False bottom?

[Calmwaters]

I am planning on replaceing the fake plants with real plants and want plant them in the substrate I was wondering if instead of makeing it from the egg crate material could I just put a layer of pebbles then the screen then the dirt? If not how can I hide the egg crate and pvc pipes that hold it up?

[HerpDerp]

The reason a lot of people opt for the false bottom over what you're talking about is because it ends up not holding much water and it's more difficult to drain the water from it. The way I made my false bottom was I angled the front eggcrate towards the glass so that I could fill that in with coco fiber and it wouldn't be as visible. Alternatively, you could just do a straight cut off about an inch away from the front of the glass and fill it in with coco fiber so it can't be seen. For easy drainage I just used air tubing for a fish tank and put a small bit of it sticking just out of the dirt and put a connector on there. When I need to drain it I just connect another piece of hose there and siphon it out. Also, instead of pvc piping I just made a "T" with small sections of egg crate to hold up the bottom. Hopefully you can see what I'm talking about in these photos:

[Calmwaters]

Ok I see what you are talking about thank you for the picture.

[deranged chipmunk]

I am planning on replaceing the fake plants with real plants and want plant them in the substrate I was wondering if instead of makeing it from the egg crate material could I just put a layer of pebbles then the screen then the dirt? If not how can I hide the egg crate and pvc pipes that hold it up?

you can definitely do it that way, i like to call it "the basic dart frog setup". drainage layer, screen, soil, leaf litter. i have done a couple tanks that way, but i prefer the false bottom method. it's just a personal choice. there are many build threads on the forum to give you ideas and inspiration

[Heatheranne]

Here is a simple false bottom set-up. I discovered that I wasn't fond of the rock layer, except to the front edge. It made changing the substrate a bit of a pain.



This was my first vivarium.

[deranged chipmunk]

Nice

[Heatheranne]

Thanks . I found that it became too over planted and adjusted it later though.



Here was another modification of it. Though not as pretty, they were more active and came to the front more after this change. I had also added a mini feeding cup to this one.

They are now in a temporary 18x18x24 until I get the big tank and bully is in this one, which is now more of a pond.

[Calmwaters]

Very, very nice! It looks like you did the false bottom, then is that aquarium gravel, then potting soil?

[Heatheranne]

Yes, aquarium gravel, then peat moss, then Eco earth. Though you can get ABG mix from joshsfrogs and it works much better.

[Calmwaters]

Awesome! I have extra gravel from my fish tanks.

[deranged chipmunk]

Sorry Heather, but i like the first one more. and the abg mix from josh's is awesome, but it's easy enough to make your own. Cheaper too , especially if you have a large or multiple enclosures. I stay away from gravel and stick with hydroton for the surface area you get for bio filtration.

[Calmwaters]

I like them both but I agree with Bill, I like the first one better.

[Heatheranne]

Haha! No worries bc I tore it apart anyhow (both).

[KittyKat90]

I know there is no such thing as a stupid question... but these ones might come close. What is the point of a false bottom? What is it's main job? Can you put a false bottom in a FBT's tank and them thrive better? Is there a step by step thread on here somewhere showing you how?

[Heatheranne]

The purpose of a false bottsom is to provide a drainage area for excess water to go. This prevents the wateer from lingering in the substrate creating mold and bacteria. Without the false bottom the water from misting would create a wet, stinky bog, andr your plants would die.

[deranged chipmunk]

Unless of course, you had all bog plants in the tank, and that would eventually really stink. P-U!!!

[Heatheranne]

Lol!!!!