40b Dart tank - Natural style build Journal

[DigitalPunk]

Nice tip with the Yoga mat! Will Def look into that.

As I said earlier. The weight of the rocks in the tank is a big concern for us on this build. I really do appreciate the tips on how to best distribute the weight across the bottom glass as evenly as possible.

[deranged chipmunk]

the yoga mat works very well you just need to make sure it is slightly thicker than the rim that way when the tank is set on it and the weight is in it, it will compress so the rim sits flat. i've done this with rimmed and rimless tanks and i know it saved more than one tank.

[DigitalPunk]

Will Def be looking into the Yoga mat trick. Really don't like the idea of using egg crate in the natural setup


So I am testing out heating the terrarium using an underwater heater in a 10 Gallon tank. it appears to be working on a much smaller scale than this tank will end up being but it has brought out something I have not tried to address yet, and that is the Fog. I covered the top of the 10 gallon in Plastic wrap to log in the moisture and trap some heat to simulate the dart tank when it is finished. I assume the fag is due to lack of ventilation, but I am wondering what others do to combat it. I was considering putting 1/2 section of screen along the front glass to promote air flow over the front glass to help keep it down, but I also know due to the high humidity needs the dart tank needs to have little to no air circulation.


Soo at the risk of repeating myself in this post. What are some good tricks to limit fog.

[DigitalPunk]

Another Brief update - I returned the excess rocks I purchased (136 pounds worth of excess). I took the money to Home Depot and bought some Blocks and MDF and set up a cheap stand for it. I decided to set it up low to allow the vertically challenged peoples in the house access to feed and trim and such without any difficulty. I decided to set this one up down in the basement of my 1850 era home. It looks rough, but it is heated and stays daily humid on its own which will be nice during the winter months. As time progresses I will clean this space up more and make it into a proper frog room. I have access to the water lines to the outside faucets from here and plan to "T" one off to a faucet in the basement for the tanks (so i don't have to haul water form upstairs down here to dechlorinate.





Decided to go ahead and get a sheet of egg crate while I was there and cut it to fit. This will help with spreading the load out. I opted for this route over the yoga matt because it was cheaper



I have begun pricing and planning on the purchases for the Aquatic section. Once I have that all setup and running I will turn my focus onto the land masses.


PS - Hauling the blocks, rocks, and tank down into the basement today sucked. lol

[DigitalPunk]

Big order placed this week for supplies.

Aquatic heater
Small water filter
Ultra Sonic Fogger
Moss
Drift wood
A large cork round
Aquatic soil
Sprintails (starting a breeding culture)
Isopods (starting a breeding culture)
Hinge for the glass top
Handle for the glass top
Glass top

Will ultimately try to heat the tank using the Aquatic heater, but won't know if that will work until I try it out. It was working in a 10Gallon tank. If this doesn't work I will either use a CHE or Heat cord.