After making these for quite some time I figured I'd share the way I do things. This is just my way, there is about 30 ways to do a terrarium this is just what works for me. So here we go....
Supplies
(I'll be making a 10 gallon)
- 2 tubes of GE Silicone II (I use black or a dark brown its easier to hide versus a clear or white)
- 1 can of Great Stuff (16 oz)
- Driftwood, wood, branches, whatever (you can use stuff from outside just make sure you disinfect it! btw freezing wood won't do anything. You'll need to bake it in an oven)
- 1 Roll of Painters Tape (I get the cheap stuff at Ocean State Job Lots/Walgreens/Walmart/Target/Dollar Store/etc.
- Odds and ends like plants, soil, rocks, I use 1/2 inch pvc tube and cut it into small sections I'll explain more later on this.
The Start
1. First and most importantly you need to get some gloves, latex, doctor gloves, dishwashing gloves, whatever. Great Stuff Foam is SUPER sticky you will have it on your hands and anything you get it on for QUITE some time. In fact I still have some on my hand from a tank I made in december! Also make sure your area is neat! AKA no homework or important papers next to the tank, don't wear nice clothing etc.
2. Ok now that you're all set to begin you need to first have a CLEAN!!!!!!!!!!!!! tank. Take it outside, in the bathtub and wash it as good as you can. Make sure you dry it VERY good. You should do some planning now before you begin because once you start spraying great stuff into your tank there is no stopping or turning back. Creativity is a beautiful thing, try putting some wood sideways,to the left, right, etc. etc. Take a look at other tanks for ideas.
3. Got your tank planned out? Ok great! Now you want to start taping down branches, wood, pvc piping etc. Like the picture below
Make sure you don't get great stuff on the tape or you will never get the tape off EVER! Also I took the tape off the pvc pipe before I put down the great stuff just make sure the great stuff holds the pipe where you want it.
4. Got everything where you want it? I hope so cause once you start it there is really no turning back. Grab your Great stuff and shake it up good, take a deep breath and start spraying the foam around your tank. Again make sure you take your time and don't spray your wood, pipe, etc. 16 oz. can of Great Stuff will fill the bottom of a 10 gal no problem. Keep spraying around your items until the can is empty. Remember this stuff expands a LOT so if you want a hill, cliff, etc then spray a little bit more on that side. After your done with spraying the tank LEAVE YOUR TANK ALONE! if you bump or nudge your tank in any way you can crack the tank. Been there done that lol it's not fun at all.
24-36 hours later
~time warp~
5. Your tank should look completely dry. How do you know its completely dry? The foam should look somewhat smooth and firm to the touch. If you flip the tank over the foam should look light. So it should look like this..
Yes that is a different tank but you get the point. Remove the tape from your items and now you have a choice. Personally I use a dremel, you can buy a cheap one for under 50 with accessories at walmart.
6. Now with your tape off grab your dremel or knife or razor and shave off the foam around your items a little bit. You don't want to completely remove the foam from your item but you want to shave it down a bit like what it looks like in this picture below
7. You can either use "Can-o-Air" or a vacuum to take out the shavings and dust that comes out. Also a wet cloth works very well to remove the dust. Try and remove as much as you can it doesnt need to be perfect but it will be much easier in the long rong. So nice clean tank that was vacuumed and compressed air blown into it
8. Now your ready to get dirty! I suggest you get some gloves it will be much easier to work with. So get your silicone ready like so
start pumping out the silicone over the FOAM ONLY, do sections at a time its much easier. I cut the tank into 4ths, so remember silicon 4th of the tank then take a handful of coco fiber (I personally use a mix of coco fiber, bark, and dirt) and press it against the silicone..move a few inches and do it again silicone and press your dirt mixture into it. Repeat until the tank is filled. It should look like so
Let the tank sit for 24 hours.
Supplies
(I'll be making a 10 gallon)
- 2 tubes of GE Silicone II (I use black or a dark brown its easier to hide versus a clear or white)
- 1 can of Great Stuff (16 oz)
- Driftwood, wood, branches, whatever (you can use stuff from outside just make sure you disinfect it! btw freezing wood won't do anything. You'll need to bake it in an oven)
- 1 Roll of Painters Tape (I get the cheap stuff at Ocean State Job Lots/Walgreens/Walmart/Target/Dollar Store/etc.
- Odds and ends like plants, soil, rocks, I use 1/2 inch pvc tube and cut it into small sections I'll explain more later on this.
The Start
1. First and most importantly you need to get some gloves, latex, doctor gloves, dishwashing gloves, whatever. Great Stuff Foam is SUPER sticky you will have it on your hands and anything you get it on for QUITE some time. In fact I still have some on my hand from a tank I made in december! Also make sure your area is neat! AKA no homework or important papers next to the tank, don't wear nice clothing etc.
2. Ok now that you're all set to begin you need to first have a CLEAN!!!!!!!!!!!!! tank. Take it outside, in the bathtub and wash it as good as you can. Make sure you dry it VERY good. You should do some planning now before you begin because once you start spraying great stuff into your tank there is no stopping or turning back. Creativity is a beautiful thing, try putting some wood sideways,to the left, right, etc. etc. Take a look at other tanks for ideas.
3. Got your tank planned out? Ok great! Now you want to start taping down branches, wood, pvc piping etc. Like the picture below
Make sure you don't get great stuff on the tape or you will never get the tape off EVER! Also I took the tape off the pvc pipe before I put down the great stuff just make sure the great stuff holds the pipe where you want it.
4. Got everything where you want it? I hope so cause once you start it there is really no turning back. Grab your Great stuff and shake it up good, take a deep breath and start spraying the foam around your tank. Again make sure you take your time and don't spray your wood, pipe, etc. 16 oz. can of Great Stuff will fill the bottom of a 10 gal no problem. Keep spraying around your items until the can is empty. Remember this stuff expands a LOT so if you want a hill, cliff, etc then spray a little bit more on that side. After your done with spraying the tank LEAVE YOUR TANK ALONE! if you bump or nudge your tank in any way you can crack the tank. Been there done that lol it's not fun at all.
24-36 hours later
~time warp~
5. Your tank should look completely dry. How do you know its completely dry? The foam should look somewhat smooth and firm to the touch. If you flip the tank over the foam should look light. So it should look like this..
Yes that is a different tank but you get the point. Remove the tape from your items and now you have a choice. Personally I use a dremel, you can buy a cheap one for under 50 with accessories at walmart.
6. Now with your tape off grab your dremel or knife or razor and shave off the foam around your items a little bit. You don't want to completely remove the foam from your item but you want to shave it down a bit like what it looks like in this picture below
7. You can either use "Can-o-Air" or a vacuum to take out the shavings and dust that comes out. Also a wet cloth works very well to remove the dust. Try and remove as much as you can it doesnt need to be perfect but it will be much easier in the long rong. So nice clean tank that was vacuumed and compressed air blown into it
8. Now your ready to get dirty! I suggest you get some gloves it will be much easier to work with. So get your silicone ready like so
start pumping out the silicone over the FOAM ONLY, do sections at a time its much easier. I cut the tank into 4ths, so remember silicon 4th of the tank then take a handful of coco fiber (I personally use a mix of coco fiber, bark, and dirt) and press it against the silicone..move a few inches and do it again silicone and press your dirt mixture into it. Repeat until the tank is filled. It should look like so
Let the tank sit for 24 hours.
