Joined
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22 Posts
hey guys, time for a new build!
last one was a custom dry desert build for a leopard gecko. this one is going to be a tropical planted viv for either just one male crestie, or maybe a pair of female cresties.
after surfing CL for months looking for a deal on a terrarium or appropriate aquarium i said screw it & just bought everything new at the evil empire of petsmart. so after dropping about $200 at petsmart, wally world, & lowes here's what i came home with:
- 18x18x24 zoo med terrarium (wanted the exo terra b/c they seem a little higher quality, but with a price difference of $100, went w/ the zoo med)
- 18" exo terra compact light topper.
- 2 6500K CFL's
- brick of coco husk
- 3 cans of greatstuff big gap
- 4 tubes of GE silicon II (brown)
- 1 large chunk of craft styrofoam (prolly going to need more)
- 10lb. bag of dark color non-sanded grout
- 3 foam paintbrushes
so my vision is to do a hybrid DIY backround of both the styrofoam/grout stonework & GS/silicon/coco fiber BG. leca balls, mesh barrier, & organic mix of some sort covered with leaf litter & moss cover for substrate. planted with live plants.
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ok, went to the evil empire again and got a nice piece of mopani that will bridge the backround with a rockwall food dish ledge. also got a grab-bag of what i thought was a bunch of malaysian driftwood, didn't read the packaging well enough & turned out to be grapewood (which from what i've read doesn't hold up well in wet vivs). so . . idk.
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i just ordered a kaz coolmist humidifier, so i'm going to have the fog thing going on (on a timer prolly 1-2 times a day for a minute or two)
was thinking of carving up an easter island head thingy, embed it in the bg, and have the fog pour out of his mouth-
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siliconed in all the pvc connectors & what-not for the fogger:
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started carving up my statue guy. turned out kinda creepy looking. gonna have the fog come out of his nose (was toying with the idea of having green LED's in his eyes):
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not alot of progress, but have one cool pic testing out the fogger through the statue head-
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in the process of applying gs & carving. question:
need a way to seal the grout faux rock wall portions. i used mod podge in my previous build because it was a dry desert style viv, but i've noticed mod podge doesn't hold up well to moisture. i do have some polyacrylic that i bought recently for a furniture project (i believe minwax). toying with using it. i tried reading the msds sheet on it, but honestly i just don't understand all that technical mumbo-jumbo.
anybody have any experience using this stuff? any horror stories? successful attempts?
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grouting-
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this is Eros, the future inhabitant of this viv:
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she is being held by Samantha of Crestopia Reptiles until i get the 10gal temp tank set up & my CGD comes in the mail. thanks Samantha!
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fogger test-
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decided not to paint the grout, so just going to forgo the sealant. would rather have painted it to make it look more stone-like & give more depth, but too much of a pain in the arse to locate a critter-friendly sealant. plus i have already completed the silicon/cocofiber portions, got my hydroton locally, & placed & am awaiting delivery of my plants & substrate. now i just want to get it all done. silicon/cocofiber is curing so alot of cocofiber piled up & not too pretty to look at, so no pics right now. plant list:
Sanseveria 2.5" Pot
Item# $3.95 USD 2 $7.90 USD
Selaginella Kraussiana "Spike Moss" 4" pot
Item# greenspikemoss $4.95 USD 1 $4.95 USD
NE Herp Vivarium Substrate Mix
Item# NEHSSUB $9.50 USD 3 $28.50 USD
Peperomia Japonica 3-4 clippings
Item# $4.95 USD 1 $4.95 USD
Selaginella Kraussiana Variegatus "Frosty Fern"
Item# $6.95 USD 1 $6.95 USD
Neoregelia "Eoz"
Item# $9.50 USD 1 $9.50 USD
Neoregelia Olens
Item# $9.99 USD 1 $9.99 USD
Standard 20G Viv Kit - 6 Tillandsias, 2 Wandering Jew Clippings, 2 Asst ivy clippings, 2 qty 12X12 Moss
Item# 20gkit $42.95 USD 1 $42.95 USD
last one was a custom dry desert build for a leopard gecko. this one is going to be a tropical planted viv for either just one male crestie, or maybe a pair of female cresties.
after surfing CL for months looking for a deal on a terrarium or appropriate aquarium i said screw it & just bought everything new at the evil empire of petsmart. so after dropping about $200 at petsmart, wally world, & lowes here's what i came home with:
- 18x18x24 zoo med terrarium (wanted the exo terra b/c they seem a little higher quality, but with a price difference of $100, went w/ the zoo med)
- 18" exo terra compact light topper.
- 2 6500K CFL's
- brick of coco husk
- 3 cans of greatstuff big gap
- 4 tubes of GE silicon II (brown)
- 1 large chunk of craft styrofoam (prolly going to need more)
- 10lb. bag of dark color non-sanded grout
- 3 foam paintbrushes
so my vision is to do a hybrid DIY backround of both the styrofoam/grout stonework & GS/silicon/coco fiber BG. leca balls, mesh barrier, & organic mix of some sort covered with leaf litter & moss cover for substrate. planted with live plants.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ok, went to the evil empire again and got a nice piece of mopani that will bridge the backround with a rockwall food dish ledge. also got a grab-bag of what i thought was a bunch of malaysian driftwood, didn't read the packaging well enough & turned out to be grapewood (which from what i've read doesn't hold up well in wet vivs). so . . idk.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
i just ordered a kaz coolmist humidifier, so i'm going to have the fog thing going on (on a timer prolly 1-2 times a day for a minute or two)
was thinking of carving up an easter island head thingy, embed it in the bg, and have the fog pour out of his mouth-
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
siliconed in all the pvc connectors & what-not for the fogger:
started carving up my statue guy. turned out kinda creepy looking. gonna have the fog come out of his nose (was toying with the idea of having green LED's in his eyes):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
not alot of progress, but have one cool pic testing out the fogger through the statue head-
in the process of applying gs & carving. question:
need a way to seal the grout faux rock wall portions. i used mod podge in my previous build because it was a dry desert style viv, but i've noticed mod podge doesn't hold up well to moisture. i do have some polyacrylic that i bought recently for a furniture project (i believe minwax). toying with using it. i tried reading the msds sheet on it, but honestly i just don't understand all that technical mumbo-jumbo.
anybody have any experience using this stuff? any horror stories? successful attempts?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
grouting-
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
this is Eros, the future inhabitant of this viv:
she is being held by Samantha of Crestopia Reptiles until i get the 10gal temp tank set up & my CGD comes in the mail. thanks Samantha!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
fogger test-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
decided not to paint the grout, so just going to forgo the sealant. would rather have painted it to make it look more stone-like & give more depth, but too much of a pain in the arse to locate a critter-friendly sealant. plus i have already completed the silicon/cocofiber portions, got my hydroton locally, & placed & am awaiting delivery of my plants & substrate. now i just want to get it all done. silicon/cocofiber is curing so alot of cocofiber piled up & not too pretty to look at, so no pics right now. plant list:
Sanseveria 2.5" Pot
Item# $3.95 USD 2 $7.90 USD
Selaginella Kraussiana "Spike Moss" 4" pot
Item# greenspikemoss $4.95 USD 1 $4.95 USD
NE Herp Vivarium Substrate Mix
Item# NEHSSUB $9.50 USD 3 $28.50 USD
Peperomia Japonica 3-4 clippings
Item# $4.95 USD 1 $4.95 USD
Selaginella Kraussiana Variegatus "Frosty Fern"
Item# $6.95 USD 1 $6.95 USD
Neoregelia "Eoz"
Item# $9.50 USD 1 $9.50 USD
Neoregelia Olens
Item# $9.99 USD 1 $9.99 USD
Standard 20G Viv Kit - 6 Tillandsias, 2 Wandering Jew Clippings, 2 Asst ivy clippings, 2 qty 12X12 Moss
Item# 20gkit $42.95 USD 1 $42.95 USD
