Exo Terra 36x18x18 PDF build

[Zhuisky45]

This project is my first ever PDF build and I can't wait until i can enjoy it with a group of Tincs in it. It's a Exo Terra 36x18x18. I purchased a kit from Josh's Frogs ( false bottom, ABG mix, leaf litter, branches, coco hut, and springtails.) I also have a Exo Terra canopy that houses 3 of Josh's Frogs Green Grow LED light bulbs. This tank will have an Exo Terra Monsoon misting system along with a fogger. I have a Zoo Med Hygrometer that regulates the heat and fogger. The plants that I have planted so far are bromeliads, two different species of Pilea, Pathos, Tradescantia, and a Peperomia. I'd like to house 4-5 juvenile Dendrobates Tinctorius Azureus. This tank has been up and running for about a week and a half. I will add Azureus's in another 3 weeks. Also pictured is my frog rack that will house two pacman frogs and a RETF tank once I move them all over. Hope you enjoy and feel free to shoot me some pointers or any concerns you may see in how I am setting things up. enjoy!



Frog Rack





Josh's Frogs false bottom and ABG layers






Sphagnum moss layer





Leaf litter, coco huts, and branches all in place





Pathos





Completely planted





I will continuously update this thread as I add or change things.





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[DigitalPunk]

Looks good! I love Josh's Frogs

Azureus will love it They are very bold and will use every inch of space in there . We have 2 Azureus and they love to climb on the sides of the tank and quite literally use all the space the tank had to offer lol. Adding springtails to the soil will go a long way in making the Tincs happy. They LOVE to snack on those little guys. I would recommend setting up a breeding culture of them so you can quickly add more as you see them being consumed. I current add more springs to my Dart tank about once a month or so. Breeding Springs is super easy and is well worth it

[Zhuisky45]

Thats why I want Azureus! They seem so bold and fun to watch. I have RETF and all they do is sleep so I'm looking forward to getting these guys. I'm hoping if they grow up together inside the tank that they will get along with each other and I won't have to separate them. Was hoping to get 4-5. Also, I currently have two fairly big springtails cultures going right now and it is nice having the extra springtails around! Do you feed yours springtails and fruit flies on a regular basis?


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[DigitalPunk]

We feed them fruit flies dusted with Calcium w/ D3 and Multivitamin. We dust with the calcium every Mon, Wed, Fri, and with the Multivitamin every Sat. We do this for all our frogs (2 Tincs, 5 Red Eyes, 5 Mantellas, and 4 Vents). We started out feeding the Azureus daily with fruit flies and then tapered it back to every other days with the fruit flies and let them chow down on the Springtails in the tank on the off days.

When we first got the Azureus from Josh they were to small to eat the fruit flies so we would add a small amount of springs daily to make sure there were some on the leaves for the frogs to find. Once a week during this time we would add a few flies to see if they would eat them. Once they started eating them regularly we switched to adding more flies. We try to do roughly 12 flies per frog, but we don't count them and just dump them in a pile and watch the frogs go to town

I don't think you will have any issues housing 5 of them in your tank. They are going to love it

[LilyPad]

Looking very nice! Great job! Azureus are really beautiful little frogs and I think they will be very happy in there!

[Zhuisky45]

I might start culturing some fruit flies in preparation for getting my frogs in about 3 weeks. Kind of get a hang of everything before they arrive. What day and night temp do you keep yours at? And do you have a mated pair?


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[DigitalPunk]

Ours are still young. We think we have a male and a female (based solely on size). The temps in the tank stay pretty constant. We have a water section in the tank that is heated with an aquatic heater. We let the radiant heat from the water heat the tank (around the mid 70s).

The Melanogaster fruit flies are super easy to culture. I have tried several ways to culture fruit flies. I used Josh's mix, Home made, and NEHerps Mix. I now use the NeHerp mix exclusively. It is fast, doesn't smell, and is easy to mix. We make 2 - 4 cultures every 2 weeks. We do this to make sure we always have plenty of flies to feed the frogs and plenty left over to start new cultures. This also gives us a cushion in case we contract mites in a culture and have a crash.

[Zhuisky45]

I see. Right now my day temp is around 76 but my night time temps are dropping to 68. So I'm trying to fix that temp swing. How long does it take for the melanogaster flies to culture? And is mites a huge problem and how do you avoid that?


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[DigitalPunk]

With the NEHerp mix you typically will see larva at 1 week and new flies at 2 weeks. The best way to avoid mites or at least limit them is to toss cultures in the trash at the 30 day mark. We have a sort of system we use with our flies. The cultures we are trying to feed off to throw away that are at the 30 day mark or near to it and move them away from the starting cultures.

When I setup a new culture I use a sharpie marker to write the date the culture was started on it. We always feed from the oldest cultures and work our way through the cultures.

I have not had any issues with mites yet *knock on wood*. There is mite spray you can buy to spray some paper towels and then put the cultures on the paper towels and it is suppose to keep mites away.

I think the more important thing than temps is the humidity. What humidity are you able to maintain in the tank? How often are you having to mist to keep it up? The temps swing will greatly effect your humidity. On all my Dart/Mantella tanks I have over 90% of the top cover with glass and just a small 1 - 3" section of screening for ventilation. In our Azureus tank we actually have zero ventilation and let the air exchange that happens when we open it to mist and feed be all the ventilation they get.

[Zhuisky45]

I have the glass panels on the top screens of the tank and it stays about 70% humidity. I haven't set up my misting system yet but I'm sure that will bump it up quiet a bit. The only ventilation is the vent strip at the bottom of the tank. I have a fogger I can run as well.


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[DigitalPunk]

The fogger will be great. As for misting I used to use a automatic misting system, but have since moved to hand misting all my tanks. I feel like it gives me better control of how wet I keep the tank. It also lets me be more hands on with the tanks daily.

Sounds like you have everything firmly under control. You are going to love the Darts. They are so much fun to watch go about their day .

[deranged chipmunk]

With the NEHerp mix you typically will see larva at 1 week and new flies at 2 weeks. The best way to avoid mites or at least limit them is to toss cultures in the trash at the 30 day mark.

14-21 days is the typical incubation period for melanogaster. Depending on temp.

Throw them out after 30 days? I'm around day 54 with some of my cultures and they are still producing like mad!! Lol


Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world ~ Nelson Mandela

[deranged chipmunk]

I have the glass panels on the top screens of the tank and it stays about 70% humidity. I haven't set up my misting system yet but I'm sure that will bump it up quiet a bit. The only ventilation is the vent strip at the bottom of the tank. I have a fogger I can run as well.


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Remove the glass, then remove the screens. Then replace the glass using silicone to glue it to the frame. The high humidity of a dart tank will cause the screens to rust out. And you don't want rust inside the enclosure


Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world ~ Nelson Mandela

[Zhuisky45]

Thanks for the heads up. I'll have to look into doing that soon before it gets to bad!


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[Zhuisky45]

Does the do it yourself fruit fly media rot and smell quickly? Is it worth the hassle? Or is it better to buy the dry stuff from a supplier?


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[DigitalPunk]

I think the fruit fly media you use is up to personal pref. You can make your own t home cheap. Bill shared out his recipe with the forum a while ago. I tried it and it worked great, however it was to much for my son and daughter to do on their own so I got the NeHerp media which requires no mixing and it is simply amazing.

[DigitalPunk]

Also to go along with what Bill said (I missed that you said the glass was sitting onto of the screen - Nice catch bill!).

I buy my glass from a local custom glass shop. I just placed the order for the top of my 24x18x2 tank. They will remove the screen from the eco terra top and silicone in some glass and are doing all for $12.

[deranged chipmunk]

The home recipe smells about the same as the commercial stuff. I think my cultures last so long because I don't skimp on the amount I use.


Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world ~ Nelson Mandela

[Zhuisky45]

Just received five Dendrobates Tinctorius Azureus from Josh's frogs! They are well started juveniles and are very active. Still a bit skidish but a week or two in the new tank will settle them in. Beautiful Darts!




Panoramic view of the tank!



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[Zhuisky45]

Its been about 6 months and the tank has grown in nicely. I've also added live moss that has taken off throughout the tank. Here are some progress shot of both the vivarium and the frogs.


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