Question about my first vivarium

[fiend101]

I have created a land mass and waterfall out of great stuff for my FBTs.My question is what would be the safest kind of paint to use on it.I am probably going to cover some parts of it with moss and peat but I want to paint the water fall and bank area to look like rock and im concerned about poisons or what not in the water.Any advice helps.Thanks

[Evilwezal]

I've got some of the same questions with GS. I picked up a can today at walmart and was wondering how you get the coco or moss to stick to the GS? Do you stick it on while its curing or does it go on after? Also what kinda of paint can I use?

[Jason]

First you put the GS on whatever you applying it to and let it FULLY cure, then you apply Silicone ( GE type I or type II ) in any color you can find but black works best to the entire surface of the GS youve put down, the only reason we use black is to see if you missed spots with the silicone. Now i know i said cover the entire surface of the GS with silicone, but do not do this all at once as the silicone will skin over in about 3-7 min depending on airflow within your house and temp. only apply the silicone to small sections at a time then add your coco or peat and continue untill you have full coverage. After your done stick it up someplace or out of the way and dont even think about useing it till its fully cured. As for paint you will need a 2 part marine epoxy.

[Evilwezal]

Thanks for the Info. I'm planning on making some ledges and attach them to the sides of the terrarium half way up and connect them with vines. Can I use Silicon also to attach the ledges?

[JohnEDove]

Make sure you do the small patches as suggested or your silicone will start to cure, before you stick the coco to it, and it won't be sticky anymore.
Take it from an idiot who tries shortcuts.

I have found silicone to be an excellent glue for lots of projects. If your ledges are not heavy it should work but you'll need to allow it to cure well before doing any cover application to it.

[froggsong]

I need to get the pics of my frog/toad tank fixed... Evil, I did the same thing (if I am understanding you corectly... You want to make ledges on the glass with GS, right?), if there are no animals in your tank when you are doing this, make the ledges directly on the glass. I had MUCH better results this way, the ones that I made separately and then put up with silicone are not as stable. Just be aware, whether doing it directly on the glass or off of the glass, that you need to go in small layers until you achieve the look you want, otherwise, it will take FOREVER to cure. It took at least a week for a couple of mine to cure because I didn't let it cure at all between layers, so the part next to the glass took a really long time to cure. I could see it, since i applied it directly to the glass. I think that the glass is a better surface to apply the GS to, and the guy at home depot (he is very knowledgeable and has helped me with quite a few things) agrees with me. If you have animals inside (you would have to take them out to put them up with the silicone until the silicone cures anyway), then make them outside of the tank and stick them up with silicone. You can also make ledges with insulation foam (extruded polystyrene, I think it is called) and stick them up with silicone. That would probably be less work, but I wanted the look of the GS when i did mine, and I couldn't find the foam to begin with. Here is a link to my photobucket album with the pics of the GS landings (as I call them, ledges is a good description too): froggsong/vives - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

I guess I'll post one pic here so you can get a quick look:


Unfortunately, that nice moss hanging off the front did not survive. I don't know what kind it is, so I can't look up it's needs, and I haven't been able to get any of it to survive. I had one piece that lasted a long time in a planter in the BG, but it suddenly died too. Oh well... Hope I was helpful!

[fiend101]

I have another question this time about the Great Stuff. When I add water to the Viv will the Great Stuff absorb it and warp if it has been carved?

[froggsong]

Mine warped, but it was because I carved it before it was fully cured. I actually quite like the way it looked after it kindof shrank in on itself. Looks more natural that way. The ones that I let fully cure before carving have not warped or anything, and from what I can tell it is not absorbing any water. I have one landing that is actually partly IN the water, and because it has a plant inside, I had to poke holes through the bottom of it for drainage, and so that some of the water will wick up into the soil so I don't have to water it as often. So I would say, NO, it will not absorb the water, even after carving. Besides, if you are covering it with silicone to put something on it (like moss or coco fiber or whatever), that would waterproof it even if it DID absorb water after carving. Just make sure it is fully cured before carving if you do not want it to change shape.

[fiend101]

I have read that Krylon Fuson is safe to use in aquariums.Does anybody know if this is true?

[Jason]

Sounds like you would need Captian Kirk to help you with that lol, never heard of that before.