Tips and Tricks

[Allyn]

I was thinking of having this thread for people to post tricks and tips to share involving habitat construction.

I guess I'll start.

Screen door screen makes a great substrate divider and can be obtained for free from damaged screen doors that would otherwise be tossed.

[froggsong]

Just make sure it is thoroughly washed first.

Lets see...

Moss collected from tree branches can be super glued to a branch in your vive to make a fast, natural looking branch.

Thermometer/hygrometer combos should be taped along the seams with electrical tape to avoid damage from misting. They can also be mounted to the front glass, facing out, with double sided foam tape. This allows for a better view of the screen, as well as a better humidity reading.

Soaking and then baking wood is a great way to sterilize it, soaking helps keep it from catching fire in the oven, and also "boils" to kill any bugs or germs. This is faster and easier than boiling or boiling then baking, and does both jobs at once.

Check the free section of Craigslist regularly. You NEVER know what great stuff someone is giving away.

Hmmmm... That's all I can think of for now.

If everyone participates in this and gives some good suggestions, I'll make it a sticky. I think it's a great idea.

[Nickoli93]

Soak old animal bones in bleach overnight, then rinse to make a great looking piece of decor for terrariums.
(I recently found a sheep skull when hiking, looks great )

You probably know this already but anyway, bake or microwave sand to make it safe.

Plants increase humidity in a viv

Instead of using gravel underwater in tanks try breaking up old orange flowerpots and using that instead. Adds more colour and looks nice.

[heartagramtc]

PVC Elbows make Great Planters for BG's. and they're Cheap!

[froggsong]

You know what I was thinking would also make good planters if you need larger ones? Great stuff can lids. Or spray paint lids, whatever lids like that that you may have laying around, as long as they haven't had chemicals sprayed into them.

So, to make it short:

GS or other aerosol can lids make good planters.

[Austin]

Originally Posted by EMc/

That's what I'm hoping to see more of here.
Thanks,
Marty

Everything people have said can be used to aid in habitat construction.


I have one to add...


-using water from fish tanks in your mister will help with plant growth.

[repman01]

i have one that might be easy to figure out
for a divider of land and water you can use slate or other rocks, moss, sticks, or great stuff a wall

[Allyn]

This i great like martha stewart for habitat construction without the jail.

Heres another one: Plant riccia in even clumps, not in one big area,
And be careful placing clumps of java moss in aquatic portions of your tank-Its a major spawn point(pardon the gaming terminology) for snails.

[froggsong]

Ok, I have decided to ignore mention of Satan herself and go ahead and stick this thread.

Now, I thought I had posted this already, but here goes:

You can use a credit card or shopping card or whatever with the corner cut off to smooth your silicone better. It's alot less messy, and you can actually save silicone because you can lay down a smaller bead and smooth it into the corner better than a larger bead you smooth with your finger. There is also a ready made tool you can buy(I've seen it on TV) that has lots of different shaped and sized edges. Maybe look it up and cut a few cards to the different shapes on the tool and keep them with your supplies for future use.

[MTviver]

When using Great Stuff be sure to do a single layer and let cure completely. If you pile too much up you will notice it skins over trapping a liquid resin. this will find it's way out eventually in the form of foam and most likely ruin something. I think this "resin escape" can also be the cause of the foamy bubbles some people have encountered in water features.
Also, allow extra time for great stuff to cure because I'm pretty sure it's toxic if not fully cured.