# Very first viv and frogs. 18x18x36



## Leafblade (Jul 14, 2021)

Hey all. Just thought I’d share my very first build. It’s also my first post 😅. About 6 months ago I got a rather sudden, almost overnight, interest in darts and since then it’s exploded into a near passion. Very, very cool little critters! I’ve always loved plants and have probably 60 houseplants, so the idea that I could keep some more tropical species was all the more appealing.

in any event, my build took some time but I think it’s coming together quite nicely. I’m actually pretty proud of it and it’s so fun when people come over because it’s instantly gravitated towards, like walking into the zoo 😂.

for the space where I wanted to display mine I ended up going with a 18x18x36 viv. That and that’s what I found locally used for a very good deal. But I’ve got it on my kitchen counter in a nook and it fits perfect.

after learning about several species of frogs and sifting through what I found visually appealing, would fit what I had and what would utilize height/ could be kept in a group I ended up going with leucs. I do not regret my choice. For one they are the quintessential hufflepuff frog (don’t judge! 😅) and they are good beginner frogs from what I understand.

so I set to work building their viv. It took a while but I ended up going with the abg soil mix from Josh’s. I ordered plants for Alex at frog daddy and I sourced my froglets locally. My light is a nicrew I had left over from an old planted aquarium in addition to a 40w jungle dawn. It seems to be a great combo.

I am hand misting for now. Seems to be working well and I kind of enjoy the misting moments, it gives me an opportunity to open her up, smell that jungly smell and kind of just admire it.

I did ha e some bumps along the way.When I first got my viv home I accidentally broke one of the doors off. Woops. Luckily I was able to use a drill and a bolt/nut combo to fix it. It’s worked perfectly. I’ll have to share some pictures.

I did the typically great stuff background. I’m happy with it, but I wish I had done some things differently (ie added more planting holes). But for my first attempt I’m happy.

my plants seem to be doing great mostly. I’ve gotten some good growth. I did kill a few plants that I was t even sure what they were (I got one of frog daddy’s packages) but aside from a couple cuttings lost,everytbiby Else is doing well!

I originally got 4 leucs however I did receive one with sls that didn’t make it, so I’m down to three. One is very bold, one I never ever see and one is somewhere in between. They are not old enough to sex yet. I think about 4mo out of water.

well, here are some photos! Quite a few of my plants are not Id’d so feel free to chime in there. I do know that the phal orchid in there will likely not do well, but I got it for $1 at Walmart and I just wanted to try.

I do intend to add more wood in the middle area as well! I’m just searching for the right pieces .


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## Leafblade (Jul 14, 2021)




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## Leafblade (Jul 14, 2021)




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## Leafblade (Jul 14, 2021)




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## amfrogs (Jul 14, 2020)

That looks great! I’d maybe add some hardscape to maximise useable surface area for the frogs, so they can take advantage of all that space. A bit of wood or some vines would add good depth to the setup. Nice plant choice, that’ll grow in well.


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## Leafblade (Jul 14, 2021)

Thanks! Yes I was planning on adding some more wood for that middle space, I’m just searching for the right pieces ☺.


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## Tiger94 (Sep 3, 2021)

Leafblade said:


> View attachment 300791
> View attachment 300793


Beautiful Tank! You story sounds similar to mine as I started with plants and became obsessed with darts over night lol.


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## Alpine Amphibian (Oct 4, 2021)

I love this tank! I'm really curious what the bright pink flowered plant is. That is gorgeous.


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## eMCRay (Mar 24, 2020)

Looks very good!

What is that light blue / cyan thing on the back ledge (first picture, third post)? I want to say it looks like a white's tree frog blue morph but it is a bit tooo blue.

Two other small suggestions:
1) Leucs love climbing - add some manzanita branches or whatever in the middle (or just larger broms) and they will hang out all of them
2) Cork tubes. Strategically placed either in mid-air / against the back or Y or U-shaped ones on top of the substrate. Provides a hiding place (which makes the darts even more bold) AND triples the available space of the viv portion they cover (floor space + inside of cork tube + top of cork tube).


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## Alpine Amphibian (Oct 4, 2021)

eMCRay said:


> What is that light blue / cyan thing on the back ledge (first picture, third post)? I want to say it looks like a white's tree frog blue morph but it is a bit tooo blue.


It looks like a Bulbasaur to me haha


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## Alpine Amphibian (Oct 4, 2021)

And now that the idea of Pokemon was in my head I found a Cubone too!


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## k5MOW (Jun 19, 2015)

Looks awesome


Roger


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Leafblade (Jul 14, 2021)

Alpine Amphibian said:


> It looks like a Bulbasaur to me haha


bwahah correct! Im kind of a nerd so there are a handful of pokemon in there. Its fun


Alpine Amphibian said:


> I love this tank! I'm really curious what the bright pink flowered plant is. That is gorgeous.


Its removed now but it was a phelenopsis orchid. From what I understand they are generally not recommended for DF terrariums as they are often too wet. I thought id try, it didnt do well. But yes it was pretty! 

Sorry somehow I forgot to reply. But I've got an update! My Leucs are loving the terrarium and since adding more wood they go all the way to the top! I thought id include some new pictures as well. I do have a small slug problem. I get em as I find them, I havent seen one in about a month so im hoping they are gone. But some leaves still look a little worse for wear. My hermigraphis alternata has flowered for the 2nd or 3rd time.


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## fredk (Oct 25, 2021)

Leafblade said:


> bwahah correct! Im kind of a nerd so there are a handful of pokemon in there. Its fun
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Heehee so it is. I couldn't tell from the first pics. My kids were obsessed with pokymon for quite a few years.

I love this picture. I like the idea of having the viv viewable from at least two sides. It makes the space look so much larger.


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## Leafblade (Jul 14, 2021)

Thanks so much for the positive feedback ☺ I’m really loving this viv! It’s coming up on a year which totally blows my mind. I have since added a second and am looking into acquiring a third. As it goes right? Well, here’s some updated pictures .


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## FloraLaura (Sep 24, 2021)

I love the wood piece you added to the viv. It give great visual depth. Sometimes fining the perfect branch is harder than finding plants!


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## hansgruber7 (Mar 23, 2020)

This is a beautiful viv and wonderful frogs. Well done! One small tip, you can hide the foam by putting black tape on the outside. I think it looks nicer, but obviously it's just for preference.


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## fredk (Oct 25, 2021)

Excellent pictures too! The depth of field on those last two frog pics is awesome.


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## Leafblade (Jul 14, 2021)

FloraLaura said:


> I love the wood piece you added to the viv. It give great visual depth. Sometimes fining the perfect branch is harder than finding plants!


thanks I looove it! I found it at a reptile expo. I only wish I had gotten mlre



hansgruber7 said:


> This is a beautiful viv and wonderful frogs. Well done! One small tip, you can hide the foam by putting black tape on the outside. I think it looks nicer, but obviously it's just for preference.


oh for sure. It’s one of those things I’ve always meant to do I’m just too lazy and too much of a procrastinator to actually get it done 🙈



fredk said:


> Excellent pictures too! The depth of field on those last two frog pics is awesome.


Thanks so much! They are both just iPhone pictures 😂 even though do professional photography work, they go hide if they see me get out the camera. Ironically the phone they don’t mind 🤷🏻‍♂️


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## fredk (Oct 25, 2021)

Leafblade said:


> ...
> 
> 
> Thanks so much! They are both just iPhone pictures 😂 even though do professional photography work, they go hide if they see me get out the camera. Ironically the phone they don’t mind 🤷🏻‍♂️


Funny! I'm surprised you can get much in the way of depth of field from an iPhone.


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## ctharnettnz (Dec 25, 2021)

Looks amazing. Definetly something to be proud of for your first time. The pokemon are _chefs kiss. _Do you find they use the extra height? Looking into getting my first Viv and I think the extra height and plants definetly looks more aesthetically appealing.


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## Leafblade (Jul 14, 2021)

ctharnettnz said:


> Looks amazing. Definetly something to be proud of for your first time. The pokemon are _chefs kiss. _Do you find they use the extra height? Looking into getting my first Viv and I think the extra height and plants definetly looks more aesthetically appealing.


Thanks so much! haha yea the pokemon are kinda funny but i'll be honest, when people come into my home and look at the viv, 9/10 that is the very first thing they comment on. ITs kind of hilarious. Its just a small way of me expressing my geekiness but people really seem to like it. 

As far as the height and whether or not the frogs enjoy- a lot will come down to individual species and individual frogs themselves. I have three leucs in this viv and 2 of them use the height all the way to the top. One doesnt. You also have to make it accessible. As you can see in my earlier pictures it wasnt as easily accessible as it is now and they do, they love it. I find them all the way at the top which I think is fun. Its also kind of fun to watch them jump from the top "sail" style when I add food to the tank. They really just throw themselves from a ledge and its kind of hilarious to watch. 
I also do enjoy the height for the plants- it kind of changes what plans to use as you can use some that have more height than others. Some have said it makes it more difficult to keep humid but I havent found that to be the case. There really arent any negatives as long as youre creative enough to truly use the verticle space


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