topmost layer, for aesthetic value, and for a different level of decomp. 

I took used two springtail colonies, and seeded each side of the viv. I know its a bit overkill, but I didn't get this done as soon as I had hoped (two/three weeks prior to now) and I'm getting my little bastis in less then two weeks, and I want there to be a larger population.

And finally, here is an all around view of my completed viv. Some of the pictures are blurrier, however I'll be reshooting sometime in the next week or so (with MUCH better lighting) to give a more accurate view of this.


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## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

looks good, can you post some bigger pics?


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## choco (May 1, 2009)

Julio, I'll be posting larger pics either tonight or in a few days. Just moved at the beginning of the month, so I don't have the right equipment out at this point in time to do this one justice yet.


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## dendro-dude (Jan 25, 2010)

lookin good, no background?


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

it couldnt be a 360 degree view viv if it had a background


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## choco (May 1, 2009)

Thank you frogparty ^-^


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## fleshfrombone (Jun 15, 2008)

Pretty awesome, I've been wanting to do a stump viv for a while now.


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

when you do, can I call you "STUMPY" Ryan :O


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## fleshfrombone (Jun 15, 2008)

Sure if you want a fat lip...... J/K. lol STUMPY.



frogparty said:


> when you do, can I call you "STUMPY" Ryan :O


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