Couple Question, w/ Pics! :)

[CrazyAirborne]

Hey everyone, new frog owner here, Ive had my White's for a couple weeks and recently was given a really cool old (1988 sticker on it) terrarium from a friend, started cleaning it up today and ran into a few problems. Let me know what you guys think.




This stuff is on every seal, Im not really worried about this tank being water tight, but can this bacteria be harmful to my frog? Any idea's on how I can clean it? I let some bleach water sit in it over night, and it didnt really do anything at all.


Also, this is the magical vanishing scum stuff, as soon as its wet, you cant see it, how the heck to do i clean it? I took a scrubby pad to it and tried really hard to scrub it off, but i think this aquarium has been sitting for years, this stuff is baked on!


and this is some mold that started growing my my store boughten log, in my current terrarium. i mist daily to keep my humidity up, but i guess my moss is too wet? any ideas? I would assume i need to clean this off asap?

and 1 last question, for my new terrarium, I plan on getting some soil from the woods behind my house, taking some topsoil shouldnt be a problem right? I know its never been sprayed or anything. can I just put this on the bottom and plant some plants in it, or do i have to make a false floor and all that fancy jazz? I plan on keeping a water dish in there, so i wont have a pond or anything in it. Any suggestions?

Thanks guys!

[Kurt]

This stuff is on every seal, Im not really worried about this tank being water tight, but can this bacteria be harmful to my frog? Any idea's on how I can clean it? I let some bleach water sit in it over night, and it didnt really do anything at all.

Bleach will kill bacteria and other pathogens, but what you are dealing with is most likely mineral deposits. You will need something like CLR to take it off, but before you try it let John chime in on this, as he has a PhD in chemistry.

[CrazyAirborne]

it really looks like mold to me, the kind that gets under the caulking in your bathroom, its basically the same as that, under the silicone in all the corners. the white stuff on the black plastics could definitely be mineral deposits tho. I probably will try CLR on it.

[John]

Since it's in underneath the Silicone, you will have a hard time getting it out without removing the silicone. Aside from that, to remove mineral deposits and kill mould, use vinegar and some elbow grease.

[CrazyAirborne]

as long as i kill this mold, i should be ok to use the tank right? even if i cant remove it? since its under the silicone?

[Skulldroog]

That's an awesome tank you have there, good luck finding a lid for that. I think that design and shape would make it difficult to find something to cover it with. Anyways, good luck with the project. Keep us updated!

[CrazyAirborne]

well im actually making a lid out of the one that came with it, its an aquarium lid, so I cut large squares in it, and will be using screening to cover them. im just wondering what the best method of attaching the screen to the hard plastic would be, while still letting it look nice. i think ill glue it on the inside, so you cant see the glue from the top.

[John]

I'd say you'll be ok if you give it a good rub with vinegar.

[oneshotveth]

Just to throw this out there (and to get it out of my head)

Whenever I see a hexagonal aquarium to be used for a tree frog, I always thought it would be cool to build something only in the middle, so the frog could go all the way around it. All of the hexagonal builds I've seen have picked one wall to be the "back" wall so to speak.

Just my $.02

[CrazyAirborne]

well my initial idea was exactly that, i wanted to get one larger main center piece type plant for the middle, and then just do whatever with the outsides, but idk if its preferred for them to have some sort of background so the frogs feel more comfortable and will move around more freely.

[Skulldroog]

That's an awesome idea. Wish I could find a cheap hexagon tank near me, all of them run at about $150 or so.

Little out of my price range for now. Heh. Maybe down the line.

[CrazyAirborne]

yeah luckily for me, a friend had this one sitting in a storage room getting dusty, its only a 15-20? gallon or so, so its pretty small, im not a very good judge of size, but i want to find a cool mini tree of some sort for the center, any ideas?

[Tropicok]

How about placing a really nice, interesting, tall piece of wood in the middle and then decorating it with moss, vines, small plants, air plants and maybe even an orchid which likes humidity. Set large and medium rocks and other plants around the base. I think I saw one similar on a vivarium or orchid forum. That's what I would do and leave some little shallow caves for frogs to hide in. It could have water around the base or not, your preference or skill at building a tank. I would love to try one someday but, like you, the price is out of reach.

[CrazyAirborne]

well ive been building since i found this forum, got a lot of great ideas. made a false bottom, found some cool plants. got some more ideas, i actually made a couple great stuff ledges that i cut out for plants, and planned on siliconing them to the sides, but I kinda like it like this. The Plants are in!!! I got one Brom just cuz i felt i needed to fit in with everyone elses vivs

















I took moss from the woods down my road, along with the soil. Ive seen little bitty critter moving around in it, so im excited to have living soil!. I think im going to get more moss 2morow and cover up the rest of the soil...
Im also finishing up the top this weekend.

I need a polarizer so i can take better pics thru the glass in the future..

[CrazyAirborne]

Well I retro fitted my hood. turned out nice. This is where i got the idea




also today i realized that one of the plants i put in there must have had that perrlite? or what i thought was just little pieces of styrofoam in the soil, and now i see a couple pieces of it in there, will this stuff hurt my frog chemically? or is it just the impaction that i should be worried about? I plan on covering most of the soil up with moss, so if its not going to harm him, i wont go crazy ripping all the soil up to try and get it all out. what do you guys suggest?

[Paul Rust]

Well I retro fitted my hood. turned out nice. This is where i got the idea




also today i realized that one of the plants i put in there must have had that perrlite? or what i thought was just little pieces of styrofoam in the soil, and now i see a couple pieces of it in there, will this stuff hurt my frog chemically? or is it just the impaction that i should be worried about? I plan on covering most of the soil up with moss, so if its not going to harm him, i wont go crazy ripping all the soil up to try and get it all out. what do you guys suggest?

As long as you cover it with moss it won't hurt anything, as a matter of fact it is good for your plants and humidity because it holds moisture. It isn't a fertilizer if that's the concern, it is just a type of volcanic glass.

[Jace]

Wow-nice setup! You did a really great job.

[Ebony]

What a wonderful job you did. Your frog is going to be very happy.