Madagascar Mantella Paludarium

[deranged chipmunk]

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages!! gather 'round, the chipmunk is here to show you the "titebond method". no, it isn't a new form of birth control. remember abstinence is best, that what the bed bully tells me every night!!LOL no, this here is the awesome way to cover up all that nasty looking yellow great stuff. now, i have told you that this is easy, and it is, follow along as i titebond half my tank.

step one, purchase some titebond III wood glue. you can get it at home depot or lowes. it goes for about $6 for a 16 oz bottle. Lowes has it for $26/gallon. i have never seen the gallon jug at H.D. this is what you are buying


and YES it MUST be that exact brand. titebond I and II are NOT waterproof. next, get yourself a container, deli cups work nice and are cheap and disposable


add some glue


add some substrate. in this case, i am going with sphagnum peat moss because i am going for that dark, mysterious look of the dark continent


mix and add more glue if necessary. when you are finished, it should look something like this. like runny, nasty oatmeal


next step, paint it on. i like to use acid (flux) brushes. you can get them in the plumbing section of most hardware store as well as harbor freight tools, if you have one nearby. btw, harbor freight is an awesome place to get nitrile gloves. they have good quality ones and they are less expensive than most other places. i used to get my gloves for tattooing there.

here is the tank after painting on the titebond:



now, i just need to sit back and let it dry for about a week. yes a week. but, here's the kicker. there is no stinky smell from titebond. if you get it on your hands, it is easy to get off and here is the best part, all the bare spots you see, will be covered up by a second coat. yes, you can do this as many times as you like, unlike silicone, which is one and done. oh and another thing, i put nice, moist peat moss in the mix. no need to let it dry out like you need to do with coco fiber and silicone.

hope that explains it well enough. yes, it takes longer, but i truly believe it is worth it in the end.