# 92gal Corner Bowfront



## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Ok, as some of you know, I had a little mishap with my planned frog room. With the missus and I thinking of adding to our family again I've decided to scratch the rack and get something a little different.

I picked up this 92 gallon corner bowfront tank today. It came with a Current Nova T5 HO fixture, a glass top, and a massive Ehiem canister filter (might be too much for this tank! Trade anyone?).

I have plenty of EcoWeb and cork bark for a background. The only trouble is going to be making use of the space throughout the middle portion of the tank.

I would like to do a faux rock wall waterfall/drip on the right side into a smallish pool.

Here it is in our bedroom:











Here are some of the plants that will go into it. I have some hoya around here somewhere and another 10gal tank full of broms.











I'm not 100% set on how I would like this to look. I will probably throw in all the wood I have along with come cork bark on the back wall and see how it looks. I might have to go the fake tree root system route. I am going to clean and sanitize it this weekend, as well as test out the canister filter to see how low I can set the flow rate.

It's going to take a while to get all the hardscape, ventilation, and drilling done. Not to mention the planting!


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## Nai87 (Mar 12, 2008)

nice plants. keep us all updated on the process. cant wait to see the final production.


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## frogface (Feb 20, 2010)

Wow nice tank! Can't wait to see it develop


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## GRIMM (Jan 18, 2010)

I was checking out used corner tanks like this when I was unsure about what I wanted for a display. How do you gain access inside these tanks? Do you need to completely remove the top every time you want to feed, or does it somehow hinge back out of the way.

In any case, it should be a fun one to watch come together.


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Thanks!

Grimm - The canopy is a very light faux wood plastic contraption. There is a black plastic cover on top of the canopy that you have to lift up to get at the glass top on the tank.










I was test fitting some corkbark to fit in the corner of the tank. I will silicone the black plastic triangle on once I am finished.


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## JimO (May 14, 2010)

Steve,

You might want to cut the cork bark down a few inches and cover that big hole in the back if you don't want your frogs to get out. 

That is an awesome tank and as a corner tank you get the maximum use of the space. I can't wait to see it finished.


stevenhman said:


> Thanks!
> 
> Grimm - The canopy is a very light faux wood plastic contraption. There is a black plastic cover on top of the canopy that you have to lift up to get at the glass top on the tank.
> 
> ...


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## ynotnad (Dec 21, 2009)

Steve that is a nice tank, if that filter ends up being too powerful shoot me a PM, I have a couple canister filters here that may work better for that tank.


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## Brien (Aug 27, 2009)

I actually have two of these in my from room


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Not too much has happened since my last post. While cleaning everything up this weekend I took the canister filter in the bathroom to test it out. After I started filling up the tub, I picked up the canister filter and immediately dropped it onto the tile floor. Now I have one large and broken canister filter.

I siliconed the EcoWeb panels on, took one tube per side. The bottom of the panels are roughly 4 inches above the bottom of the tank. FYI - cut EcoWeb/EpiWeb with a bread knife, _not_ surgical shears. The knife was 100x easier on my thumb and patience.

Then I foamed in the back piece of cork bark. It's curing and untrimmed in this picture. I also did a little test fitting with some other pieces of cork bark. 

I might scrap the whole dripwall/waterfall idea. The wood on the right is for roughing out a pond size.












I'm probably going to just use infield conditioner, no false bottom. The brand I have found locally is PrimeraOne ($10 for 50lbs). Here is the MSDS: http://www.primeraturf.coop/Field_Conditioners/msds_primeraone_field_conditione.pdf. It has fairly consistent particle size, although the particles are small. I wonder how they compare to the other brands people use.


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## deboardfam (Feb 7, 2011)

Looking good, when I was in reefs this was always my favorite tank. Would make a killer viv as well. Cant wait to see more. I need to see if I can find this infield stuff for the drainage layer locally. What kind of store do you look in? Does lowes or places like that have this?


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

deboardfam said:


> ... What kind of store do you look in? Does lowes or places like that have this?


Check out a John Deere store nearby, or most any place that does professional landscaping. Just give them a call and ask if they carry infield conditioner.

I don't think they would have it at Lowes/Home Depot.


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## Qfrogs (Feb 2, 2011)

Interested to know how you are growing your broms out of tank. Can't see the medium that they are planted in.


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## slipperheads (Oct 17, 2007)

stevenhman said:


> Check out a John Deere store nearby, or most any place that does professional landscaping. Just give them a call and ask if they carry infield conditioner.
> 
> I don't think they would have it at Lowes/Home Depot.


Distributors | Turface Athletics


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Qfrogs said:


> Interested to know how you are growing your broms out of tank. Can't see the medium that they are planted in.


In the 2nd picture I posted, the broms are just mounted on top of some kitty litter clay. I have small net pots and lots of fishing line for mounting them various places in the 92gal tank. If you have a brom with a stolon and a great stuff background, you can stick the stolon straight into the GS background.

Also,
Thanks for the link Wil!


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

I went back to take pictures of the "broken" canister filter. Well, not surprisingly, I was totally wrong and all I had to do was click the top back down.










Being the impatient person that I am, I immediately wanted to try it out. After giving things a quick rinse out in the tub. I proceeded to flood the bathroom by getting the filter running. A not completely sealed line plus me pulling that sterilite box (1/2 full of water) off the counter lead to every towel we had (thankfully just washed) ending up on the floor.










Thankfully, I only got laughed at by my wife!


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## ryan10517 (Oct 23, 2010)

ahahahaha thats funny. If i had a dollar for every time i've flooded my bathroom or clogged the drain, i wouldn't ever have to pay for my hobbies!


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Very true Ryan!

I got a little bit of work done today. I decided to scrap any sort of moving water and just went with a bit of a pool. Still can't quite decide what to do with that right side above the fake rocks.

Hopefully I will be able to get this sucker planted tomorrow. Some of the plants in my picture at first haven't fared too well so they might not make an appearance.

I think I should be able to cover up all the still exposed pond foam in a clay/moss mix.


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

I'm not sure if I the infield conditioner I got had the wrong granule size or what but, it seemed like it was wicking water to the top. So, I added another 50 lbs of gravel on top of what was already in there.

Then in went the clay substrate, leaf litter, and of course - plants.

I ran out of the moss/clay mix pretty quick so I whipped up another batch and am letting it 'age' for a while. I mix water, sphagnum, cornstarch, sugar, and sodium bentonite in a blender. Strain out most of the water with a paint strainer, then let it sit covered under light for a couple of weeks. Once that is done I mix in some harder pieces of redart/bentonite in to give it more structure. Hopefully this allows a biofilm to reestablish more quickly once it gets transfered into the viv. I intend to cover all the exposed pond foam in this mix.

You can see the mix covering the seam of the cork bark on the far left, right against the glass. Also you can see some of it working up on the right side of the furthermost piece to the right, along the seam from the fake rocks.











I'm not really sure if I like the crazy clump of hoya on the right side. 

Still to do: Drill for misting, internal air circulation, temp/humidity probes, and maybe a little bit of additional lighting for the very back.


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## Logqan (Sep 24, 2008)

Looks great so far and im sure the Hoya will look great once it establishes and starts filling in.
Logan


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## RarePlantBroker (Aug 3, 2008)

Steven,

Looking nice! I like the small pool/pond on the side. I recently finished constructing a vivarium with a similar feature. I like the Hoya on the side too, and think it will look great once it fills the wall. 
Is that _Philodendron verrucosum_ at the back center of the vivarium? If so, it will explode once the roots get down to the water level...so prepare to trim every couple months!


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## frogface (Feb 20, 2010)

Looks great Steven!!


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Thanks Alasdair and Kris!

Yep, that's the plant I think. I know you sent them to me quite a while ago so you might not remember. Glad I finally put together a place for them.


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## Yobosayo (Sep 27, 2009)

That's a very clean, nice looking tank. Well done! Can't wait to see this one grow in, especially when the moss takes off. For what it's worth, I also happen to like the hoya clump on the wall.


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

The new clay slurry has aged nicely and got mixed in with some leftover clay substrate. I used it (beware - smelly!) to cover up the rest of the exposed pond foam along the seams of the cork bark and where I foamed that piece of wood onto the background.

My drill bit had also come in so I drilled 3 holes in the top for the misting bulkheads. Drilling glass was way easier and less scary than I had thought it was going to be.

I also added a little bit of java (?) moss around the water feature where I hope it takes root nicely.

I have serious condensation issues (whole front of the tank becomes covered) and I still need to work on air circulation inside the tank.


I made this little hinge to pivot under the light fixture.










Here is a shot from the top w/o the canopy - yes that is leopard print duct tape.










And a full tank shot.


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## Tuckinrim8 (Jul 26, 2007)

Wow, I really like the layout of this viv. I can't wait to see it grown in! Well done with the pond, it looks really natural! Don't know how I missed this... But consider me subscribed! 
Chris


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Thanks Chris!

I always enjoy seeing broms send out roots everywhere - all the plants seem to be rooting well. Except for the begonia, I always have bad luck with them.


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## azure89 (Jan 5, 2009)

That's an awesome viv I really like the background, and the way you mounted your broms looks great


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## JimO (May 14, 2010)

Awesome viv Steven. Very balanced, with room for the plants to grow in.


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## JimO (May 14, 2010)

Is the begonia in the lower left? I'm no expert, but I have had tremendous success with eyelash begonia and three others. I had a couple that I put in a grow out tank that had a bottom of gravel and sphagnum moss. I keep enough water in the gravel layer to keep the moss damp and the humidity up. Both died back, but after a few weeks came back like gangbusters and are actually getting too big. In the same type tanks I was able to root multiple leaf cuttings from the eyelash and two other types. I break the leaf off at the stem and just stick it into the damp moss. After about a month, a new plant will emerge from the base of the leaf stem.

If your plant isn't doing well, you might want to break off a leaf and give it a try. Also, all the ones I've had like lots of light. On my 20-long grow out tanks I have two 26-watt daylight cfl bulbs.

My first begonia was an eyelash cutting that I got from Mike at NE Herpeticulture. In six months it looked like this (that's an 18x18x24 Exo). Note that the leaves are practically covering the top to get at the light.









I finally pulled the original and one of its offspring (from a leaf cutting) and traded them back to Mike for a few supplies. Here's a photo of the two plants with a packing tape dispenser for scale. 









I thought it was going to be a small plant, but the largest leaves ended up as big as my hand.

So, for me, the two ingredients for success have been damp roots and high light. But, there are begonia experts on DB who could give you more informed advice for specific species.



stevenhman said:


> ...all the plants seem to be rooting well. Except for the begonia, I always have bad luck with them.


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Thanks Jim!

It is an eyelash begonia, from back when NE Herp was doing the free plant giveaway. I think (?) it gets enough light, that fixture has 4 39w T5 HO bulbs. 

I will try a little bit of hand watering to see if that helps. I don't want to disturb the clay substrate by setting up another planting site for a cutting. All the plants on the ground in the viv are planted in net pots and then had the clay substrate laid around them.

Thanks everyone for the encouragement - still gotta do the internal circulation.


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## Atmus (Mar 3, 2010)

Any idea what the whole tank weighs? It's glass, not acrylic, right?


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Just the empty tank? Hmm... it could be easily lifted by two people. Maybe 50 pounds? Yes, it's glass. One person could probably lift it but, I would be worried about it cracking (it's a little awkward). Now it probably weighs over 200 lbs.


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## Atmus (Mar 3, 2010)

That looks like a neat tank to use. I thought about building smilar to that, but probably out of plexiglass. I have a corner that would be perfect for it, at least.


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

A teeny tiny update.

Everything is growing in well, at least 3 broms have pupped. Also, on the way to the bathroom I saw this:










This was the best picture I was able to get, it's the brom that is furthest from the front and near the top. Hurray for long arms!


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## GRIMM (Jan 18, 2010)

Brom flowers are so awesome, yet so sad at the same time. Do you know what species it is? I like anything with TEETH like that!


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Grimm - Hmm... I'm not really too sure, maybe 'Wild Tiger' or just 'Tiger' (FCBS Neoregelia Photo Index Database: Search Results.) I should have some more pups here soon. It's already pupped once so hopefully it pups some more. Too bad you live so far away or I could've sent one your way.


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## johnyrocks (Jun 25, 2011)

Qfrogs said:


> Interested to know how you are growing your broms out of tank. Can't see the medium that they are planted in.


it's planted on egg carton


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

johnyrocks said:


> it's planted on egg carton


Huh? The bromeliads I grew outside of the tank were grown on kitty litter clay mounds. These mounds were on top of one of those disposable plastic container tops.


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## johnyrocks (Jun 25, 2011)

stevenhman said:


> Huh? The bromeliads I grew outside of the tank were grown on kitty litter clay mounds. These mounds were on top of one of those disposable plastic container tops.


Oh really? crap lo.  It almost looked like egg carton. My mistake. Sorry lol.


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## Paul (Nov 15, 2007)

wow just seeing the empty viv, you know its going to be something great, let alone as it is being filled!

great work


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## fleshfrombone (Jun 15, 2008)

Going to update this?


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

stevenhman said:


> Grimm - Hmm... I'm not really too sure, maybe 'Wild Tiger' or just 'Tiger' (FCBS Neoregelia Photo Index Database: Search Results.) I should have some more pups here soon. It's already pupped once so hopefully it pups some more. Too bad you live so far away or I could've sent one your way.


lol you can send some my way lol.
I live next to Atlanta but might be moving back up to Bristol, TN
I can't find mini broms anywhere around here and I just need a few to begin my tank.
I want to order some but I don't trust ordering from many of these sites and half the time they are sold out anyway.
Sweet viv btw!


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## gootswa (Mar 16, 2011)

Looks so good! I can't wait to see all of the eco web taken over by the plants.


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## LookinRound (May 1, 2011)

GRIMM said:


> Brom flowers are so awesome, yet so sad at the same time. Do you know what species it is? I like anything with TEETH like that!


why are brom flowers sad?


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## james67 (Jun 28, 2008)

LookinRound said:


> why are brom flowers sad?


generally speaking broms that have flowered dont last too long afterwords.

james


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## LookinRound (May 1, 2011)

james67 said:


> generally speaking broms that have flowered dont last too long afterwords.
> 
> james


Is that universal to all broms? Is there a reason to that or just that they flower at the end of their lifespan? And if that's the case, do they not flower often then?


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## BYHGAB (Jun 13, 2011)

Cool tank man, what kind of frogs do you plan on putting in it? Also how big does that brom with the blue and white flowers get? Ive got a 20l I will be building soon and want to track some down.


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## james67 (Jun 28, 2008)

i have to say that im not really a brom guy (cant say i really know any more about them than the next guy) but its a great Q for antone (frogtofall) or al (rareplantbroker) they could certainly shed some light on it for you. 

james


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

I can't seem to get any decent pictures. When my parents came over the other day my Dad brought his fancy camera but, I couldn't get any good pictures.

It hasn't changed a whole lot, I don't mind waiting a while longer to post some pictures that hopefully show some real change.

Good moss, mold, and root growth  

I was thinking about putting in a group of A. pepperi 'orangehead' in here. We'll have to wait and see if I have the money when the become available again.


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

Oh look - _still _no ventilation system!










Viv Floor










Random Fern starting & Mystery Plant [both just popped up in here)



































Awesome mold










That's it for now!


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## sarahatl (Jun 22, 2011)

Very nice! The shot from the top of the tank shows the misting system. Do you have holes drilled in the glass for the misting system? Can you explain how you installed the misting system? What kind is it? Also, to the right of the light looks like a whole for a fan? Is that what that is? One last question ..the light fixture is that power compact bulbs? How many bulbs in the fixture.
Thanks in advance!


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

sarahatl said:


> Very nice! The shot from the top of the tank shows the misting system.
> *1 *Do you have holes drilled in the glass for the misting system?
> *2* Can you explain how you installed the misting system? What kind is it?
> *3 *Also, to the right of the light looks like a whole for a fan? Is that what that is?
> ...


Thanks!

1. Yes, I drilled holes in the glass top for the misting system. I bought the glass drill bit off of Amazon.com. It, shipped, was less than $20. Drilling glass is a lot easier then you think. Do a search on here and there are a few good guides.

2. It is a MistKing system. Marty has some pretty good instructions on his website (Mistking.com). I have one quad misting head and 2 double misting heads.

3. I'm not really sure what you mean. If it is the picture where you can see the leopard print duct tape - then yes it is a hole. It was already in the tank when I bought it. I do plan on using it to run a fan/probe.

**edit** I went back and looked at my pictures again. In the leopard-print duct tape picture, immediately to the right of the light fixture, there is a fan laying there. I had this fan just laying there and didn't remove it for the picture.

I eventually decided against drilling into the plastic that the fan is sitting on because I was thinking that these plastic pieces were there to help support the tank's structural rigidity. 

4. No, the fixture is high-output T5. There are 4 bulbs in the fixture.


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## sarahatl (Jun 22, 2011)

Thank you Steven for answering my questions..few more if you do not mind...In the one picture that shows the glass top (where the corkbark is sticking out) there is a black triangle...what is that? Is that what you use to lift up the lid? So you did drill the glass....wow...very brave I would be really worried it would shatter? Was it tempered glass? Thanks in advance for your help. I have a 92 gallon corner bowfront that was given to me and I may use it for something very similar to what you have.


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

No problem!

The black triangle I'm guessing is there so the tank can be plumbed when it is being used as a fish/reef tank. The guy I got it from had cut two notches into it to run his canister filter.

I was kind of worried too. I took it pretty slow. The top glass was not tempered - or it would have shattered (whew!). You can usually check with the manufacturer about if the glass is tempered or not.

http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/58594-how-drill-your-glass.html
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/44979-how-drill-glass-diy.html

Awesome score on the free tank!


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## sarahatl (Jun 22, 2011)

Thanks again...I am still scared about the drilling but appreciate the links!


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## james67 (Jun 28, 2008)

sarahatl said:


> I have a 92 gallon corner bowfront that was given to me


your very lucky. those are very expensive tanks that retail for about $1000.

james


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

The tank 6 months ago










And today!










I've added a few more plants here and there (8 I think...), but most of them haven't done much growing up.

My adorable wife spontaneously took over camera duties and managed this interesting shot










I _finally_ got the fan/vent about 50% installed (otherwise you wouldn't have gotten any fog-free pictures! Next step is camouflage and screening the exhaust.










And just another neat (IMO) shot of the pond my wife took. She is much better with the camera than I am.










The tank still has no inhabitants aside from a booming population of various invertebrates. The future residents of palace-de-frog are growing up some more with their owner before being sent to me...for some more growing up! So, still many more months until I finally have frogs in this thing.


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## frogface (Feb 20, 2010)

Wow! It's gorgeous! I'm loving that pond area.


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

what is that PVC coming from?
I would slap some screen on there or your frogs well be getting their Shawshank Redemption on


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

DragonSpirit1185 said:


> what is that PVC coming from?
> I would slap some screen on there or your frogs well be getting their Shawshank Redemption on


The PVC is routed through the black plastic triangle you can see in some of the other pictures. Thankfully I have ~6 months before frogs go in here to put some screen on the exhaust. Any unfortunate frog who tried to escape this way might meet an untimely end when they meet the fan at the end of the PVC. 

Thanks Kris! I like the pennywort I put in there, I'm sure I could get a cutting or two set aside for you before frogs go in here if you want some to adorn any ponds you might have or have in the future.


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## Alegre323 (Sep 2, 2011)

tank looks awesome!
makes me want a bowfront


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## boombotty (Oct 12, 2005)

I don't know if you said and I overlooked, but what kind of frogs are going in here?
I love the footprint of these tanks, this is looking really good.


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

A group of rood(orangehead) pepperi. I'm not sure if they're the same as the UE line. If I remember correctly they are from EU imports via sean stewart.

I would have planted the tank differently had I bought the plants with the pepperi in mind. I had obligates on the brain when I got all those broms, there were a few that didn't make it into this tank as well, hahaha.

The footprint of this tank is nice, but if you are short or have short arms then it might be a big PITA. I'm 6ft tall with long arms and I still need to stand on a chair to reach the back of the tank.


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## stevenhman (Feb 19, 2008)

This one just scooted onto my finger when I held it out so I just had to take the opportunity and snap some pictures. I can't wait until they get bigger!

Even though they are being princesses about eating dusted flies (maybe too much tasty microfauna?) they're all semi-plump when viewed from above.


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