# EXO 24x24x18 Build Journal



## arkay (Dec 26, 2007)

I made a lot of posts asking questions during my planning stages. I wanted to return the favor to everyone as best I can by posting everything I learned and the steps I took to build the tank. I also want to give special thanks to everyone who assisted.

I went through a number of design iterations in my head but I ended up with the idea to build a rockwall on one wall with a water feature that fed into a little river, a buttress tree stump with a nice root system, and a dirt wall with moss and plants growing around it.

*Drilling an EXOTERRA tank*
At first I was going to drill into the sides of the glass. I asked around and called Hagen and learned the sides are NOT tempered glass. Had they been tempered glass it is not recommended if even possible to drill. I called the local glass place to do the work but ended up deciding on bringing everything in through the screened lid. That way if something bad happens its much cheaper to replace the lid than the entire tank.

*WOOD / TREES from the WILD*
I couldnt find anyplace that was selling nice buttress roots and learned that most people were making their own. I decided I wasnt skilled enough for that and went down to the creek. After much searching for just the right root I ended up chopping down a small tree with a small hand axe. It was half falling over into the creek and the roots where all exposed out of the bank. To steralize the wood I baked it at 250 degrees for 3 hours.

*MISTING*
My original plan was to place a water pump in the tank and run it to a patio mister or sprinkler system. This was strongly not recommeneded on the board because of pressure required and water quality in the misting system. I'm glad I took that advice and purchased a starter kit from MISTKING. Awesome dudes there helped me out big time.

*THE ROCK WALL*
I used Polystyrene sheets for the corner walls then standard packing spongy styrafoam for the rocks. I cut it up to roughly the shape desired then used Foamboard caulking to stick it to the wall. I let that dry for 24 hours and covered it with a cement mix. I used Quickrete Portland Cement. The first coat I somewhat glopped on with my hands and spread it around. Once it was almost dry I picked off the lumps and scraped down some areas with a wide flathead screwdriver. The second coat was more liquidy and I used a sponge to apply. This smoothed it out some. I then repeated the carving steps. The third coat was the same as the second except i dapped at it to give it a little texture. If you wait about an hour or two you can use a wet sponge to somewhat mold it like clay too. I waited 24 hours between coats.

*THE DIRT WALL*
I found many different posts on what to do here so I tried two methods before doing this tank. I first tried the flavapol method. I used quickcrete glue and mixed in the substrate to make a nice gluey mixture. I then applied that to the surface. This worked great and wasnt that messy. However it took 3 or 4 weeks to dry. My water was very coudy at first as well. It took many many water changes to finally clear it up. Because of this I decided to use the silicone method. I emptied an entire silicone tube onto a paper plate and glopped it on the area. Then smooshed down the substrate. This took three coats to get the entire area with no exposed area. 24 hours between coats. This was a freakin mess. I almost wish I did the flavopol method but I'm glad its over. I HATED IT!

*PAINT*
Painting was not my strong point. I used an acrylic based paint. A watered down black base spread over the rocks. Then grays and browns added in for highlights. 

So on to some pics and more details...


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## arkay (Dec 26, 2007)

Materials (I got everything from Lowes):
- PVC
- EggCrate (Light Difuser)
- Polystyrene / Styrafoam
- DAP Foamboard adhesive
- Screening (for like a window)
- Great Stuff
- Latex Gloves
- Plastic tie straps

First I cut out a piece of the light difuser the size of the base of the tank and layed it inside. I then cut a squiggly line in front which will be lower than the main floor for the river. I then wrapped the pieces in screening so small particles wont fall below. I attached the screen with plastic tie straps.

I then measured the desired heights and cut a few PVC pieces to support the floor. I used the adhesive to adhere the pvc. then layed the eggcrate in place and adhered that down too. 

I then measured a diagnol on both back corners and cut away access panels. 

I adhered the polystyrene as desired.

I used Great Stuff to attach the wood pieces. Great stuff is a dam mess. Wear gloves!!! It took about a week for it to come off my skin and it took skin with it.










LOCTITE Power Grab at Lowe's: 10.1 Oz. Foamboard White Construction Adhesive









Dow at Lowe's: 12 Oz. Great Stuff Gaps & Cracks Insulating Foam Sealant









I later didnt like that piece of wood on the back wall so I pulled it off and replaced it with Maryland Cork.

On the right wall I sprayed it down with Great Stuff and stuck in some small plastic dixie cups which will be plant holders. Took a few layers to get it how I wanted.

I also used a smaller PVC to create a drain in the river so it couldnt get too high. On the foam wall I also pushed some tubing through where the water would run so the cement wouldnt fill the holes.


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## arkay (Dec 26, 2007)

I then started cemented as described above. I didnt worry too much about getting it on the glass because it comes off rather easy but in hindsight I should have taped up the log with painters tape. I also adhered the cork to the back wall with great stuff.

Again I was stupid and didnt wear gloves. Cement does a number on your hands without gloves. Its easy to wash off but it dries them out and it looks like i ran them through a cheese grater.












































QUIKRETE at Lowe's: 47 Lb. Portland Cement









This time I didnt use it but if you want some color you can use the quikrete coloring
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?acti...=4294967294&Ntk=i_products&Ntt=quikrete+color


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## arkay (Dec 26, 2007)

Next I started the painting and Siliconing. I tested the paint on a small area and waited for it to dry to make adjustments and see how it would look. You can see that in the bottom left. I also tested the silicone to make sure it dries right. I read posts of people using silicone in the tank and it was bad. Game over! 

For the substrate I used T-Rex JungleBed.
The paint was from Michaels, FolkArt Acrylic Paint Water Based
The silicone was GE Silicone II Window Door Attick Clear. Looking back I probably should have used an almond color so it blended better.


















































GE at Lowe's: 9.8 oz Silicone II Premium Waterproof Window & Door CLEAR Caulk









T-Rex® Jungle Bed® Premium Blend Forest Substrate - Substrate - Reptile - PetSmart


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## arkay (Dec 26, 2007)

More to come soon...


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## Tran2la (Nov 6, 2009)

Yes more!!!` This is looking great!


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## Bob S (Mar 5, 2008)

Looking good makes me get the itch, but my rack is full and being a seasonal care taker my money is limited. Keep us updated please.


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## fleshfrombone (Jun 15, 2008)

I'm really starting to like these manufactured tanks. Looks like something you would see in a zoo.


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## arkay (Dec 26, 2007)

Today I wheeled it into the permanent location. A while back I had gotten an EXO stand for this tank and the base was LxW smaller than the top, it felt very top heavy. Before using it I attached a larger base to the OOB base and attached nice casters so I can wheel it. I then reinforced the bottom with some 2x4 strips. So now I can wheel it around 

Back to todays activities. Today was plumbing. Lets start with the intake. I used a LifeGard Quiet One 1200 pump (which isnt so quiet) and submerged it on the left side access area. I ran standard tubing through my pvc access panel. I couldnt make the turns without crimping the tubing so I got a bunch of L brackets. That fed into the Fluval 305 filter. The filter couldnt suck the water on its own from that height so I had to feed it. Filter will serve 2 purposes. 1) to filter the water. 2) to create the water features. It exits to a T bracket where i shrink one hose to a standard airline tubing. This hose is near the top of the rock wall and trickles water down. The large opening is at the base of the river. Its a little hard to see in the pics but it worked 100% as I had imagined in my mind. So I know something will break because I didnt expect it to be even close to my plan. It never works perfectly.

I then connected up the MistKing mister and away it went.

This is the external plumbing sitting on the hood right now.









The internal plumbing and back/side view









The filter behind the tank (I wanted it underneath but it didnt fit with the bucket underneath)









The MistKing setup









Here you can see the water flow. Its a little hard to see but the river comes down with a good flow rate and the water drips down the rocks into the river.









The MiskKing in action









Down angle view









Tomorrow I need to work on the noise. I think I will use the rubber suction cup thing you stand on in the bath tub and cut it up. Then lay that under the pumps. That should cusion the rattle noise. Once I get that worked out its substrate and planting time. Stay tuned...


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## eos (Dec 6, 2008)

Looks good so far. I'll be following


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## VivariumWorks (Feb 27, 2008)

Comming along quite nicely!

As you didn't seal the concrete and used normal portland cement rather than a low lye cement like the fast cure quickcrete, your pH is likely to be rather high for at least the first week if not longer depending on how thick of a cement layer you used. 

You clearly know what your doing as you've got the design element down and not going cheap on the all important stuff, (canister and mister) so I'm sure your aware of this. Just letting you know that from my personal, and aggrivated, experience that if you don't flush the water out at least 3 full times your Ca2+ and -OH levels are going to build up and kill your moss pretty quick. If you have put charcoal into your filter already I'd pull it out and run the system without it until you get your pH stabelized or else you run the risk of ruining your filtration media.


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## cheezus_2007 (Aug 20, 2009)

i'm diggin it........... looks prime time for sureeeeeeeee


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## arkay (Dec 26, 2007)

Thanks guys. 

Vivariumworks, Actually I appreciate the advice. I didnt know that. I've had fishtanks for 10 years or so, so I have a lot of the equipment. I started with frogs almost 2 years ago now. I had your basic tank setups though until recently.
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/members-frogs-vivariums/37446-my-first-viv-setup.html

A few months ago I built my first cement style tank. I wanted to keep it simple because this was beta1. I built a desert scene, no water features, just a few cacti plants.
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/members-frogs-vivariums/44689-30gal-desert-viv-build.html

Then I needed a new home for the inhabitants of this tank so I rebuilt my small EXO using GS, concrete, and the Flavopol method. (beta2) This was a good experience because I learned a lot about how to manipulate the materials.
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/members-frogs-vivariums/45518-10g-exo-build-test-2-a.html

So then I figured I'm ready to move to Release Candidate 1 (this one). I did a lot of reading and posting questions on the forum before starting.

-----------------------------
Note: The bathtub matt worked well for muffling the rattle of the pumps. I also found I only need the submerged water pump to start the filter off. Once its going good ole gravity and ciphening takes over. Now that I can run the water continously I can start laying the substrate today. I'm going to take VW's advice and pull my filter media for a few weeks. Once the PH tests good i'll start planting. 

12/12 is the Repti Show by me. Hopefully I'll be ready by then. I plan on going and if there selling, buying the Darts I want there. I have not had good luck with mail order.


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## RarePlantBroker (Aug 3, 2008)

The tank is looking good. I can't wait to see how you "landscape" it.

Just a quick note (from personal experience). I saw the 5-gal. bucket reservoir. Unfortunately, with an open top container you can get particulate into the water--which can clog your misting heads. I found some 2-gallon BPA-free plastic drinking water containers at K-Mart for under $10--makes a great misting reservoir. You can drill the top (re-fill) lid, and insert a bulkhead fitting (one should have come with your misking kit).


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## arkay (Dec 26, 2007)

After running the water for about 2 days I tested the PH. The results were almost exactly the same as my tap water. In the mid to high 7's. However the water did foam up a little and got a little cloudy. I'm going to do daily water changes through the week and by the weekend I should be safe to start laying down the land.


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## arkay (Dec 26, 2007)

After 5 water changes and a PH of around 7 I decided to start landscaping. Also something continued to bother me about the plumbing and once something annoys me I have to fix it no matter how stupid. So I redid the plumbing also.

I used 1/2" PVC instead of rubber airline tubing. I attached a valve to each water exit so I can control the flows individually. It actually works quite well. I still have a noise problem but its less now, maybe quiet enough not to drive me crazy.


















I layed down a mix of the T-Rex Jungle mix and the Repti Bark and the. It made a nice airated mixture. I then added some of the standard pet store moss which I will probably replace. 


























I think I want to get the moss that looks like what grows on tree roots in the backyard type of thing. A very green low lying fuzzy like moss. I also want to get some creaping fig.


























I still need to seal the tank but besides that I think I'm pretty much done. I'll let this settle for a few weeks, make some adjustments, then its Dart Time.


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## Boondoggle (Dec 9, 2007)

VivariumWorks said:


> As you didn't seal the concrete and used normal portland cement rather than a low lye cement like the fast cure quickcrete, your pH is likely to be rather high for at least the first week if not longer depending on how thick of a cement layer you used.


I always wondered why my minimally cured rock features didn't affect the pH much. I use fast cure quickcrete. Thanks for that tidbit!


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## Boondoggle (Dec 9, 2007)

arkay said:


> The silicone was GE Silicone II Window Door Attick Clear. Looking back I probably should have used an almond color so it blended better.


Actually, skip the clear and almond and use black. I thought in the past that almond would work because it's the closest color to the bark, but the black is waaay more forgiving. "Holidays" and blank spots don't really look so bad with the black silicone underneath...almost natural. You definitely wouldn't have had to use three coats

Very nice job. Your hardscaping is very good and the rocks look great!


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## happy dart (Nov 22, 2009)

Amazing job! Looks zoo quality. Can't to see it in a few months when all the plants have has time to grow. Keep up the good work!


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## arkay (Dec 26, 2007)

Well, after much work, time, and an almost catastrophic tank failure I finally have 3 tenants, Surinam Cobalts. Bold and active was an understatement. They swing (jump) from the leaves like monkies. Its funny because they dont always land it, and fall to the forest floor, then they get back up and try again. 2 days later I found some spontaneous shroomage.

Thanks to Herpetologic.net who runs an A+ operations. They took the time to help me get the right frogs for my first dart experience and answered all my questions. Highly recommend them.


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## Reefer420 (Oct 18, 2009)

I like the rock waterfall...very nice, that tank is asking for some broms.


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