# 40 Gallon Build for a customer (pics)



## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

Here's my start to a 40 gallon viv for a customer. This tank will house 4 dendrobates auratus 'highland bronze' it will have a mistking misting system and a small waterfall and pond. The light is a Fluval 6500k led light, not sure the exact name, but it lights the tank pretty well so hopefully the plants will like it. The customer already had the light for a few months, so I said "Go for it and save some money!" I'm debating on silicone or titebond 3... Also, coco fiber or maybe even something more aesthetically pleasing like a mix of other background substrates. I don't want to use cork bark, only because it breaks down in moist environments. The tank will be at 80+ humidity. There is still a possibility of internal air circulation if the customer decides.

Here's the wood I chose for the setup. I wanted to create something heavily wooded, so these pieces were going to be PERFECT!


















don't mind me looking like a mess -.-


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

The wood had to be cut, so in the meantime, I started doing some sloppy silicone job on the background. (I hate silicone so much it hurts) I put the false bottom in and built the pump and air circulation pocket. (if there is air circulation I already have the vents ready)


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

The wood was cut and everything fit perfectly!











Time for expanding foam!


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

I would LOVE feedback on what everyone thinks


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## joshsfrogs (May 6, 2004)

This looks great and is going to look even better planted, as it holds a lot of potential! It's hard to see the depth in these photos, but it looks like there are some ample nooks to plant a few plants at the bases of the wood. A few bromeliads pinned on the upper, right side foam area would look fantastic!


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

I sprayed more foam after the first coat cured, then started to carve.











































This is where the tank stands as of now. Hopefully soon the customer will let me know what his next plan is. It's been a 'pay as you go' kind of build because the customer is also a close friend of mine.


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## ikhanthequiet (Oct 21, 2015)

Those are some really awesome pieces of wood you scored! I really dig how much depth you get out of them! Looking really good so far, I'm excited to see it finished.

Sent from my SM-S902L using Tapatalk


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## ollie (Oct 26, 2014)

What about loose tree fern fibers and tite bond ?


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

JoshsFrogsPlants said:


> This looks great and is going to look even better planted, as it holds a lot of potential! It's hard to see the depth in these photos, but it looks like there are some ample nooks to plant a few plants at the bases of the wood. A few bromeliads pinned on the upper, right side foam area would look fantastic!


I am really surprised someone from Josh's frogs commented on my build! Thanks for taking the time to check out my work! I actually am planning on having a few over there, the tank has a lot of cracks and crevices for planting later on. I'll be ordering my substrates, plants, misting system, seeders, flies and frogs all from the site when the time comes


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

ikhanthequiet said:


> Those are some really awesome pieces of wood you scored! I really dig how much depth you get out of them! Looking really good so far, I'm excited to see it finished.


I spent three weeks scouring the internet and local shops for the exact pieces I had envisioned. I finally found them on Manzanita Burlworks - Aquarium Wood in the 'special pieces and stumps' section. 




ollie said:


> What about loose tree fern fibers and tite bond ?


I have been SERIOUSLY considering just this. But I'm still on the fence, I may even do some orchid bark. I need plants to easily climb and or root to the walls, but I've only made one other vivarium before and I used coco fiber and silicone. (didn't work as well as I wanted it to)


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## ikhanthequiet (Oct 21, 2015)

Definitely going to check that site out when I get home. Thanks for the tip!

Sent from my SM-S902L using Tapatalk


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

ikhanthequiet said:


> Definitely going to check that site out when I get home. Thanks for the tip!
> 
> Sent from my SM-S902L using Tapatalk


if you contact them and ask for an update, they will show you new pieces!!
the man there is very nice


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## ecichlid (Dec 26, 2012)

Nice setup! (I have never had cork rot)


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

Today, I went to a friend's house and found out she has petrified wood... in case you don't know, that's wood turned to stone. These pieces are SO cool! 
There are CRATES of the stuff just lying around, I figure these are going to be used for all my water features. I was told I could use them for any of my customers for a fraction of the usual cost! I am SOOOOOO happy right now!

These two pieces, I want to use for my own tank.









Also, I went to my very first reptile expo this weekend!
If anyone is interested, I'll post the pictures.


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

Well, it's been a few days, I'm guessing not many people are very interested in my build. I was hoping for a bit more feedback and maybe some suggestions on where to go from here. 

This is only my second build, so, I'm still a newbie.

If anyone has any suggestions, let me know.


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## Rushthezeppelin (Oct 6, 2015)

I think you are making a masterpiece so far. The way you have the driftwood oriented really makes maximal use of the volume in that tank. I'm sure your customer will be ecstatic.

BTW Petrified wood isn't the actual wood turning to stone, it is individual grains of the wood getting slowly replaced with minerals. I can't remember the exact process but I used to go to the petrified forest in AZ fairly often on my way to other places when I lived out there.


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

Rushthezeppelin said:


> I think you are making a masterpiece so far. The way you have the driftwood oriented really makes maximal use of the volume in that tank. I'm sure your customer will be ecstatic.
> 
> BTW Petrified wood isn't the actual wood turning to stone, it is individual grains of the wood getting slowly replaced with minerals. I can't remember the exact process but I used to go to the petrified forest in AZ fairly often on my way to other places when I lived out there.



Wow, thank you so much!
serious confidence boost 

As for the wood, I didn't know that! That's still just as cool!


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

There's been no progress on the tank, but I did go to the park and find gorgeous stones for future projects!


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

It's looking great! Loving the petrified wood. Following along


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## Rushthezeppelin (Oct 6, 2015)

BTW what is the material you are making the fale bottom out of called?


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

Rushthezeppelin said:


> BTW what is the material you are making the fale bottom out of called?


I know I'm not the OP but it looks to be a gravel filter piece. 
I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure that's what it is.
They make ones for pretty much every tank size. It's a pretty good idea if you have them laying around. I myself use egg crate light panels from Lowes

Edit: BTw I find it best to just use extra egg crate pieces for support to prevent the pipes from filling up with water and getting stagnant. Sure you can cut notches in the pipes but I just find it easier to just use the egg crate.


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## Rushthezeppelin (Oct 6, 2015)

DragonSpirit1185 said:


> I know I'm not the OP but it looks to be a gravel filter piece.
> I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure that's what it is.
> They make ones for pretty much every tank size. It's a pretty good idea if you have them laying around. I myself use egg crate light panels from Lowes
> 
> Edit: BTw I find it best to just use extra egg crate pieces for support to prevent the pipes from filling up with water and getting stagnant. Sure you can cut notches in the pipes but I just find it easier to just use the egg crate.


Ohhh I know about egg crate lol. I was actually looking at it to suggest to some people in bioactive groups. People that have species that dig tend to have a hard time doing a drainage layer as the herp can get caught up in the screen or egg crate. Most people forgo one all together which might lead to problems if you accidentally overwater. With this you could put a screen layer down on top of egg crate and this over the screen. I'd imagine as long as you can secure it well enough it would prevent them from damaging the drainage layer and themselves >< Alot of people have been looking for a product to solve this dilemma for a while so I figured I would pass it along.


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## Okapi (Oct 12, 2007)

Lokirathehunter said:


> Well, it's been a few days, I'm guessing not many people are very interested in my build. I was hoping for a bit more feedback and maybe some suggestions on where to go from here.
> 
> This is only my second build, so, I'm still a newbie.
> 
> If anyone has any suggestions, let me know.


Don't get discouraged so easily, your vivarium is coming along nicely. I've noticed that a lot of the members that used to post regularly seem to visit the forum less often. Unless you promised the build to someone by a specific date, don't worry about how long it takes you to build this. Besides, cold weather will be here soon and a nice day out in nature now is time well spent. When winter sets in you'll be wishing for more days at the park like today. 

If you want to get creative and challenge yourself, you can cover foam with tinted drylock and dry brush it with acrylic paints to make it look like stone. That would be a lot of work, especially considering that the driftwood would have to be covered in painters tape while you do that. Or you can always go with the tried and true coir fibers pressed into silicone. My first couple of vivariums were great stuff foam coated in silicone and coir. Those two were no where near as good as the one you're working on here, trust me. Then I made several with clay backgrounds. My most recent one was with the cork bark mosaic. My advice would be to make several 10 gallons, each using different methods, for the experience. If making vivariums for people is likely to become a regular business for you, having multiple vivariums to grow out plants that you have gotten as cuttings from here and there will save you money later.

Here is a recent post I made about the drylok method:
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/be...ess-up-need-ideas-fake-rocks.html#post2514442

Here is a post I made explaining what I mean by dry brushing:
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/pa...ng-background-more-realistic.html#post2390914

Here is Dendro Dave explaining the cork mosaic:
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/pa...-mosaic-living-drip-wall-pond-method-how.html

Here is one of GRIMM's early builds, a super simple clay background:
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/pa...day-weekend-build-clay-background-method.html

I'm one of those research everything before making a decision types. So I tend to spend more time researching and thinking about the vivariums during the time that I build them more than actually building them. Good luck with your build and keep posting updates.


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

Rushthezeppelin said:


> Ohhh I know about egg crate lol. I was actually looking at it to suggest to some people in bioactive groups. People that have species that dig tend to have a hard time doing a drainage layer as the herp can get caught up in the screen or egg crate. Most people forgo one all together which might lead to problems if you accidentally overwater. With this you could put a screen layer down on top of egg crate and this over the screen. I'd imagine as long as you can secure it well enough it would prevent them from damaging the drainage layer and themselves >< Alot of people have been looking for a product to solve this dilemma for a while so I figured I would pass it along.


Not trying to hijack any further but I use the Duck A/C filter instead of screen. It's nice a soft but it's durable. I get them for $.99 at Walmart


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## tclipse (Sep 19, 2009)

Looking to be a great build. Might want to resize any new pics you post, you can do it pretty easily through imgur after you upload them. 

Edit- I don't know what my browser was doing, but they look fine now.


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

tclipse said:


> Looking to be a great build. Might want to resize any new pics you post, you can do it pretty easily through imgur after you upload them.
> 
> Edit- I don't know what my browser was doing, but they look fine now.


I've been having loads of issues with this as well. I have to keep refreshing until it finally decides not to zoom in so much. 
Pretty sure it's something wrong with the site coding cause it's even doing it with the reply box now and it's never done that before. 
It gets pretty irritating but not much can do about it


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

Okapi said:


> Don't get discouraged so easily, your vivarium is coming along nicely. I've noticed that a lot of the members that used to post regularly seem to visit the forum less often. Unless you promised the build to someone by a specific date, don't worry about how long it takes you to build this. Besides, cold weather will be here soon and a nice day out in nature now is time well spent. When winter sets in you'll be wishing for more days at the park like today.
> 
> If you want to get creative and challenge yourself, you can cover foam with tinted drylock and dry brush it with acrylic paints to make it look like stone. That would be a lot of work, especially considering that the driftwood would have to be covered in painters tape while you do that. Or you can always go with the tried and true coir fibers pressed into silicone. My first couple of vivariums were great stuff foam coated in silicone and coir. Those two were no where near as good as the one you're working on here, trust me. Then I made several with clay backgrounds. My most recent one was with the cork bark mosaic. My advice would be to make several 10 gallons, each using different methods, for the experience. If making vivariums for people is likely to become a regular business for you, having multiple vivariums to grow out plants that you have gotten as cuttings from here and there will save you money later.
> 
> ...


I've been browsing all the forums for YEARS just reading. waiting... reading more... waiting... finally actually working on something  and the build isn't going anywhere for now, because my customer had some serious issues with his lionfish -.- he almost died because that fish


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

tclipse said:


> Looking to be a great build. Might want to resize any new pics you post, you can do it pretty easily through imgur after you upload them.
> 
> Edit- I don't know what my browser was doing, but they look fine now.


yeah they randomly decide to be huge... the image size shouldn't be that big.


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## Rushthezeppelin (Oct 6, 2015)

Lionfish stings....man I hear that is some excruciating pain. My condolences.


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## Okapi (Oct 12, 2007)

Lokirathehunter said:


> I've been browsing all the forums for YEARS just reading. waiting... reading more... waiting... finally actually working on something  and the build isn't going anywhere for now, because my customer had some serious issues with his lionfish -.- he almost died because that fish


Salt water has its risks and its easy to have an accident. Hopefully your friend gets better quickly. Did he know to run hot water over the site of the sting while the ambulance was on the way? I've made a point of letting everyone around me know about palytoxin just in case I get poisoned by my palythoa or zoanthid corals...


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## rigel10 (Jun 1, 2012)

Often over-confidence makes us commit imprudence. I hope your friend is doing well now.
Your viv is great. Almost I do not believe that it is your second viv and you are a novice.
And finally I'm happy that a girl is in the hobby. I wish more women in the hobby.


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## ollie (Oct 26, 2014)

any updates ? was looking forward to watching this as it progressed


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## Rushthezeppelin (Oct 6, 2015)

I second that. Def awaiting updates on this viv.


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## Derbucher (Mar 27, 2011)

I know it has been a while since last post, but where is the updates.


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## ruairidh_ (Feb 9, 2016)

Hope your friend is/has recovered, I'd love to see some updates when their ready the viv is looking great so far! 

Sent from my D5503 using Tapatalk


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

There aren't any updates as of now. Building has fallen off because the customer bought a new house and can't afford to let the build progress. I'm too broke to afford to just continue on my own -.-


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

I would love nothing more than to be able to build these for more people. If anyone trusts me to build them an awesome viv, call me  lol


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

GOOD NEWS! Updates coming very soon! Also, I've been holding out on you guys >.> I have a ten gallon build that is actually kinda cute. I'll post some photos of that as well


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

Here it is guys, the very first viv I started... the tiny ten gallon!

http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/pa...29-ten-gallon-build-must-see.html#post2636793


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## Lokirathehunter (Oct 16, 2015)

Making some changes, the tank is being taken apart... I'm taking everything out and sticking it in a 55 gallon. Also going to move the plumbing box to the middle of the tank to allow me to mount a couple fans. The layout will remain pretty much the same with the wood, but the background will be slightly different


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