What if......?

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ConnerFish

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Sep 27, 2005
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What if I upgraded my 55 gallon tank to an 80 gallon and promised that I would sell the 55 but now I want to make it into a paludarium for fire belly toads, plants, and some fish (like guppies)? My first problem is I have no idea how to go about turning my old tank into a part land part water habitat. Second I'm supposed to be getting rid of it. :evil_lol: I think if I make it really neat and bat my eye lashes ;) it could work. Soooo anyone have ideas how to do this? Maybe you have plans but never got around to them or you actually have one and could share this wonderful information with me. I'm basically cluseless so I need help from the bottom up! Thanks guys :dance:
 

ConnerFish

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Sep 27, 2005
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No one has any advise on how to make a paludarium in a 55. :( It's going to be very sad if I have to muddle through by myself. My main thing is how to make the land are the water area. Pile up sand/rocks and fill the whole thing? Silicone a divider in and fill only part? What's the best way?
 

mellowvision

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May 17, 2007
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you shouldn't make a paludarium in the 55. they are too narrow front to back to do something as cool as you would in a tank with more depth. get rid of the 55. start with some clean glass. (dollar a gallon sale is on right now anyway) You'll be much better off with a tank that is 18" front to back, even if it's a bit shorter. so much more floor space, which means more water even at shallower depths. More water is more stable.

silicone'd dividers are destined to fail, whether from leaking, splashing, dripping, or just lack of a drain over time... I think the false bottom method is the way to go, and you can build up over an eggrate structure with whatever floats your boat, be it wood, stone, cork, or foam. With false bottom, you assume water flows everywhere under it, instead of hoping water stays out, as in a siliconed divider. With the assumtion that water flows under everything, you have more water volume and less headaches.

Paludariums are very much about the intended subject. There is no single formula for success, you need to decide up front what will live in it, and go from there. A turtles, crabs and frogs all have very different requirements.
 

user_name

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May 23, 2010
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+1 to everything mellow said.

It really depends on what you specifically like/want. Do you want to have all land with a river running through the middle? Do you want fish/shrimp too? Plants? Ease of cleaning/maitenence? Money?

If it was up to me and I was stuck with a 55, I'd divide it hamburger style, but 1/3 land and 2/3 water. Then I'd make some islands using sprayfoam and driftwood, along with a small waterfall at the far end of the water section. I'd get some killifish or danios, and have 5-6" of water. There'd be lots of moss, and it would have a fake cork background.
 

ConnerFish

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Sep 27, 2005
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Thanks guys I have much to think about now. The intended victim, I mean inhabitants, were going to be fire belly toads. I have three in a 20 gallon, but would love to get more in a larger space. I love the "divide hamburger style"! :topic: We were having a game night and playing a game where you wrote stuff down and I told everyone 'fold it hamburger style'. To my amazement this took explain and there were still mess ups! I thought everyone knew the hamburger/hot dog fold lingo :headshake2: Oh and yes I am stuck with the 55 :( It can still be fun though right?
 

ConnerFish

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Sep 27, 2005
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Ok, perhaps a dumb question but....How do you go about making a false bottom? :help: Wont what ever you want on top fall through the squares of the egg crate? Or if that is what is supposed to happend how do you keep in the egg crate and not just slowly draining into the water part? Also I think a cork back ground may be way beyond my abilities. Any tips? Is it really hard or can the average person do it?:confused:
 

mellowvision

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May 17, 2007
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false bottoms are easy. you zip tie eggcrate to eggcrate, and then wrap it like a xmas present with fiberglass or nylon window screen. Super glue can help too, but is unnecessary. It's super easy.

Cork, for the most part, requires no special skills. You need to cut it, make sure it fits and glue it in place. The hard part is having an eye for where to place pieces, how to break apart your tube into good pieces, and getting a nice tube. You can use gorilla glue or silicone.
 

SubRosa

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Jul 3, 2009
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I'm not going to address the mechanics of building a paludarium as that has been pretty well covered. I'm just curious who you made the promise to.
 
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