Steeldrifter 0 Report post Posted December 15, 2019 Have been kicking around the idea of building a paludarium for over a year now. For those that don't know what that is, its an aquarium/tank but it has water and land areas to it. This one will probably only have about 6" of water then the rest will be all built up with soil and plants. I also plan to incorporate a couple of my ficus bonsai trees into the build inside it. Going to do a waterfall as well as use an ultrasonic fogger so it has a very tropical look to it. Picked up a used 75g drilled tank about 2 weeks ago so decided to finally start building this since I have thought about it for the past year. Finally feeling a bit better and coming a bit out of the depression since all that happened this past year so figure no better time to start a new project then now because projects always keep my mind busy and feeling good. Decided to rip out the in wall tank and foam carved rock wall I built about 4 yrs ago and then frame that area in and dry wall it to add about 30sqft of new alcove area which is where the new 75g paludarium will go. Still have to do the ceiling, floor, tape/mud/sand/paint but got all the framing and roughing in of dry wall done now. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Swamp Fly 0 Report post Posted December 15, 2019 Cool! Looking forward to seeing this come together. Swamp Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mikechell 0 Report post Posted December 15, 2019 watching this space !!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Piker20 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2019 Will you add turtles or other amphibians to it? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steeldrifter 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2019 Considering maybe trying some fire belly newts. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Piker20 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2019 Do they climb? I remember finding smooth newts all around the lounge as a kid when they found a small gap to escape from Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steeldrifter 0 Report post Posted December 30, 2019 I don't think the ones I was looking at are climbers at all. Most the people's tank I was looking at that keep them have open tops so I'm guessing they don't climb. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steeldrifter 0 Report post Posted December 31, 2019 New area for the Paludarium project is done now. Finished up the framing & drywall a couple weeks ago, so spent the past few days doing the sanding, painting, flooring and lighting. Went with a color called Sandy Sage which I thought would have a real natural / earthy look to it which should go well with the heavily planted tank. Wanted a contrast for the floor so went with a white/cream pattern to help designate the area better so it didn't just run all together with the rest of the shop/office. Now I can start working on the tank itself soon. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steeldrifter 0 Report post Posted December 31, 2019 Paludariums always look much nicer rimless so just got done removing the tip trim. Next will be cleaning it up and resealing. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mark Knapp 0 Report post Posted January 1, 2020 Your place looks really nice. Nice place to hang out and chill. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steeldrifter 0 Report post Posted January 4, 2020 A lot of the nicer looking paludariums usually have a custom front panel that is cut much lower than the rest to give unobstructed view of the plants and land area above the water line. So my plans are to take this bottom panel from an old 55g that I have and get it cut down to 8" height. I've already gave it to ol' polarized glasses/LCD screen test to see if it was tempered and it does not seem to be so should be cut-able. Took quite a while to clean it up though. Part of it was painted and spent a couple hours with vinegar & razors to get it as clean as I possibly could so it cuts without issues. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mikechell 0 Report post Posted January 4, 2020 If it's lower, then you might want to be careful of the fauna you put in there. They might not climb to the top of a full side, but a lower side might be irresistible. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steeldrifter 0 Report post Posted January 4, 2020 Not planning on any real land based animals. Probably just some small fish species and I think maybe some newts, but the ones I am considering if I do newts aren't really climbers from what I read. With that said I might not even do newts and just keep it to small fish and the beauty of the plants and such and forego any land animals. Don't want to make it harder on me for leaving on long fishing trips. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mark Knapp 0 Report post Posted January 4, 2020 Do little turtles, they're cool and don't need much care. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steeldrifter 0 Report post Posted January 11, 2020 Took the 12" x 4*" piece today to the harware. Not only lucked out that its not tempered, but the cost for them cutting it down to 8x48? $2.00.....BOOM! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites