Display Paludarium Build

[UncleChester]

Sorry to hear about the leak, that's rather sad. It's a crack in the glass and not a hole somewhere in the silicone? 1/4" plate glass is pretty darn tough, it would be handy to know what went wrong.

Very pretty frogs by the way.

[VicSkimmr]

Yup, here's the pic I got of it


It's very bizarre. I would have expected a crack to span the entire pane of glass if it was caused by pressure. I was ecstatic to find out it wasn't my silicone job that caused it though.

[7urb0]

did you have the tank laying bare against the stand? its hard to tell from the pics. usually with a rimless tank there should always be a cloth of some sort between the tank and stand. the reason is that even a tiny grain of rock can crack a tank if the tank was on it.

[VicSkimmr]

Hmm, yeah I didn't have any foam under it. Man I bets that's exactly what caused it. That was an incredibly stupid mistake (since I should have known better).

[Poly]

Amazing build! I really need to get a 50mm lens, my 300mm just dosen't cut it for close up shots... well, actually it does, I just have to be 20+ feet away...

[Heatheranne]

What a beautiful build! It's gorgeous! I enjoyed reading through this thread. Thanks!

[UncleChester]

Hmm, yeah I didn't have any foam under it. Man I bets that's exactly what caused it. That was an incredibly stupid mistake (since I should have known better).

The usual assembly plan on a frameless tank has the bottom pane of glass raised up off the ground a few milimeters, this should protect from the small stuff you can't see. More of a gap might be needed as the tank gets bigger, especially with such a water load, glass does bend slightly little before is busts.

Did you check if the glass was thick enough to hold that amount of water? Most of the online calculators seem to be based on Calculating Glass Thickness for Aquariums but this webpage has a different calculation for the base of the tank than the sides that is ignored in all the calculators I've seen. In their sample calculation (for a giant 3'x9' tank) their base had to be nearly 50% thicker than the side panels. They also mention some kind of "self-leveling filler" will help you get away with a thinner base.

Either way, major bummer.

Amazing build! I really need to get a 50mm lens, my 300mm just dosen't cut it for close up shots... well, actually it does, I just have to be 20+ feet away...

Nothing beats a macro lens and the know how to use it for close ups. I don't think I'd like a 50mm for frog close-ups though, I use a 100mm and would often like to be furthur away. Just my preference though.

[Mentat]

Congratulations on your gorgeous vivarium, just read your whole thread. Was worried when saw the size of it and read was made of 1/4 in. plate... then the sad news on post 65 came. Your choice of keeping it without water is probably the best since replacing that bottom plate is a major project with set-up done and frogs in. Couple of things to think (if not done already) for future similar projects based on my aquarium experience:

- Use online calculator that considers tank length and width. Also, treat paludarium as a rimless tank with water height as tank height.

- Use tempered glass for bottom plate (major aquarium manufacturers do for a reason).

- Use high-strenght SCS1200 silicone for construction (http://www.siliconeforbuilding.com/p...nstruction.pdf). It's fish safe once cured; but not sure it's dart frog safe. Maybe asking here or doing test in small enclosure before using in large project is best.

- Use foam board between tank and stand to absorb vibrations and irregularities.

Looking forward to see more pictures of this set-up, good luck with frogs and cheers!

[7urb0]

The usual assembly plan on a frameless tank has the bottom pane of glass raised up off the ground a few milimeters, this should protect from the small stuff you can't see. More of a gap might be needed as the tank gets bigger, especially with such a water load, glass does bend slightly little before is busts.

um im not sure where you get this from but the bottom piece should always lay flat on the stand and all side pieces should be built on top.