20 Gallon - Paludarium Cork Scape - Build Thread

[Bluntsalot]

Update with photos

Hey AC

The newt setup is well established, I have had to switch the plants around mostly to make room for the HC Cuba. I have had a lot of sediment, but It's easily cleaned with siphon on my weekly water changes. It took awhile for the water to get clear, pesky tannin's from the cork. I have also had an invasion of filamentous algae and small snails. The algae is not too bad, i'm alright as long as it doesn't take over the whole tank. The snails make a lot of detritus but they are cute. If I ever get sick of em I got a few assassin snails but I think that would be cruel. Still haven't got any main inhabitants, soon i will be going to an expo and hope to pick up a few critters. At this point it's down to either A large snail, a few newts or Mellow's suggestion of crabs. From what I know some species of snails enjoy moist land, I think that would be swell to watch. The java moss has been the most aggressive on the cork. I love the healthy rhizomes of the Anubias. I was pleased to discover that dwarf babies tears is HC Cuba which i'm sure you all know.

Any advice on how to get the HC really rocking?
I have been using excel along with a nutrient/iron supplement. I also have been using DIY yeast c02 injection. I got plenty of light from my 400W MH, maybe too much? Should I add more excel and nutrients? Any advice would be appreciated. The HC is doing alright, but what I really want is sexy carpets of HC Cuba everywhere in this tank!

Thanks for reading Enjoy the photos!

 

[mellowvision]

Looks cool!

From my experience excel didn't help with much on land. I wouldn't do that with a drip line myself. Nothing to do but wait with the hc. Lots of light and daily mist goes a long way.




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[Bluntsalot]

Thanks Mellow!

I think this type of tank should be considered it's own technique, maybe the Mellowvision Cork Scape TEK. I haven't been misting, will def start though, thanks again for the all the advice and know how!

 

[dwrf frog]

Nice tank!!! :tropicalfish: Really like the idea

 

[stormywendyann]

What incredible imagination and talent. The tank looks like it came right out of nature. Are there any critters in there yet?

 

[mitch303]

:iagree: Nice work, That setup is awesome

 

[Bluntsalot]

Update, Critters!

Hey Ac,

Sorry, this update is long over due.

So I finally got critters in the tank, I found 3 adolescent Spanish ribbed newts from a local breeder. I love newts too much not to have some. They are doing great in the new setup. They dig under the cork and have created small caves, which is pretty cool. The newts occasionally climb and fall into the area where the drip bar pump use to sit. I gently fetch them out by hand. As some of you may know they can grow to over 12" long in the wild, I think they are the largest newt species.

Plants are doing well, stopped running the drip bar due to algae build up. I now mist frequently, usually 3 times daily.
The java moss died back a bit and yellowed but is slowly coming back. The Hc cuba is doing great and has started taking to the water. I removed some rocks and plants to make cleaning a lot easier. I'm not currently running a filter, just weekly water changes.

Here are some photos,
Enjoy!

 

[mellowvision]

that's awesome. mist is the way. I recently removed my drip lines from my paludarium in favor of daily misting.

 

[fineexampl]

What about those fog machines? Would that work instead of daily misting?


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[Bluntsalot]

Thanks Mellow!


@fineexampl
I would imagine a fogger would work, personally I don't like them because in the past I would get hard water deposits on everything in my tank and the glass, I also have very hard water though.