How-to question about terrarium ponds

[1beataway]

A sweet looking set up like the one pictured can use a huge combination of different items to keep the water moving. If it was mine, I would use a small fountain pump with a length of tubing on the outlet run behind that awesome faux rock background. Then I would let the water trickle down the front of the background.

However, the best way to keep water from getting stagnant, pump or not, is to do regular water changes.

Over at Caudata Culture, we have a page of various vivaria builds you may find helpful. While they are built with caudates in mind, many would be suitable for anura too. If anything, you may get some interesting ideas!

Hey Johnny, I thought about it after I put together my vivarium, but I would love a waterfall. There's a chance that I may have to redo this setup sometime, because I didn't do the substrate in the best way (really, I should have bought double the hydroballs and double the rocks). Would you be up for helping me figure out how to do so using what I have?

[SludgeMunkey]

Hey Johnny, I thought about it after I put together my vivarium, but I would love a waterfall. There's a chance that I may have to redo this setup sometime, because I didn't do the substrate in the best way (really, I should have bought double the hydroballs and double the rocks). Would you be up for helping me figure out how to do so using what I have?

Anytime. I am a troubleshooter by trade. No engineering task is to great! (I don't have the clearance to do weapons systems anymore though...)

[1beataway]

Anytime. I am a troubleshooter by trade. No engineering task is to great! (I don't have the clearance to do weapons systems anymore though...)

I was going to add weapons to my vivarium. The building was going to be in the corner, next to the frogs' favourite hiding spot behind the tall plant.

But cool. I'll start thinking of questions to ask you.

[1beataway]

In a setup like mine (very first pic), how would the tubing work if I wanted to do a waterfall? How am I going to be sure there's enough force to get the water through the tube, without it going all over the place? If there is a crevice in the faux rock background that leads to the bottom, can I use that, or do I need to use something else to direct the flow?

I had wanted this "waterfall" to flow into a little stream that flows into the pond area...but Luigi is actually pretty good about moving those rocks in my vivarium, and I'm sure he would do the same for the rocks I would use for the stream. Do you have any other ideas, Johnny?

[SludgeMunkey]

All fountain and pond pumps are sold with the NPSH listed on the packaging. NPSH is Net Positive Suction Head which is a ratio describing (rough description) the rate at which water is pumped to a certain height. If you carefully read the packaging, or better yet research pumps on line, you will find one that has a flow rate that meets the height requirements you need.

Given the laws of physics (specifically fluid dynamics), you want to chose a pump in the 20-50 GPM flow rate for a lift of one foot. Again, this is a rough estimate. As silly as it sounds your elevation above sea level makes a big difference in the pump size you would need. (For instance, folks in Denver need a bigger pump to do the job, folks in New Orleans can get by with a smaller one...)

The other big factor is the diameter of tubing you install on the out put of the pump. Small diameters have a lower volume but a higher flow rate and vice versa for large diameters. (I use 1/2 inch or 3/8 tubing generally speaking. Most fountain pumps have a 3/8 outlet, pond pumps significantly larger.)

[1beataway]

I saw the word physics and I saw numbers, and I thought, "I just woke up. It's way too early for things that require my brain."

At the very least, it'll be a few weeks before I do this, so I have time to reread and to find the information I need.