300gal plywood paludarium project

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Wow! Amazing. Thanks for the update pics and videos. I loved watching the archers shoot water for their food. lol. :) The last pic shows your plants and moss really taking place. I am subscribed and will happily check back in for any update pics/vids. :)
 
cebosound;4760946; said:
Wow! Amazing. Thanks for the update pics and videos. I loved watching the archers shoot water for their food. lol. :) The last pic shows your plants and moss really taking place. I am subscribed and will happily check back in for any update pics/vids. :)
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I second every word ^
 
This tank is amazing! I'd seen some of the pictures of the finished project, and LOVED the roots/branches, but I guess I just assumed you just bought them and fit them to the tank because they look so professionally done.

I have some pretty long-range plans for a project similar to this with some large submerged root/branch structures and just came across your full build thread while doing a little research for it. This was definitely inspirational. I was actually planning to do a miniature paludarium version as a test run to make a new setup for my musk turtle and looking for a method of building it in the tank and then painting/sealing it. I really like the tinted drylok idea. One thing I thought of though is could this cause a problem with buoyancy if the whole structure is submerged without extra weight from concrete? Would just an adhesive be able to keep it down longterm?
 
Thank you all for the kind comments. They're much appreciated.

andyjs - it's true that the styrofoam is very buoyant, but I think it's so much so that the minimal amount of concrete that most people use does very little to offset the buoyancy. I think that a liberal amount of adhesive is ultimately the key to holding it down, regardless of whether you use concrete or not. I think it's important to design your background so that there are large gluing areas available that fit flat and flush against the tank wall.

I also sized my roots so that they are wedged against the top bracing of the tank. This provides a lot of resistance against the upward force of the buoyancy and means that the adhesive doesn't have to do all the work by itself. That was the same idea behind sticking the skewers through the roots - it provides some extra structural support to hold the layers together besides the adhesive.

Also, make sure not to skimp on the silicone. I think I used 2-3 tubes to glue my roots to the tank, which gave me an even covering of silicone over the entire gluing surface.
 
you may have already said but... What kind o silicone did you use? brand? was it for aquariums or hardwear store?
 
WOW.. just WOW.. just read your whole thread start to finish, you should start a business and sell backgrounds man, you have some crazy talent! love the archerfish too, cant wait till i can start building my own tank like this!
 
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