The Build

[deranged chipmunk]

of course that would be ok. in fact, i would actually recommend putting them in a quarantine tank for at least 30 days before adding them to their new home. it gives you time to tweak the viv and also to evaluate the frogs health. i quarantine mine for a month before adding them. i know lynn does and heck, heather has had her darts in quarantine since october since she never built them a home yet.....lol

[Meefloaf]

i know Bill, thats why i was so tempted, i'm going to get my plants and custodians ordered this week, may have to pop over to the shop next week and get them, want to get plants done before thinking of quarantine

going to have to get em some fruit flies sorted too as they are soooo tiny, i cannot say how cute they were

[Meefloaf]

took a deep breath and splashed the cash on dartfrog, got some springtails and woodlice on their way (seira spring mega pack, didnt have the others so will order when in and got two different types of woodlice) and these plants

Guzmania theresae



Neoregelia fireball striped pot



Platycerium ellisi



Dracaena deremensis compacta



Asplenium antiquum



Neoregelia marginata offset



Epiprenum pictus argyraeus cutting

[Heatheranne]

of course that would be ok. In fact, i would actually recommend putting them in a quarantine tank for at least 30 days before adding them to their new home. It gives you time to tweak the viv and also to evaluate the frogs health. I quarantine mine for a month before adding them. I know lynn does and heck, heather has had her darts in quarantine since october since she never built them a home yet.....lol

(lol! )

[DartfrogDan]

i've just been down to the dartfrog shop today to pick my frogs up,really nice bloke

[Meefloaf]

would love to visit there and check it out, hand pick stuff etc rather than have it picked for you

[deranged chipmunk]

nice choice of plants. the staghorn (Platycerium ellisi) and the bird's nest (Asplenium antiquum) are going to out grow the tank VERY quickly, so plan for it

[Meefloaf]

Any tips for planting and trimming? Cheers Bill, fell in love with the Guzmania

[deranged chipmunk]

the guzmania and neos are epiphytes and can just be tied to a branch or attached to the background. so is the staghorn. the bird' nest, i would remove as many OUTER leaves as possible if you receive it in a larger form. then plant it in a pot. the dracaena is the same just plant it. the pothos, you can either plant the cut end, place the cut end n your water feature (if you have one) and let it grow out, or just lay it where you want it to grow from. pothos and philodendrons are amazing plants and can even be planted under water, and they will eventually gro themselves out of the water. you may also want to consider a small vining plant as well, such as a ficus pumilia (creeping fig) or a rhaphidophora species.

[DartfrogDan]

I agree it was really nice to see the frogs in their viavriums, and be able to take a list of what you need and just get it there and then

[Meefloaf]

do have some heating questions

1) will i need the heater running when i get my plants in, or just run the lights ?

2) i have two heat mats, both lucky reptile, 26 x 27.5cm & 51 x 15cm, which one is better, the 51x15 fills far more vertical space and sits comfortably on my side, the 26x27.5 fills more square and just overlaps my side background (also if this one is better, better to place it closer to substrate or to the top ?)

[Meefloaf]

got this netting for just over £1 for a 1mx1.2m to use as substrate divider, the other stuff i got was 2mm gauge holes

and here's one of those size ratio photos to give perspective of the gauge of the mesh

[Meefloaf]

so, got the email to say my plants and critters are on their way, so i thought i'd better make them a nice bed to live in, since i've taken these i've added my moss sludge to certain parts of vines and background

[Meefloaf]

the two broms on the ground are secured into a piece of cork bark each

[Heatheranne]

Looking great!

[deranged chipmunk]

looking good! i like the way you have it planted. you could save yourself a pot for another plant by just tying the staghorn to branch or attaching it to some of the cork. it flourishes when it is grown as an epiphyte.

[Meefloaf]

Bill, not getting anything over 20c heat wise, hot a heat mat to fit the space of empty glass on the side, would a bigger mat be a problem? I'd lose a chunk of it behind the background, but at the same time get more heat hopefully

[deranged chipmunk]

a bigger mat shouldn't be an issue. just be careful having too much of the mat exposed to bare glass on the inside. if one of your milkies decides to hang out on the glass where that mat is and it turns on, the glass may get too hot for your frog. of course, you would also hope the frog would not stay in a spot that got too hot. do you have any room on the top for a ceramic emitter?

[Meefloaf]

yeah, but i got warned away from them regarding frogs, also dont have the halogens in the middle of my dual canopy

[deranged chipmunk]

gotcha. i don't like the emitters personally. that's why i build all my tanks with false bottoms so i can use aquarium heaters. i would try the heating pad if i were in your situation.