20G Long Tank...finally done!

[Natural Solitude]

I tried to document the building of the habitat for the northern leopard frog tadpoles. But, unfortunately, I had my hands too full of silicone to take photos, and my daughter wasn't home when I was putting most of it together.

Unfortunately, I found one of the tadpoles (Yasu) dead last Thursday morning - the same day I finally received the rest of the supplies I needed. I have no idea what happened - it seemed fine the day before, and I hadn't done anything different with the tank or their food yet. It was one of the bigger ones that already had back legs too! It has been the little one, Ren, we've been most concerned about because it somehow got its eye poked. The eye is now gone, but both Ren and Michi (the other larger one who also has full back legs) are thriving in their new habitat.

Instead of trying to post pictures here, I've decided to just share the link to my Flickr set containing the paludarium photos:
Paludarium

Thanks to all who have provided me with the information needed to complete this project! I've learned a lot from these forums, and look forward to creating another habitat in the future.

[Chu'Wuti]

Very interesting! I like the island effect you created by raising the land up on stilts. It will be interesting to see in a few months when roots are growing down into the water.

Sorry to hear about the problems with your tadpoles. That's really strange that one just died overnight--must have been really frustrating and disconcerting!

[Natural Solitude]

Thanks, Chu'Wuti.

I don't think the roots will hang down at all. I have a screen over the "basket" (one of those stackable storage bins, since I wasn't able to obtain eggcrate), a layer of pellets on top of that, more screen, then the substrate. Some of the plants are also in tree fern pots.

By the way, if anyone is looking for a nice substrate (top layer), the stuff that Vivarium Concepts sells is absolutely perfect! It's a combination of stuff, including moss and leaves. I was planning on creating my own blend once the snow was gone, but I really like theirs a lot. I definitely plan on using it again...for I eventually want to create a more natural environment at some point. After finally getting the supplies, I needed to rush to get this one done. Especially after losing the tadpole.

[froggsong]

I like it. You have some GREAT pieces of wood in there. I do have one concern, though. I see in the pics that you used electrical tape to hold the PVC to the platform. It should be ok, just keep an eye on the tads for the first couple of weeks. If you see any weird behavior, remove the electrical tape. I have some that has been in my CWD tank with no problems since I put it in, but I have had some in other tanks from a different role of tape that did something weird with the water. I'm taking a better safe to keep an eye on it than not stance here. I think you will probably be perfectly fine, just watch it. If you can see the tape still, just look at it every day or two to see if it looks like it is peeling off or looking like it is growing white hairy strings.

[Natural Solitude]

No, I don't have any electrical tape in the tank now. I only used it when I was trying to figure out a layout...which I eventually changed a bit. All of the tape was later removed, and all of the pieces cleaned before putting the tank together.

Aren't those pieces of driftwood wonderful??? I got them off of eBay, but couldn't really tell exactly what I was getting. I was wonderfully surprised when I got them!

[froggsong]

phew... That's good. I didn't want you to potentially have to tear it all down.

You got a great shipment with that wood. Those are some very lovely pieces. I was walking the dog a couple of days ago and came across a very long, nice big piece of driftwood in someone's yard. I was thinking about asking them if I could take it for the beardie tank, but it is partially buried and probably weighs a ton, lol. I also don't have any idea how I would sterilize it. If it were going into a vive with plants and stuff, I could maybe get away with it, but not in a sterile desert environment. If we are still in this area when I get the final CWD tank built, I might see about getting it for his tank. It's just such a lovely piece, about 5' long and 1' wide for most of the length. I really need to find a good source of larger pieces of driftwood. Now that it is getting warmer here, I want to go see if there are any root pieces I can get off of this huge overturned stump down the road. I also found a GORGEOUS piece on a stump in the lot next to the house that our landlord owns. I'll likely be taking a saw to it later. It's flat so I am going to use it for a piece of the BG in one tank or another. I can't wait to be able to get a pic up for you guys, you're going to love it.

[Natural Solitude]

Coolness! I can't wait to see it.

[froggsong]

It didn't want to come off the stump as well as I had hoped. It ended up breaking into three pieces. It's also an aromatic wood, so I won't be able to use it in a vive. I'm going to gule it together in a way to make a planter for the wall. It's going to be pretty neat, but I don't know when I'll get to it, lol. Too much other stuff to do!

[Natural Solitude]

Ohhh...bummer! I hope it works out as a planter then.

[Sarahann31190]

Your calico kitty looks almost EXACTLY like mine!!