Need help making palu safe for fish

[Skyla]

So I built this awesome paludarium for my geckos and frogs and thought it would be fun to add fish. After multiple failures and fish dying within days I gave up. Then I came across this one thread, a sticky no less, that mentioned the very silicone I was using was not fish friendly. I thought I had done all the research (most of which was right here) but I missed that one.

So I was hoping I could get some experienced input on rebuilding this thing sucessfully.

Heres what I was thinking:

For the land - false bottom with hydroballs and eco earth or cypress, water pump for flow and a waterfall, and either gs/silicone or habacrete for a backing.

For the water - separate it from the land with plexiglass or use a cement mixing tub with a wall cut off for viewing. Either would be lined with river rock or gravel to hide the walls and a wall mounted filter.

So this is where I need help. What is a safe sealant? How do I "glue" the pieces in place? Could I use gs or habacrete safely in the water? Is there anything else I should be taking into consideration?

[xashc200]

aquarium safe silicone is available at nearly every aquatic store or you can easily find it online. wood glue is fine to use to my knowledge, and once cured the gs is ok to use. i believe there is a pond and stone product which is specifically for use with ponds and fish. i used a regular construction can of expanding foam on mine and so far have not had any problems but if you can get the pond and stone it is by far the better choice...

if you are using plexiglass to seperate the land, be aware of where the water level is in the false bottom and make sure you can access it to syphon the water out if you intend to add plants to the land part. unless it is not sealed and can drain into the palu, im not sure what your design is. i tried a different approach and raised the whole land section above the water and had a cave underneeth so water covers the whole of the bottom of the tank.. just an idea.. paludarium>palu construction>paludarium build log

[Skyla]

Would using a cement mixing tub or some tyle of plastic be a bad idea for containing hte water? Or should I just have glass cut?

[xashc200]

Originally Posted by Skyla

Would using a cement mixing tub or some tyle of plastic be a bad idea for containing hte water? Or should I just have glass cut?

as far as pollutants are concerned im sure the plastic tub would be quite safe.. rather than get glass cut for the divide perhaps it would be cheaper and easier to use clear plastic sheet. i used some on a fish tank before and it work just fine and will cut up easily with a hack saw.

[Skyla]

I used plexi and the silicone doesnt adhere well to it and it pops off the wall(or floor) with little pressure. I was thinking glass because it holds together better. But I may go with the tub anyway because, well, its cheaper...