Giant New Vivarium - Need Tips for setting it up!

[Gage]

So I have a GIGANTIC display terrarium I got from Craigslist that I am working on prepping to transfer my WTF into, followed shortly by populating it more densely with other WTF buddies.

I had to disassemble the thing to get it upstairs into my room, and have spent hours and hours scraping all the old silicone. I now have new aquarium sealant, and it says to use isopropyl alcohol before applying it to the panes of glass. I know alcohol evaporates easily, so I assume it's safe for the critters, but I don't want to roll on assumptions and get a dead froggy!

Any advice? Or tips for making the massive glass stay in place while the sealant cures?

Thanks in advance!

-Phil E.

[Eric and Stitch]

The alcohol will be fine as long as you aren't exposing your frogs directly to it or the vapors.

[deranged chipmunk]

2 options, masking tape, or build a jig to hold the glass while the silicone cures. and you gotta define giant. remember, some of us have some pretty big tanks....LOL

and like E&S stated, the alcohol will be fine. it's used to safely, chemically clean the glass to the silicone can adhere properly. i assume you have never built a tank before???

[Gage]

OK, giant in my case is approx 72" x 32" x 54" and it's octagonal.

Yup - you're right. I am a new WTF owner as of the last few day or two of December, and am working on moving my little guy into a cooler tank from the abysmal 10 gal he is in now.

-Phil E.

[Gage]

2 options, masking tape, or build a jig to hold the glass while the silicone cures. and you gotta define giant. remember, some of us have some pretty big tanks....LOL

and like E&S stated, the alcohol will be fine. it's used to safely, chemically clean the glass to the silicone can adhere properly. i assume you have never built a tank before???

So I made all the measurements and the tank is 385 gallons.

[ndame88]

Wow, thats huge!! make sure you use good silicone, I use CRL 100% silicone for all glass projects, GE silicone I is alright, but make sure not to use GE II

[Heatheranne]

Holy cow! You are so lucky! I'd be in my glory with a tank that big .

[flybyferns]

So I made all the measurements and the tank is 385 gallons.

Phil,
Congratulations! Have a great time building !

Holy cow! You are so lucky! I'd be in my glory with a tank that big .

Heath , You could live in there !

[Heatheranne]

I can't wait to see this build .

(Haha! I could definitely climb in).

[deranged chipmunk]

OK, giant in my case is approx 72" x 32" x 54" and it's octagonal.

Yup - you're right. I am a new WTF owner as of the last few day or two of December, and am working on moving my little guy into a cooler tank from the abysmal 10 gal he is in now.

-Phil E.

is it a standard tank or an octagon? There should only be 2 measurements for a hex tank., height and width. Just work slow and make sure all surfaces are pristine before you lay down sealant. Cleaning the glass with alcohol is extremely helpful.

[Gage]

Yeah as I said it really is huge. I will make sure to post some pictures, but I can pretty much guarantee it will be underwhelming for a while because I am moving houses in 3 months and it does not fit through my bedroom door without being entirely torn down to glass panels...
I already did that once to get it in my room haha!

But it is worth it. After all, I got it for $125! As for the confusion with the shape, I didn't feel like going into nitty gritty detail, but it is indeed an octagon. Just imagine that two of the sides stretched out to create the long dimension. There is a glass access panel in that long side. iI will try to post a pic later if you are still confused.

-Phil E.

[deranged chipmunk]

Nope. Not confused anymore. Too many drugs in my younger years i guess....lol that's massive. Nice find!

[Gage]

Haha, thanks! Credit goes to my lovely mother, though she spotted it on craigslist. I just made the six hour round trip drive to retrieve it. It is a pain to deal with though I had to totally tear it apart to get it upstairs. It's back together now, though, and the false bottom is all done and ready for install tomorrow.

I have an idea to do a bamboo "forest" in the tank by the little pond I will have, cause I really love the way the stuff looks. I found some bamboo growing not far from my house (serendipitously...), but I am looking for suggestions in that regard. I would ideally love to transplant live bamboo stalks into my tank; however, it is tough to get the stalks out of the ground intact, and I am aware that they could have parasites and bacteria.

Any recommendations for obtaining live (~3 foot tall) bamboo stalks that are safe to plant? Is my brewing plan of capturing the "wild" bamboo acceptable, given some cleansing processes?

[deranged chipmunk]

Man, i wish i had an answer for you on that one. I don't know the first thing about bamboo. Well as far as growing it. I would assume you would want fresh shoots, since it grows quickly. And i have no idea how you would keep it short to stay within the confines of a tank. You could always go with "lucky bamboo" (actually a dracaena). It would stay smaller and give you close to the same effect. Otherwise, you can use those dried bamboo stalks they sell in stores. I had kind of the same thought for my 125, since bamboo grows rampant in Madagascar, but went a different route after wracking my brains for a while.....lol

[Gage]

oh well thanks anyway. I'm trying to keep it simple right now and just get the thing operational. I am finishing up college, so I will be moving soon anyway. I am soaking my sphagnum moss now and once I toss that in I should be ready to recklessly charge ahead.

[Gage]

I actually have a little more information I need before said reckless charge.

I have four plants which have been growing on their own for about 2 (maybe 3?) weeks now. two of the four of them had perlite in the roots which was a devil to get out. I have seen things from time to time recommending letting the plant grow after removing the perlite, so iI am basically wanting to know a checklist of steps that need to be taken for a plant with or without perlite from purchase to planting in the tank.

[UncleChester]

I'm not too familiar with bamboos but these sort of things can often be propagated by using a hatchet or a chainsaw to divide the root ball, they can usually take a fair bit of suffering. If it's a free range invasive one then this is almost surely the case. Actually growing it indoors might be another problem, you should try to identify the plant and see how much shade it will tolerate, but keep in mind a plant that lives in a gardeners version of 'full shade' might still not get enough light in a typical indoor setting. You might be better off with dried bamboo sticks like Bill has suggested, or make your own out of the bamboo you found in the wild. Big thick vertical sticks with a philodendron or pothos vine twirling up it might look pretty neat.

Many other dracaenas will grow tall indoors and get woody looking stalks. There are often pretty large ones under the name 'Corn Plant' available that might be a good fit.

As for the perlite- it's inert and there is no reason to have a grow out period after you've removed it. Some people like a grow out period of a few weeks before introducing the plants to the frogs to give time for pesticides or fertilizers to fade, but I usually go right ahead after a good rinsing. Some people also soak their new plants in a mild bleach solution followed by a good rinsing.

Did you do a water test on your reassembled tank?

[Gage]

Ahh, OK, perfect. Great advice, Brian - thanks!

I will look into the dracaenas/corn plant. And I will keep that in mind about the perlite, too.

I have not done a water test - I used tap water treated with dechlorinator, same as I have used for the last 6 weeks or so in my little 10 gallon (Hope's current residence). What constitutes a water test, and what do I need to do it?

Phil

[UncleChester]

Sorry, I should have been more clear. I meant did you check to see if your reassembled tank stilll held water? Fill it to a couple of inches or so above your expected water line and leave it for at least a day to check for slow leaks. It's much better to find a leak before your build is finished

[Gage]

Ohh I gotcha! yeah I did. there are two sizeable holes in the bottom and the first attempt to plug them was unsuccessful and has resulted in a damp carpet... but I fixed it and now it seems to be doing well. Cons of not having enough time before I move residences are that I don't get to get. too fancy. Pro is I don't have to get. to fancy yet :-P