Where do I start??? My new to me 18x18x24 ZooMed

[NatureLady]

I am so excited! After reading all of your wonderful posts about your Viv's, I now get to start my own. I found a 18x18x24 ZooMed for 40 bucks on craigslist and it is only a few months old. The person selling it is going to give me all of her unwanted tank decor too (fake plants, fake vines, heated vines, etc.) Not sure if I will use the extra's, but I will have them if I do need them!

Any tips on what it takes to make a great viv for a wtf?

I want it all! And need help deciding what is the must haves in a build!

[S13]

That's one hell of a deal, congrats on that. You should check out this section of the forum for people's "build threads" and get some ideas and tweak them to be your own unique little twist. For White's, being a tree frog the higher the better. Plants up high, vines, perches, etc. Good luck, and lets see some pics as you progreess.

[NatureLady]

See as I stalk through the posts all I do is say "I want that"! I have read almost all of the build logs.

Here is a question I have...Instead of buying eggcrate could one use larger (smooth river) rocks as the drainage layer then cover with the screening to keep the coco fiber out of the water?

[UncleChester]

Here is a question I have...Instead of buying eggcrate could one use larger (smooth river) rocks as the drainage layer then cover with the screening to keep the coco fiber out of the water?

Sure. This would be like the leca/hydroballs/hydroton approach but with rocks (the rocks will be heavier). I'm a fan of landscape fabric ('weed barrier') instead of window screening to keep the substrate from the drainage layer as it's nicer to work into funny shapes if needed, but screening works as well.

Make sure to test your new acquisition holds water before construction.

Great price by the way, nice find.

[J Teezy]

here's the thing with using large rocks. How heavy is that going to be? Just from prior hobby of keeping fish, the less weight you can put on the bottom glass the better. Since you will be covering the rocks up with a barrier and substrate, you might as well use hydroton if you dont want to use eggcrate. I would really not recommend using large rocks, Keep the weight down where possible! Hydroton is pretty cheap especially if you buy it at hyrdoponic store or garden store. Its the same stuff pet stores sell but doesn't have the typical pet store price hike on it

[flybyferns]

Hi Amanda,
WOW ! Great tank, great price !!!
Maybe start re-potting live plants NOW!!!!
heated vines for tree frogs! Yikes! - recipe for disaster !
In my experience, the fake vines and plants have very sharp pcs of metal sticking out of the 'bud' areas.
So, check them over, very, very carefully !

It's great to plan ahead ! Take your time, and ENJOY !

Have you made a final decision re what frog you want to purchase, as that has to happen first.

Thank You, for the nice 'notification'!
Lynn

[NatureLady]

Hi Amanda,
WOW ! Great tank, great price !!!
Maybe start re-potting live plants NOW!!!!
heated vines for tree frogs! Yikes! - recipe for disaster !
In my experience, the fake vines and plants have very sharp pcs of metal sticking out of the 'bud' areas.
So, check them over, very, very carefully !

It's great to plan ahead ! Take your time, and ENJOY !

Have you made a final decision re what frog you want to purchase, as that has to happen first.

Thank You, for the nice 'notification'!
Lynn

This will be an upgrade for my wtf pimby she/he is still rather small and a friend (after the build is finished).

I don't really plan to use the fake stuff, but it is nice that she was willing to throw it in with the tank!

[J Teezy]

well i don't know much about whites tree frogs, but i can say this. I'd use live plants over fake ones. Live plants make things look so much more realistic and help with the ecosystem going on inside your tank.

I can't recommend enough a mistking misting system. It is hands down probably the best addition you could probably make to a tank. Not having to worry about being home to mist your enclosure or hand misting at all = less you have to do to maintain your tank plus its just awesome to watch it kick on and start spraying. Mistking's system is probably the best out there for the hobby. Of course there is the exo terra monsoon mist system as well, but if you read around on the net you will find that alot of people have problems with it, I believe this having to do with the electronics of that system is right there where the water is, and well we all know water and electronics don't mix. Sure the monsoon looks all pretty, but the mistking is better quality. For the price of the monsoon you can get the standard system from mistking, but if you do get a mistking i suggest you upgrade to the ultimate system. The zip drip valve is worth it and plus all the extra stuff it comes with will come in handy even though you may think you won't need it chances are you will eventually. Not only is the mistking a solid product but Marty (the owner and designer) will give you the best customer support you probably will ever get from any company.

Fake vines - If seen and handled the exo terra vines and i own a Baby Bio Vine. My opinion on the vines is that the bio vine looks better and feels better.

Substrate- if you are going to use live plants, I like the ABG mix substrate. You can buy all the stuff you need to mix your own up, or you can buy it directly from Josh's frogs. I bought mine from him and i like it alot

Some good temperature and humidity monitoring devices. I'm using the Exo Terra Thermometer / Hydrometer 2 in 1 . Seems to be pretty accurate and i like the fact that it slides into my exo terra light fixture.