[Jason]

Well, I couldn't take it any longer. I had to start the frog room.

When we were looking for a new house my only request was one that had a "frog room". My wife could have the choice on everything else. :wink: It has been 2 months since we have moved and I just couldn't take it any more and had to start. Everyday my wife asks "What house project we going to work on." I always say "The frog room!" I get the "Don't be a idiot" look every time.

So with one good arm, it starts! Other arm is broken and still in a cast, but when there is a will there is a way.

We started to use the room as storage, so that had to go!

The room is approximately 9' x 12' with a ceiling height of 8'. It is in the basement which will keep temps more stable. Even on a 90+ degree day it is in the 70's in the basement. There is an air vent I can tap into for A/C or heat if needed.

I spent all day yesterday with a putty knife and wire brush cleaning up the walls. I wore a respirator to avoid breathing in the dust and mold spores. After it was all swept up, I brought in the garden hose. Luckily the floor drains out the door across the basement right into the drain. I scrubbed and sprayed down the walls and floor.

Once it dries, I have a few cracks to fill in then it is time to waterproof the walls.

 

[knuckles4696]

very cool man im jealous you get to start yours!

 

[IndianaJosh]

By frog room you mean one big viv?

Or a place for your vivs to go?

 

[pet-teez]

awesome! that's going to be a nice space for the use
Can't wait to see the updates, how many tanks do you have so far that will be put in there?

 

[DizzyD]

man, oh man am I jealous! Best of luck and a great blank slate to start w/. Oh, and take it or leave it, but if you do a couple of quickie projects for the wife, they tend to leave you alone to do your own thing more often than not. Well, at least that's how it is in my apt. No frog room here though , but I can only imagine the temptation to spend close to every waking second planning and doing.

 

[Jason]

Thanks for the support.

By frog room you mean one big viv? Or a place for your vivs to go?

Now you are thinking! One big viv, I wish. For now I think I will stick to smaller vivs.

Oh, and take it or leave it, but if you do a couple of quickie projects for the wife, they tend to leave you alone to do your own thing more often than not.

:wink: Good advice!

How many tanks do you have so far that will be put in there?

The list so far....
2 - 44 gal pentagons
4 - 40 gal breeders vert
1 - 90 gal custom
6 - 20 gal vert
and some odds and ends.

Which brings me to a question. I was looking at some racks for the 40 breeder verts and the 20 highs. I found one at Lowes.

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=p ... lpage=none

With only 1/2" shelving, it seems a little weak for the 40 gals.

I was then thinking of making a cabinet system with a countertop. Ikea has some fairly cheap cabinents and countertops and I think it would be able to support the weight a little better because it is dispersed over a larger area.

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categ ... hen/10470/

It would limit me to one level of tanks, but I think it would look very sharp and give the room a very clean look, for almost the same price. Any sugestions?

 

[IndianaJosh]

Hey the frog room viv would look cool too!

I guess it was kind of a dumb question.

 

[nish07]

Alera racks from amazon (shopplet) through them. They're very cheap, a nice black color, 48X24X72 or only 18 deep if you want. Only about 110 bucks and the shipping is very cheap. I have 4 now and might get another. They hold 1000lbs per rack.

For the big viv, consider doing what I was going to do. Frame in a fiberglass shower stall. You can get them at lowes for 300 bucks. You'd have a hard time doing background for it since it's so huge, but just frame the sides, the bottom has a drain, put in a false bottom, hinge a door that seals the front up and drill wherever you want for misters and lights. It's be pretty spectacular. Get a massive cork tube and create a fake tree in it and plant it with broms and moss like in Costa Rica/Panama. You could throw an arboreal species in there or two like Vincenteii possibly with auratus on the ground. It'd be insanely cool.

-Nish

 

[MJ]

Looks like it's going to be awesome mate similar size to the from room I'm working on right now which is 4x3m

 

[tkromer]

I figure if you're gonna go to the trouble of waterproofing the room it may as well be one big viv :lol:

 

[nish07]

There are people who do that. I've talked to someone in Florida who claims to have been in Greenhouses-turned Vivarium and house several types of terrestrial/arboreal frogs which live and breed freely. This type of thing is done in the frog farm(s) in Panama as well. Probably not a good idea for a basement, though.

-Nish

 

[Jason]

Alera racks from amazon (shopplet) through them. They're very cheap, a nice black color, 48X24X72 or only 18 deep if you want.

If they made them 72" long I would be in.

 

[nish07]

For your 9 foot wall, you can put two side by side and have a foot or so for a bucket for misting or whatever else you might need room for. For the 12 foot wall you could put two together and leave room or add in one of the smaller units on the end which (I believe) are half the width. With that in mind, you can work out the way the racks will fit given the space. There are other rack systems out there but the aleras seem to do a great job at the best price. There are the Gorilla racks and racks like it that seem to be customizable to their width. You could always look into those and I know quite a few people use them.

-Nish

 

[Jason]

Room is clean and walls are sealed.

Ok, I need an honest opinion. I was real excited when I picked out this color, but after getting it on the walls I am not too sure. It is bright which is nice, but I think it will take away too much from the tanks and maybe a more nuetral color may make the tanks stand out better and look sharper. I am on my way to home depot to get some tan/light tan paint samples, so you won't hurt my feelings if you say "What were you thinking." :lol:

The color was called "Bright Green", ya think? :lol:

 

[Corpus Callosum]

so you won't hurt my feelings if you say "What were you thinking." :lol:

What were you thinking

 

[crentania]

Personally, I would have gone with a deeper "jungle" type green, just to give that background a more tropical look. But the bright green could work! It's definitely unique

 

[onefstsnake]

I love that color.

Should look darker with just the tank lights on anyways.

Lookin good!

 

[NathanB]

its easy to see dirt so you can keep it clean atleast

 

[Vivarium Concepts]

Hmmm...........looks like something you would scrape off of the windshield.

 

[Jason]

Hmmm...........looks like something you would scrape off of the windshield.

:lol: The color has already been changed. Pictures will come once the walls and floor are finished. It was just too much.