# Vic's 60ish gallon Vivarium.



## VicSkimmr

Its finally here! 

This tank has been in the planning stages for about 5 months, and I've been waiting for the tank to be finished for the past 2, so I'm itching to get started on it. Here's the first pics from what I finished on it yesterday.

Here's the tank. The dimensions are 24"x20"x28".









From the side.









Plumbing from inside the tank.









Plumbing from underneath. It has a Mist King misting system, a DIY Walgreens humidifier, and a 10 gallon sump with a mag 5 to power the water feature.









And here's the test run of the fogger.










The tank will eventually house a group of 5 D. leucomelas which are now residing in my little 15 gallon designer tank.

The lighting consists of a Coralife 24" 2x55 watt PC fixture.

-Jason


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## Frogtofall

Very nice. Can't wait to see that done up.


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## Guest

very nice start there Vic! 

where did you end up getting that tank? 
does the whole front open? 

cant wait to see this one take shape.


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## VicSkimmr

An acrylic shop in Myrtle Beach called Lively Plastics, Inc. When I tore down my reef, I had taken the tank to them with hopes of getting the scratches buffed out. After they told me that wasn't possible, I went on and asked them to build this tank. They gave me a great price in my opinion, at $175, but it took them 2 months to build it, and I received more excuses that I would have thought possible for why it was so late. I would not recommend them.

And yeah, the entire front opens up, I'll try to get a picture of that sometime today. 

Jason


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## DaSlackMan

Wow..... You are off to a great start!


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## Biznatch

You are going to have some serious water movement with that mag5. I tested my setup for my 35gallon with a mag 3 and it was about 10x what I needed. So you should make a really really big waterfall and use the pump to its full potential  This does make me want to build another tank though.....Must not spend more money.....


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## DaSlackMan

You could 'T' off the return pipe and have some of the water go back into the sump in order to regulate how much water actually goes into the viv.

The picture below is how my reef tank is plumbed. Same theory. The top ball valve controls the flow. Wide open-alot of water flows back into the sump, not alot into the tank. Totally closed-all of the water goes into the main tank, nothing into the sump. The ball valve allows you to fine tune the flow without adding a lot of back pressure to the pump, therefore increasing its lifespan.


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## Guest

or you could have multiple outputs in the viv. im a big fan of water coming from everywhere, and it should be pretty easy wtih your acrylic tank and unlimited hole possibilities.


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## VicSkimmr

Right now there's a valve controlling the flow of the return pump, and I've also got a valve on the overflow to help control the height of the water within the vivarium. I hadn't thought about trying multiple outlets, we'll have to see what it looks like after its set up to see whether or not I'll have the extra room


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## Biznatch

You have to be very very carefull with restricting the overflow to the sump. I was considering that but if that clogs up a bit then the level will rise and if it stops completely then you are going to have a big mess in your room. Most of the salt water people are against that unless you have some sort of backup drain in case the restricted overflow clogs. Then the waterlevel rises and starts draining through the secondary one.


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## VicSkimmr

Yeah I know what you mean. So far I haven't used it, because I'm scared to, but it would be much easier to adjust it there than to try and alter the durso inspired overflow I have. The problem is that I can't raise it up any higher or else it will bump into the false bottom. 

I wouldn't be having this problem if the holes were drilled where I asked them to be, but such is life.


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## Biznatch

Is there a vent hole on the first 90 coming from the bulkhead? If not the return is going to start a siphon. But I was in the same situation as you and its much easier to just adjust the hight of the overflow that worry about the thing flooding your room some day.

Also I just noticed something, is that 1/2" pvc/bulkhead for the overflow? If so you will not be able to run anywhere near full flow. Probably not even 1/4 flow. Without a siphon my 3/4" plumbing couldnt even drain fast enough. In fact I made a big mess when testing the plumbing one day because I wasnt paying attention. I really recomend you test the system before you start working on the tank, Im really glad I did.


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## Guest

you could put a back up drain pipe at the exact level of the false bottom just incase your drain got clogged. if i were going to restrict the drain in any way id want some sort of back up. 

personally i dont think its practical to have a drain and be able to run varying water depths with continuous flow.

seeing the mag5's return next to your outflow im guessing you have at least a 3/4" bulkhead, right?


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## VicSkimmr

Hey Landon, the overflow has a 1" bulkhead, the return is 1/2".

Update: 4.19.06
Testing out the water system. Besides a minor leak with the fogging system, all went as planned.









Test fitting the false bottom.









I've decided not to use a backround if possible. In the past I've always ended up just attaching the plants directly to the wood anyway, so I want to try it without one.

Here's the first attempt at arranging the driftwood I have. I don't know if I like it enough to be the final configuration yet though. I also have a good bit more to add. Input would be appreciated.


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## Dane

Where did you get the light fixture?


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## DaSlackMan

It looks like a Coralife Aqualight fixture. Maybe 96w CF...


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## VicSkimmr

It is, only its the 2x55 watt version. I ordered it from http://www.premiumaquatics.com. I actually found it cheaper somewhere else, but I've always like them.

I just finished planting the first set of plants. I've got ferns coming in next week.


















Fogger is up and running.




























Jason


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## Guest

That wood is awesome! Thanks for sharing!


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## Guest

OMG, you are gonna blind your frogs with that fog, lol. Awesome tank man!


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## Guest

Wow! very nice!

when you first asked for thoughts on the wood placement, i was going to say i didnt like it right in the center. i kind of think something off set looks more natural to my eye. with the extra piece of wood to the right and most of the planting down that side the tank is about perfect to me 

i really like the fact that its not too overplanted with large plants. youve got a good bit of nice looking wood in there id hate to see it all covered up and unidentifialble. dont go too crazy with ferns, JMO.

if you end up needing any creepers ive got a couple of small leafed ivys and could hook you up with some.


BTW, i think im going to need some more info on your fogging system and how you set it up. ive got two vivs that im working on now that need some sort of fog to really set them off and when i re-set my 110 up im definatly going to need fog!


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## Dane

With that much open space, you should be able to get some really nice shots of whatever you decide to put in there.


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## VicSkimmr

Thanks for the compliments guys. 

I think you're right about the open space. Even though I'm going to be placing some ferns in to help with hiding spots, I think I should have plenty of open space to grab some nice photos of the frogs.


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## lowdown

Hey Vic,

That is one sweet tank. Do you have the original spec sheet you gave the fabricators?


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## VicSkimmr

Let me see... 

Yeah, here it is.









I labeled it with dimensions and added some holes to be drilled to it later, but thats what I started with.


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## StevenBonheim

Personally, I think this tank would look amazing if you get that log covered with mosses along with a small creeping fern! Like others said, dont go crazy with the larger ferns!


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## StevenBonheim

... and maybe a small restripia as well :wink:


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## VicSkimmr

Haha, I definitely want to get some moss in there, but I'm not sure which would take off on the stump, if anybody has any I'd love to purchase some.

The ferns I've got picked out should work out well I think. 2 E.T. ferns and 2 Korean Rock ferns.

Jason


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## StevenBonheim

ah that does sound nice, i was fearing some huge button ferns or something that would take away from the tall wood piece.


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## VicSkimmr

Ok, I'm having some problems with condensation in the morning, and periodically through the day.

The best 2 options I can come up with are 1.) installing a fan, or 2.) drilling holes in the door to help with air flow. There may be more that I haven't considered yet, but if anybody has an answer to which would be more effective here I'd love to hear it.

The condensation covers about 90% of the vivarium in the morning.

Jason


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## Guest

fan is probably the best option


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## alifer

VicSkimmr said:


> Ok, I'm having some problems with condensation in the morning, and periodically through the day.
> 
> The best 2 options I can come up with are 1.) installing a fan, or 2.) drilling holes in the door to help with air flow. There may be more that I haven't considered yet, but if anybody has an answer to which would be more effective here I'd love to hear it.
> 
> The condensation covers about 90% of the vivarium in the morning.
> 
> Jason


Hey Jason (& fellow N-R member)

I really like the look of your viv with the center wood. I had to take a 2nd look, because at 1st glance I thought you had some type of bonsai tree in your viv.

If your tank wasn’t already built I would suggest you add some type of air diffuser under the false floor to blow air on to the front & still be able to hide the fan in the back of the viv. I added an air flow system to my NC24 viv & it seems to be working well to keep the front glass clear during the day. Hit my link below for pics.

Rick


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## VicSkimmr

Group photo!


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## Guest

i htink its looking good. did you add the ferns yet?


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## VicSkimmr

No, it turns out that the Koren Rock Ferns were backordered, but the shipment is supposed to be getting here sometime early next week.

Jason


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## VicSkimmr

Update: 5.7.06

Well, these'll be the last pictures of the tank before I move it to Virginia, hopefully nothing will get damaged during the trip.





































Here's a really nice little brom that just recently got all its color back after it turned green on me a month ago. You can also see some of the moss I recently added, I found it in my backyard. Does anyone have any experience with that type of moss?









Here's some moss thats sprung back to life on the tree stump after I started to mist regularly. You can also tell the brom sitting above it is happy, its grown a ton of new roots recently.









Closeup, can anyone identify this moss?


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## VicSkimmr

Its finally done!


















Some of the ferns that came in:


















Some of the orchids I've collected:


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## VicSkimmr

Here's my collections of bromeliads. I've got one thats turning a nice deep red, I'll post a pic of that one soon too. They like all the light!









And here's a couple of mugshots that I felt came out pretty well:



















Jason


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## Guest

Hey Vic,
Nice job.Should look great when it matures.


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## summitwynds

VERY NICE!!


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## wax32

Very cool. Where in the world did you get that huge stump?


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## Guest

wow! nice viv man! 
and I must say that is a very very nice piece of wood you got there


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## Guest

Hey Vic!!

glad the move went oKay for the frogs. hope everything else faired well.

man the tank looks nice with those ferns. i really like the way it turned out. its got the 'zen' appeal to it for sure.

im wondering about that piece of wood also. i think youve said it before where it came from, but maybe i need to hear it agian :lol: it seems like some other people are interested too 





VicSkimmr said:


> Closeup, can anyone identify this moss?


i cant id this moss, but i do have some that is very similar. to keep itif i find out where you got the wood, maybe we can have a better fells for if its the same stuff  to keep it alive and spread slowly it just needs to be kept damp. if it gets some direct light it should end up spreading pretty fast and also fluffing up a little bit. once i removed a small ficus tree that was shading mine it really took off and starting fluffing up.

heres a pics of how it was right after removing the tree.









now prectically the whole piece is covered (as thick as it is on the right side) and its starting to spread onto the glass and on to the substrate below. 

when it started out it was just a little fuzz, just like yours looks in the pic.


BTW, how many leucs did you end up with?


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## Steve

Very nice tank... would you mind having a look at this link for me and see if it would do the same thing as your humidifier... thanks.


http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product. ... id=2354572

Steve


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## c'est ma

Oh, how stunning!

I'm going to have to scrap all my plans and start over...

What an inspiration!


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## VicSkimmr

Wow, lots of responses.


Lets see, I found the stump on eBay, so I have no idea of where it actually came from, but I'll try figure out who I bought it from so you guys can contact her personally.

Steve, unfortunately the link seems to be broken, but if it looks the same, I would put money on it that it is the same product. In fact, now that you told me, I'm going to have to go and look in Wal-mart to see if I can find one. Mine broke a few weeks ago, and I replaced it with a newer version, but it doesn't give near as nice of a "blanket" of fog like that one did.

2mnytnx, I eventually ended up with 5 leucs. Some look more orange than yellow, but I'm pretty sure they all came from the same parents. Frogs definitely move easier than fish do  I'm going to be back in the area sometime soon again so I'll have to keep a close eye on the reef club forums to know if I can plan it to coincide with a meeting.

Thats good news about the moss because I was trying to figure out how I could ever get some to cover up the tree stump. It must be near impossible to kill because that stump must've been dried out for months before I got it in the tank, and it sprung back to life within a couple of weeks!


Unfortunately I'm on a dial-up connection now, so I can't check the forums near as much as I'd like on the weekends, but I'll try my best to keep up. Thanks guys.

Jason


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## Guest

Any updates?


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## VicSkimmr

I'll try to get some new pictures this evening. It has... err... grown in a bit.


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## Guest

i was wondering about this viv too!

how is VA?


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## VicSkimmr

I'm loving it! Its definitely nice to get away from the beach for a while. I'll always come back for vacation though I expect.


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## VicSkimmr

**Update**

I took some pictures last night!

Here it was about a 2 weeks ago:









And here's how it looked last night:










I did a little "pruning," so now it looks like this.


















Broms:



























Ferns (I got my E.T. Fern root chunks to grow!)



























And here's one of the orchids I have thats growing like a weed


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## Guest

very nice Jason. i like it.....its filled in very nicely, i like your ferns, the broms are showing very nice color, the moss looks good at the bottom, the wood is aging well, its still not overdone and has a great 'zen' appeal. i cant say much else to tell you how much i like it!


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## 013

Nice tank. I like the idea of not using a back ground and thus giving the tank more depth. Nice one! Plants seem to be doing great. What are the names of the ferns?


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## Guest

I love that fern! It has inspired me to use one too. Your tank looks great!


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## VicSkimmr

Err, I don't actually know the scientific names, maybe someone else will chime in, but here's the common names:

Korean Rock Fern









E.T. or Caterpillar Fern









This one is some kind of tree fern I believe. I have 2 different varieties, and I'm not sure which is which. The other one can be seen in the frontal photos, its the largest fern on the right side.










I'm really pleased at how fast everything is growing. Even the orchids I've gotten seem to like it.


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## c'est ma

Even more beautiful than before! How on earth do you keep the sides so clean? I love that brom/fern grouping on top of the "stump." Reminds me of so many similar-looking assemblages I've seen on stumps in the Pacific NW rainforests (without broms, of course!). Must be very like the tropics.


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## VicSkimmr

Thanks Diane, its nice to know that others appreciate how much work it took to create that look.

As far as keeping the sides clean, they usually aren't, but I've angled the misting nozzles just right so that none of it touches anything but the rear panel. I normally just wipe them down once a week to wash off all the substrate from where the frogs have climbed all over it.



On a side note, I'm considering selling the luecs and replacing them with some type of thumbnail group. My reason behind this is that I feel like the tank might be a bit too small for a group of 5 leucs and I'm not prepared to raise any tad's, so I figure if I keep eggfeeders in the tank I'll have a much better shot at finding some froglets than if I keep the leucs but never raise any tadpoles.

So... is there any specific type of thumbnail that I should look at? Keep in mind the style of the tank, how it doesn't have as much vertical space as it could (if it had a backround).

I really like basti's and lamasi's, but there are so many different types of thumbnails, I doubt I'd object to having any type.

I also wouldn't care if I could only keep a pair/trio in the tank. I don't mind having shy frogs, and I wouldn't mind if I only saw them briefly.


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## Guest

bastis would be a good candidate IMO. also a group of retics or imis. retics are supposed to be a little on the more tendor side as forglets so go with older frogs if you end up wanting them. i think the imis would be a good display frog in a group, but the retics are just so beautiful IMO. they are a bit shy, but IMLE they tend to use the lower level as much as the upper, especially when the lower levels are pretty swampy.

werent imis on your "wish list" at some point?


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## VicSkimmr

Haha, yeah but my wishlist is huge and my wallet is thin. I can't afford to start a collection of viv's at the moment, so I'll have to stick with just the one (especially if I get to start on a new reef tank).

Basti's are high up on the list. I hadn't really considered retic's much because I thought they were so hard to find?


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## Guest

definatly harder to find than bastis or imis, but definatly not impossible. Kevin has some and actually has had them breeding regularly recently. we'll see if he turns out any froglets. i belive he got his from Patrick Nabors (and i think some from some one else too), but i know ive seen others have them on the board from time to time.

hes got imis breeding also.


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## sbreland

I think i would steer away form retics in that particular viv. They prefer more use of the ground and a heavy layer of leaf litter, neither of which is going to work out all that well in that viv. Don't get me wrong, I love the viv (planning one similar myself) but for retics I would go with something longer than tall rather than the otherway around. You best choices for that would be a small group of imis (a 2.2 would do great), but some Bastis would really use that viv fully. The broms would work great for them, it has height, and if you not opposed to just 2 frogs in a tank that big (which you said you weren't) it would work great for them. Lamasi would do good as well, but I think bastis and imis are your 2 best choices.


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## VicSkimmr

Update: 12.30.06

Everything in the tank is growing in nicely. The moss has really started to take off now.




























The ferns are doing well too. Too well, in one case, I had to toss out the tree fern in the front, it outgrew the tank.



















The orchids are growing in nicely as well. Here's to hoping they bloom in the spring


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## dustin_grey

Basically, I'm in love with this viv. It's actually one of my true favorites. I would kill to have one even remotely like it. I've been looking into buying some glass and getting a nice piece of driftwood like you have there. Everything has come together perfectly and the end result is amazing. Great viv, you lucky dog. Want to build mine?


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## Frank H

Beautiful vivarium. Have you decided to sell the leucs and get a different frog yet?


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## Frogtofall

Looks really nice. No updated full tank shot?


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## arrow-frog-fan

Looks really nice! I love it!


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## Guest

That looks great! Great camera angles!


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## crashnt20

Just an amazing tank, i think they look so good when everything is taking off like it is.


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## c'est ma

Oh, what gorgeous pictures! Aside from the occasional glimpse of a tank side, everything looks so natural, just like a slice of some wonderful biotope somewhere.


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## Uncle Sal

Did I miss something? How are you getting fog to come out of the humidifier???? My nephew has a humidifier in his room and he dosent wake up in the rainforest. lol

Did you hook up a fogger within the humidifier? Or does this humidifier pump out fog on its own? Did I miss an old post? Sorry guys.

By the way very nice .

Sal


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## VicSkimmr

Thanks for the compliments everybody!



Frank H said:


> Beautiful vivarium. Have you decided to sell the leucs and get a different frog yet?


I've still got the leucs, I'm having issues with the door on the tank. It was originally bowed in order to put pressure on the latch, but now it appears that there's too much pressure involved, as the door is warping at the top and the bottom, almost to the point where the leucs can escape. So, once I get that fixed (and it'll be awhile, I'm working on a reef tank at the moment), I'll think about upgrading to some thumbnails.



Frogtofall said:


> Looks really nice. No updated full tank shot?


I'll try to grab a FTS sometime tonight, my camera wasn't cooperating with me when I took those pics and all the FTS I took turned out too blurry.



Uncle Sal said:


> Did I miss something? How are you getting fog to come out of the humidifier???? My nephew has a humidifier in his room and he dosent wake up in the rainforest. lol
> 
> Did you hook up a fogger within the humidifier? Or does this humidifier pump out fog on its own? Did I miss an old post? Sorry guys.
> 
> By the way very nice .
> 
> Sal


Sal,

The humidifier will surprisingly pump its fog all the way up the tubing from underneath the tank. In fact, in another tank I made, it probably pumped fog up at least 5 feet.

Its extremely easy to do, you just find the right kind of humidifier and pop the plastic piece off that controls the direction of flow. If you've bought the right kind, a piece of PVC will fit right down into the hole and you're ready to go. The tricky part for me was finding some flexible tubing that would fit onto PVC, but I got lucky and had a spare overflow box + parts leftover from a reef tank I had.


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## VicSkimmr

Double post.


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## VicSkimmr

Update 2.9.07

Sorry I didn't get a FTS sooner, I've been pretty bogged down with work. Anyway, to the pics!














































And one of the leucs. Its a bad pic I know, but the only semi-clear shot I could get of them.


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## housevibe7

Amazing. Do you still use the fogger?


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## VicSkimmr

3 times a day 

I have, however, discontinued the water feature. It grew to be too much of a hassle. The entire setup runs much nicer now, less condensation on the glass, and less algae all over the rocks.


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## Curt61

Looks great. I have a trio of Lamasi and they are always out and moving around, they love to be up on the glass and they like to be up on leaves hanging out, I think you can keep a large group of Lamasi and they will be just fine. They are egg feeders also. I would say that 5-8 Lamasi would look great in that tank, not to crowded, and enough that you can always see a few. Do you happen to know what type of wood that stump was? I would like a chunk or 2 of wood like that for when I make my 190 gallon viv I am planning. What type of substrate did you use? I love the whole tank, I think I might have to skip the background and just either get 1 huge stump like yours, or get 2 or 3 smaller ones to set side by side for my 190 gallon tank.

Thanks for the inspirition, Curt.


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## Frogtofall

The grow-in looks excellent. I really think you did a great job. I would like to see a shingler of some sort growing up the naked side of that wood stump though! :wink:


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## VicSkimmr

Well, I need to place an order from you for some bromeliads for my father-in-law's tank in the next few days, maybe we could work something out


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## dustin_grey

This is by far my favorite tank from all of the tanks I remember.I absolutely love it. Everytime I see it I want to go buy some glass and build my own... alas, I am poor as hell.


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## Frogtofall

VicSkimmr said:


> Well, I need to place an order from you for some bromeliads for my father-in-law's tank in the next few days, maybe we could work something out


Welcome to my office. Please have a seat. 8)


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## leucofrog

great viv! i like the broms in the back  and as for the leuc, hes awsome too! i think its a great pic, all close up and such..

good job


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## kyle1745

Nice tank, how is the door holding up? any bowing? May not be a issue at that thickness either.


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## morphious

awesome!


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## VicSkimmr

kyle1745 said:


> Nice tank, how is the door holding up? any bowing? May not be a issue at that thickness either.


Actually there's a good deal of bowing, I'm working on fixing that at this point. I'm not exactly sure how I would go about attaching a new door, but I'll figure something out.

I'll posts some pics of the way its set up and how bad the door has warped at the top and bottom this weekend when I'm back in town. The gap is almost big enough for the leucs to squeeze through.

Thanks for the compliments guys, I'm really pleased with how its growing in


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## ProFlatlander15

Nice tank Vic! I love the way you left the back clear, I think it gives the tank more depth.


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## Nuggular

Easily one of the coolest tanks I've seen in along time!!! Nice job man!!

I really like the tall aspect of it. Its got alot of floor space as well. Gives me some ideas for a new tank.


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## ammedia

I love that driftwood. Did you figure out which ebay seller you bought it from?


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## VicSkimmr

No I never did figure it out. By the time I had tried to re-view the auction the page had been removed.

Its also starting to rot a bit, but I think it'll still hold up for another couple of years (I hope).


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## c'est ma

It shouldn't be possible, but this viv just keeps getting more & more beautiful... 

This is the first time you've shown us such nice shots of your pond area--I really like the rock arrangement!


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## Dendrobait

This is a beautiful tank, and one of the few here tha makes ferns the major plant as opposed to broms. That and the excellent hardscape work is its strength IMO. I do have one critique which would be that the Sanservia looks a bit out of place in this tank.


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## VicSkimmr

So THATS what that plant is called. It was one of the few that I bought from Lowe's, and I definitely agree with you, its one of the few that have been bugging me. The problem is that the frogs have used that as their preferred place to sleep ever since they went into the tank. 

Still, I've been looking for a spot to put a jewel orchid in, the frogs may have to find another place to sleep.


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## VicSkimmr

c'est ma said:


> It shouldn't be possible, but this viv just keeps getting more & more beautiful...
> 
> This is the first time you've shown us such nice shots of your pond area--I really like the rock arrangement!


Thanks! I've decided to permanently shut off the water feature, so from here on out it'll be a dry creek bed. I actually like the look a lot better.

I'm going to be changing some things around here shortly, I'm probably going to get rid of a couple of the brom's in favor of some brighter varieties from Antone, but the overall look will stay the same I think


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## Guest

I know what you mean about the dry riverbed thing. I over the last 2 years have slowly filled in my pond in my 29 gallon tank. Its not to the point where the pond looks like two little canals. The only reason I keep it is cause I use it to grow Cryptocorynes and Anubias plants.


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## Dendrobait

At least thats what I think it is. Funny they prefer to sleep in it. Is it a natural rainforest plant? Perhaps you might replace it with a nonvariegated type if so.


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## VicSkimmr

Until now I never even had a name for it, so I honestly don't know where it comes from. The only thing that I do know is that it doesn't like a lot of water, and it draws too much attention to itself in the tank.

And I agree, its extremely odd that the frogs would choose to sleep in it when there's multiple suitable bromelads in the tank, but there you have it. I'll probably plant it in the back where nobody can see it just in case they still want to sleep in it.


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## VicSkimmr

Question:

Do you guys think this tank tank is large enough to support both a terrestrial and arboreal frog? For instance, could I potentially mix a small group of D. aurutas with some form of thumbnail? (potentially pumilio since they're found in the same regions in the wild).

P.S. Anybody within driving distance of me can have my 3 leucs for free if they'd like. I suspect I have a pair, but I've never heard the male call, they're just always together.


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## Grassypeak

Forget mixing anything with Pums. From the accounts that I’ve heard, they are mean little buggers and they don’t like other frogs.


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## VicSkimmr

Lol, well I guess that shoots that idea down. I'm still unsure of what to do with it.


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## Guest

Grassypeak said:


> Forget mixing anything with Pums. From the accounts that I’ve heard, they are mean little buggers and they don’t like other frogs.


THat actually sounds funny. Lol. My little pums don't look that mean.


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## VicSkimmr

Some updated pics: A lot has changed since my last ones 

Obligatory FTS'

























Broms from Mr. Antone:

















And some orchids from the orchid show in NYC I attended last weekend  

































I think I can finally say the planting is done (maybe!)

Now to IAD and some new frogs!


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## Skibadee

wow your tank is just stunning!


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## Frank H

Yes, beautiful.


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## c'est ma

Always a treat to get new pics of this beauty! 

Sweet orchids. What are they?

Also, have you decided on what frogs to get?

--Diane


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## Guest

Nice one! Let me guess, Andy's Orchids.
When did you go to the show? I went Sat and Sun nights.


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## VicSkimmr

Thanks guys.

We were there from Thursday-Sunday, and I think we went to the show on Thursday and Saturday. Its crazy how many vendors are there. One of them came from Andy's, ones from T & L, and the others are from other random vendors that I can't remember. I'll work on getting the names up this evening.

As far as what frogs I'm going to get, I still don't know. I'm sure I'll make up my mind at IAD though


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## VicSkimmr

I think I finally solved the door solution, just build a new tank! Heres whats in the works.


























Might as well upgrade a little while I'm at it, no?


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## VicSkimmr

Well, the new project fell through, I just don't have the time or funds to put into a new tank.

That being said, I'm going to tear this one down. If anybody is interested in buying the entire setup, we could figure up a price including everything.

A couple of things that should be mentioned:

1) The frogs I gave away tested positive for hook worm, so steps would need to be taken to be sure that the tank is worm-free.

2) There are some blemishes in the tank itself which I will post pictures of as soon as I can find the time. These have been in the tank since I bought it and you don't notice them even though a couple are fairly major.

3) The door has warped some but has apparently stopped. This tank would be suitable for any of the larger breeds of frogs but definitely not any thumbnails. Again, pics will be coming soon.


I am not willing to ship, and I will part out the plants if need be. I'm not sure whether I'll include my mistking setup if its sold, but for the right price I'm sure I could be persuaded  I live in Harrisonburg, VA which is about 2 hours west of Richmond and 2 hours SW of DC.


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## Corpus Callosum

sorry to hear that Jason, how is your reef tank doing?


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## psychedelicwonders

I found it!

Awesome setup!

Why did your door warp?

What thickness did you use?


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## VicSkimmr

Whoa, I thought this thread was lost to the internets!

The entire viv was made out of 1/4" acrylic. The door warped because the guys that made it were idiots and didn't follow my instructions. They bent it on purpose to help the door stay closed, but what happened was that there was so much pressure built up because of it that the door warped horizontally. That probably doesn't make sense, but I can't think of any other way to explain it.


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## psychedelicwonders

Yeah I'm confused. but thats alright. 

Do you think 1/4" is too thin and I should go with a thicker acrylic?

I do not want any chance of warping.

Did you end up keeping this and setting it back up?

This is probably one of the cleanest setups I have ever seen. 

This was the idea I had in my head and cant believe I found someone who already did it so I can learn off of theirs.

I really like the clear back... but then sometimes I dont want to be able to see the wall... I'm torn.


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## roxrgneiss

Hey,

I don't mean to hijack, but...



psychedelicwonders said:


> Do you think 1/4" is too thin and I should go with a thicker acrylic?
> 
> I do not want any chance of warping.


If you don't want any chance of warping, I recommend using glass. I agree that acyrlic is very clear, lighter, and easy to work with... however, I have experienced firsthand how badly acrylic can warp in just a few months. The warping has much to do with temp gradients between the inside tank temps and outside (room) temps, as well as moisture gradients so I have been told. I can send you some pics of a door with duct-taped hinges, as I'd rather not post them here.

Good luck!

Oh, and it's nice to see someone on here from my old stomping grounds, Jason - I grew up just south of Hburg. Gotta love those mountains. 

Mike


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## VicSkimmr

Like Mike said, if you don't want _any_ chance of warping, you need to go glass.

But, in my opinion, the pros outweigh the cons. Acrylic is much clearer than glass (unless you're using low-iron glass, but that is $$$), much easier to work with, and much lighter. With my 1/4" acrylic tank, the very top did bow some, but never enough that I would be concerned about. I used 130 watts of PC lights over it, and they were fairly hot. If I were going to use a MH above the tank, I'd be very concerned about warping and would have to make sure I had the light well ventilated.

If I were going to rebuild that tank, I would instead have it made out of 1/2" acrylic, at the very least. The problem is that this would raise the price of the viv exponentially. If you're not on a tight budget though, it would be great. 

That being said, I intend to build another viv that is much larger (3'x3'x4') and I plan to make it out of acrylic (probably 3/4") and light it with a metal halide. With enough planning I know I won't have any issues with warping, it's just a matter of removing the heat from the light before it hits the acrylic.

As far as missing having a background, I never did. I don't intend on ever using a background in my vivariums and I'm hoping my next one will be viewable from any angle. The hard part is hiding the wiring 

I've had plenty of acrylic aquariums as well (saltwater reefs are another hobby of mine), and I know that with the right thickness you can avoid any sort of bowing. You also have to remember that you can use different thicknesses for different parts of the tank. The top could easily be 3/4" thick with the sides being 1/2" with no problems.


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## roxrgneiss

I'll agree with that - if you spend the extra $$ and get some very thick acrylic, you'd be in better shape. Making it yourself would help reduce the cost too. I thought I had sunk enough money into my first viv (an acrylic) after over $300, but I should have spent more for thicker material. The door did eventually warp enough to bust the hinges... Oh well, cheap glass for me from now on. 

Anyway, very nice tank, Jason.

Mike


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## extra

Vic,

Any updates on your new build? I am just looking through some nice vivarium set ups.


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## ray1taylor

Wow that viv looks really good.


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