# ~90 Gallon Cube/Column Build



## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

Helllo everyone, so I decided to build a new viv and at first I was going to make a complete cube but then I decided I needed to add height so I went with the dimensions 24x24x36 which is about 90 gallons. 

I ended up getting all of the glass I needed for really cheap, around $75 (its a long story)

The entire front of the tank is starphire glass so it will be really clear and the rest is regular 1/4 inch thick glass. 

Heres a pic with a chair and laundry basket supporting the glass:










without it..










another piece added:










the bottom part of the front which is 12" high..










almost done.. just the front door and top are needed:










what worries me!! :










I'm a little concerned about the glass in the pic above because the glass wasn't perfectly cut and the silicone added even more space in between creating about a 1/10 inch gap between those two pieces of glass (which is completely filled by silicone), but im not sure if that will be okay, especially if i want to have some water in there. that is the 12" piece by the way, so its not one of the main tank walls. anyone have input??

Also, I am either going to do a hinged door using those long acrylic hinges and then an acrylic lock on the other side OR I'm going to make the door slide down and rest in a track and have weather stripping on the piece of glass the door will be resting on. which is the better idea? I prefer the hinge but im not sure if i trust the 24" hinge to support the door. any input on that?

Thanks guys, and I will continuously update as progresss is made!


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## zcasc (Dec 8, 2009)

First off, this is gonna be sick.

Congrats on beginning this huge project. I almost enjoy building vivariums more than finishing them.

The hinge may support the front glass, but that's an awful lot of weight placed vertically on that axis. I wouldn't trust it to hold up permanantly. 

I would advise going with the european-viv look: halving the glass down the middle vertically, allowing the front to open bilaterally. This would alleviate much of the structural burden that would otherwise be placed on the single hinge.


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

zcasc said:


> First off, this is gonna be sick.
> 
> Congrats on beginning this huge project. I almost enjoy building vivariums more than finishing them.
> 
> ...


Hey, thanks for your input! Thats definitely a solid solution to my problem but the only thing is I want to avoid splitting the glass because I feel like its an obstruction to the viewing area.. I think what Im going to end up doing is just buying L shaped pieces to make a slot for the glass to slide into. This is going to probably be a burden when I want access to the tank but I'm just really trying to avoid splitting the glass in half.


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## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

very cool, what size thickness is that glass?


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## zcasc (Dec 8, 2009)

One way the single hinge idea may work is by placing your hinge on the top, and making it a flip-up. This would give you a clear view from the front portion of the tank.

This may, however, result in too much pressure being applied to the top portion. It could be helped by adding external or internal buttresses to distribute more of that weight. 

Also, if the glass was insufficiently cushioned where it seals upon closing, you could have a very messy situation on your hands if it were to swing shut by accident.

Just a couple more ideas for you; whichever way you go with this, it has great potential.


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

Julio said:


> very cool, what size thickness is that glass?


thanks, its 1/4 inch thick



zcasc said:


> One way the single hinge idea may work is by placing your hinge on the top, and making it a flip-up. This would give you a clear view from the front portion of the tank.
> 
> This may, however, result in too much pressure being applied to the top portion. It could be helped by adding external or internal buttresses to distribute more of that weight.
> 
> ...


I considered that option but I'm very afraid to do that because the vent on the top of the tank is only going to be about an inch from the edge, meaning that the hinge would be attached to just an inch of glass, which probably would lead to some kind of disasterr lol but i like how youre thinking


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## ab1502 (Jun 27, 2007)

you could hinge it on the bottom and have a latch to hold it closed up top.. that way it sits on top of the 12" piece on the bottom.


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

ab1502 said:


> you could hinge it on the bottom and have a latch to hold it closed up top.. that way it sits on top of the 12" piece on the bottom.


I was actually just thinking about that, because that seemed like the only option left. I was going to try and avoid having a hinge across teh front viewing pane tho. Your idea really got me thinking tho, and after a little experimentation I finally decided on what I am going to do!

Okay, so I have 3 of those 4" Magfloat magnetic aquarium cleaners laying around and I decided to put 1 on the bottom right hand corner and 1 on the bottom left hand corner of the 24" piece of glass where it meets the 12" piece of glass (so half of the magnet is on one piece and half is on the other, creating a seal). Then I decided to make a 1" lip of glass over the door and I have a magnet on there holding the top part in place. I then put my hand inside the viv and pushed against the door and it was completely solid. I cant believe how strong these magnets are!! They really dont make the tank look bad either, but I think I am probably going to paint them black or green just so they look sleeker. Looks a lot better than a hinge or sliding doors would have looked, IMO. 

Let me know if anyone sees a serious flaw in this idea! Thanks guys 

OH and just for reference on how strong the magnets are, they stuck together with a 2" thick piece of wood in between them. Theyre REALLY strong


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## CrazyAirborne (Jul 8, 2010)

any updates?


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

okay so im moving slower with this then i would have liked but here is my idea for it so far, tell me what you think.

I have this sick piece of driftwood that is like a root system, and then i do have another piece of wood thats like a trunk but its not shown in any of these pics. im gonna put them together to make it basically like a large tree in the center. 

i have treefern panels for the back but im not sure i definitely want to use them.. tell me what you guys think. im going to decide hopefully by tomorrow whether or not to use the tree fern panels and then ill post more pics as it updates. 

heres what i have so far:




























view from the top:



















light fixture is sunleaves jr. 4x T5 bulbs:










please give me some input!! thanks!


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

oh and the trunk piece that I am going to be adding on is already covered with vines and some moss, so that should look pretty cool. and the left side is going to be a river kind of.. lol


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## dendro-dude (Jan 25, 2010)

Lookin good!
Gonna be awesome!
Did you use silicone to secure the glass pieces together?


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

thanks! yup, all of the glass is secured with silicone.


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

Alright so here's a little update on this one.. still has a lot of work to be done because I am not really happy with the floor area and i have more planting to do. But other than that, I am happy with the upper part of the build.

I ended up doing a 360 viewing area type tank with the large tree stump in the center. 



















Misting system on:










LEFT SIDE:



















RIGHT SIDE:










Vent on top so the glass stays clear:










The Front glass is actually attached using velcro strips, which surprisingly is working out amazing so far. Please let me know if anyone has input or anything you think would make the tank better. Thanks !


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## cheezus_2007 (Aug 20, 2009)

all i can say is holy freaking sheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet. this thing is BEAUTIFUL  very nice very nice.... i love how that creeping fig is layed out in ur tank.... i dig the wood placement too


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## HunterB (Apr 28, 2009)

Very Nice, good job with the vineing plants especially
I think the floor of the tank is my fav part actually


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## Vermfly (Jun 6, 2010)

I love how the viv turned out. That aroid is great. What is going to go in this thing?


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

thanks guys! 

its going to be for my cristobals, because the 47 gallon column they were originally in had a shattered pane of glass :/ Luckily while I was making the transition between tanks I was able to find 5 froglets !  I'll post some pics of all of them later, along with some updated tank shots hopefully this week.


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## BlueRidge (Jun 12, 2010)

Nice! Its always cool to find froglets.


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## Wallace Grover (Dec 6, 2009)

It looks like mangrove swamp meets rainforest


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## fleshfrombone (Jun 15, 2008)

This turned out to be a really spectacular viv. Well done!


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

thanks everyone! heres some more pics with a better camera, and some froglet and frog shots




























Dad:


















Mom:










Babies:





























More pics to come when I get the rest of the plants!


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## Link3898 (Sep 18, 2008)

First off the tank looks astounding! great job with it, you definitely have an eye for planting! 

next what do you mean you are using velcro? honestly i wouldnt trust it unless you attached it some how to make absolutely sure it will not come off.. i used it for my frilled lizards to keep the front of their enclosure closed and it worked great but then at the 6 month mark it failed. i would hate to see that happen to you because i was using a mesh screen framed with wood as a door, not an expensive peice of starphire glass...


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## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

great choice of frogs, nice to see they are busy, mine just seen to just not stop breeding even when feeding tads.


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## fleshfrombone (Jun 15, 2008)

Could you take a close up shot of what you decided to do with the door?


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

thanks for the feedback guys! Julio, I completely agree, they breed non stop its insane!

Okay so for more detail on the door, I bought industrial strength velcro strips and I put a piece on each corner of the glass door, and then I put 4 pieces on the actual viv, aligning to the pieces on the door. Then a strap cut to fit the length of the 2 pieces goes over the door and the viv connecting them. That probably is extremely confusing so heres some pics haha and btw, the velcro strips are designed to stick to glass and its an EXTREMELY sturdy hold

I also have some updated pics of the viv itself with new plants from Mike (roxrgneiss, a member on this board). This is the second time I purchased plants from him and he always has an amazing selection and packages them perfectly! It was like he was inside my viv and knew exactly which plants it needed, really a great guy to do business with. He sent me the following plants:

Vriesea ospinae (mini variety)
Anthurium pentaphyllum
var. bombacifolium
Ficus Radicans
Philodendron 'Wend Imbe'
Aristolocma macrovia
Edanyoa difformis
Philodendron sp 'Cebu Blue'
Begonia glabra
Philodendron sp. 'Panama'
Begonia prismatocarpa 
Marcgravia sp. 
Pyrrosia nummularifolra 
Monocostus uniflorus 
Schiematogloffis sp. 
Various aquatics

So here are the pics:

example of one of four velcro seals on the door:










how it opens:










the front piece of glass completely detached:










Vriesea ospinae:










Full tank shots:























































Some close ups on the plants:





































Thats all for now! Any feedback is appreciated


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## Link3898 (Sep 18, 2008)

Maybe i had a bad batch of velcro, but the part that failed was the sticky side that was on the glass pannels of the frilled lizard enclosure.. i used screws to attach it to the wooden frame... lucky for me the enclosure didnt even need a door, the frillies couldnt get out so it turned into an open front display...


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## roxrgneiss (Sep 30, 2007)

Hey Nick,

Great job with this beast of a tank! I really like the affect of the rocks and sand; they lend a very natural feel to the display. Nice going with the planting, too! This will be a fun scene to watch as it grows. And thanks for the kind words, I'm just happy to be able to share some nice plants now and then. Congrats on the froglets, btw. What a sweet reward for making them such an awesome home. 

Cheers,
Mike


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## Dendro Dave (Aug 2, 2005)

I don't often comment just to say "Nice viv!". It's not that most posted suck or anything, in fact most are nice...few are exceptional though compared to the average posted viv. This qualifies in my opinion....Nice viv!


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

Link3898 said:


> Maybe i had a bad batch of velcro, but the part that failed was the sticky side that was on the glass pannels of the frilled lizard enclosure.. i used screws to attach it to the wooden frame... lucky for me the enclosure didnt even need a door, the frillies couldnt get out so it turned into an open front display...


hmm very odd, mine seems to have a crazy strong hold. the second it starts to peel away tho, i will definitely replace it (the velcro is so inexpensive anyways). Thanks for the heads up though!




> Hey Nick,
> 
> Great job with this beast of a tank! I really like the affect of the rocks and sand; they lend a very natural feel to the display. Nice going with the planting, too! This will be a fun scene to watch as it grows. And thanks for the kind words, I'm just happy to be able to share some nice plants now and then. Congrats on the froglets, btw. What a sweet reward for making them such an awesome home.
> 
> ...


No problem Mike, and thanks for all of the compliments! I'll keep you posted on how everything grows in. 



> I don't often comment just to say "Nice viv!". It's not that most posted suck or anything, in fact most are nice...few are exceptional though compared to the average posted viv. This qualifies in my opinion....Nice viv!


Wow, thanks so much! I really appreciate it and I'm so glad u like it.


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## fleshfrombone (Jun 15, 2008)

Thanks for covering the door part of the construction. Man this viv is really incredible. This is definitely one of the 'elite.'


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## chinoanoah (Mar 9, 2009)

Absolutely incredible.


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

fleshfrombone said:


> Thanks for covering the door part of the construction. Man this viv is really incredible. This is definitely one of the 'elite.'


No problem and thank you so much, that definitely makes me feel like my hard work paid off lol



chinoanoah said:


> Absolutely incredible.


Thanks dude!


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## jausi (May 14, 2008)

Nice work!!!! great display tank, beautyful frogs


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

Alright guys, so its almost two months later and everything still seems to be going well with this! The velcro is still holding up well with no problems, the plants seem to be thriving, the frogs are duplicating, so all is good! Here are some update photos because i know everyone loves an update:

front view:



















floor:




























all fogged up:



















view from top:



















side views:




























plants:




































Rock that sprouted all kinds of life:










lurker:


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## fleshfrombone (Jun 15, 2008)

Awesome build, easily one of my favorites. Love the dimensions, the plant selection, and frogs. Well done.


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## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

looks great, i need more space for more bigger tanks.


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## TDK (Oct 6, 2007)

Fantastic tank!


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## james67 (Jun 28, 2008)

looks good, but why use ficus pumila when you have ficus panama? its much more attractive and doesn't take over. granted its not great at the quick fill but over time it will create a beautiful thick mat.

james


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

thanks everyone!

and james: i definitely agree, and I'm actually slowly starting to trim back the creeping fig as the other vining plants take over. i actually pulled out a decent amount before taking these pictures. it's just that the creeping fig grows so quickly and gives it that green look, so i let it fill in the empty spots for the time being. but yes, hopefully the ficus panama and other vining plants start to take over the stump. ill definitely be posting more pics as that happens


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## Venomos (Jun 26, 2009)

This build is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!! Incredible work and job done! The placement of everything and the construction is just amazing! Awesome work!


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## frankpayne32 (Mar 17, 2007)

Really nice vivarium. Looks very natural.


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## alex111683 (Sep 11, 2010)

Maybe some day I will have the space and skill to do what you have done. AMAZING!!


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

alright guys, so here's another update on this one. It's been growing like crazy and i've been having to trim back pretty much every two weeks. i recently found about 6 froglets in there too, so i'm going to include some of those pictures that i took with my phone. 

Full tank shot from the distance:










Closer up: 










froglet:










from up top:










back half of another froglet:










close up on some of the greenery:










FTS:










Another froglet that just came out of this brom:










froglet still with tail:











Any input is appreciated


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## chinoanoah (Mar 9, 2009)

Still my fav. tank on DB

What is the lighting you are using?

Misting Schedule?


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

wow thanks so much for the compliment!

the lighting is the sunleaves pioneer Jr. t5 light fixture, and I surprisingly only have the mister running for 1 minute, 4 times a week right before the lights go out.


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## chinoanoah (Mar 9, 2009)

Wow. (8) 24" t5's! (Are these HO's?)

6500k I'm guessing?

How tall is your tank?


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

its actually only 4 t5's, the bigger fixture that they sell has 8. the tank is 24x24x36, so 3 feet tall. its pretty massive, but to be honest i feel like it doesnt really look that big. i guess its the way its positioned in a corner


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## BddG (Aug 10, 2010)

WOW. That viv looks amazing and I was wondering what the nice white gravel was you used in the pond area.


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## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

it gets better with age, just like wisky!


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## Derek Benson (Feb 19, 2004)

I have this exact same sized tank I made about 8 years ago back in my parents garage. Your build has been making me think twice about storing it in a dusty garage so long. 

Sick tank, I love the vining overgrowth look in vivs. It almost reminds me of a reef tank-like vivarium, with the walls left free of background and the plants place on the wood pile (vs. coral on rock), not to mention the nice light!


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## Alfy111 (Aug 6, 2005)

Thanks for all of the compliments! The white gravel is actually white sand that's used in reef aquariums. It doesn't have any salt or chemicals in it though, and i made sure I washed it really well before adding it in. And Derek, that's actually the exact look i was going for, thanks for noticing! And you should definitely get that tank out of the garage...there's so much you could do with it!


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## winstonamc (Mar 19, 2007)

any updates on this beauty?


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## Loui1203 (Sep 29, 2011)

This is really well done! Great viv!!


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## teggner (Sep 4, 2008)

What's this plant called?


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## james67 (Jun 28, 2008)

alocasia 'polly'

james


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## teggner (Sep 4, 2008)

james67 said:


> alocasia 'polly'
> 
> james


Thanks very much!


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