I've attempted to provide an Image of the blueprint here, but my uploads continue to be refused with the reply "this is not a valid file". If a moderator or administrator could assist, I will provide the image along with video and photos as the project unfolds.


I'm a new member here and want to share my paludarium build project as it develops. I'm at the beginning stages and welcome any suggestions you might have on how to improve upon my approach. Hopefully something I'm doing will also help other members.

My past endeavors have been with reef aquariums, planted tanks, and amphibian/reptile enclosures. This will be my first paludarium. I intend to incorporate some of the techniques from each hobby into the new build. As a result, the approach will be a bit unconventional.

The picture above is of the initial design which has changed slightly. I have moved the overflow box from the paludarium portion into the planted tank portion. The top of the paludarium section will have a 100% screen top rather than glass/screen. There are several aspects that will go into the design that I will try to address. Some of which are the following.....

1. The landscape/aquascape design of the paludarium portion of the enclosure.

The paludarium will have two waterfalls being plumbed up from the sump. One will be a PVC drip system along the rock wall background. The second will be a cascading one that extends from the back right-hand corner to the midsection. The second land mass will be on the opposite side in the back left-hand corner. Of course below the land surface will be the water portion in the foreground of the set up.

2. The aquascape of the planted tank portion.

This portion of the enclosure will extend from the floor up to the paludarium section where they connect at mid-height. The water will flow from one to the other. The triangular background above the planted tank will also have a rock wall and PVC drip showering over it.

3. The sump design beneath the paludarium portion.

The sump approach with mechanical biological and chemical filtration is where the build gets a bit "unconventional". It will be somewhat of a hybrid system incorporation techniques from both fresh and saltwater aquariums. For example, I will be using my saltwater protein skimmer as a "water fractionator" (freshwater term), so some modifications will need to be made. With the amount of waste from the amphibians and reptiles potentially entering the water column I anticipate needing a more aggressive approach to extracting waste before it breaks down.

Since the bioload will be heavier, I will also have a moving bed and static bed filter made up of select media and plumbed through large reactors.

There will be much more to report and discuss later in this thread as the project unfolds. I will provide video and photos as updates.

Stay tuned.