Need some advice on new build pls (Pics)

[Stacyah]

Hello all,

I rescued a pair of white lipped tree frogs two days ago. They were in a very neat enclosure but had been neglected. I transferred them to a temporary enclosure and cleaned the old one. Now I have been staring at it for two days trying to decide what to do with it. My husband suggested a colony of pygmy chameleons. Now I am torn between setting it up for the frogs or setting it up for pygs. Any help would be appreciated.

Here are the pics of enclosure after I had pulled all the cage decorations out and stripped the lights and extraneous shelf out. The wood along the bottom has been warped and discolored by contact with wet, moldy soil but otherwise it cleaned up pretty well. The front is a plexiglass panel and it has a screen top.

Dimensions:
48.5in. high, 25.5in. wide, 19.5in. deep
living space: 33.5in. high, width and depth the same




Thanks so much for any input!
stacy

[little98dime]

If you decide to do it up for the frogs, I would suggest making a glass "bowl" of sorts for the false bottom. By that, i mean make a glass "tank" to sit in to bottom section of the eclosure to hold the water. This would prevent further damage to the wood.

[jpstod]

You could also use a sealer like Dry lock or DIY Truck Bed Liner to Paint the inside.

[Stacyah]

Thanks for the replies! I plan to make some sort of pond area if I put the frogs back into the enclosure. I would like to try my hand at breeding the frogs so will probably have something I can easily remove if they lay any eggs. If I put the pygmy chams in there then I won't have any standing water and the whole thing will be planted. Any ideas on pro's vs. con's of the two species in question with this type of enclosure?

stacy

[froggsong]

The purpose of the glass or other liner isn't just for standing water, but for the moisture that will be present to sustain live plants. They'll have to have water, after all, and that's what damaged the bottom in the first place, correct?

I think you should keep the frogs in the tank. It's a great size for them, and it's the size they are used to. DO you have something comparable to put them in if you set this up for chams?

[Stacyah]

Hi froggsong

Thanks for your reply. I have decided to keep the frogs in the terrarium. My initial plan is to use a 1/4 inch plastic sheet to line the bottom with lava rock layer, window screen, charcoal, window screen then coco/organic potting soil. I am going to build an acrylic or plexiglass pond area with a reservoir below the living space for the pump, filter etc. The background will have multiple pieces of driftwood and bark bolted to the wood with great stuff texture around each piece. The floor and walls will be planted. I will keep an updated log of the build

Here is the tentative set up for some of the wood



Here is the froggies temp enclosure


stacy

[froggsong]

You know, it wouldn't be too expensive for you to line the entire inside with pond liner. If you do that, you won't have to make a separate pond either, unless you want to. The pond line will protect the wood from the humidity, otherwise it WILL rot and mold. At the least, you need to cover the sides of the tank up to the top of the substrate.

The wood placement looks nice. I assume that you already know that grapewood molds easily in humid environs with little airflow?

[Reptiworld]

interesting old tank, how big is that enclosure vs the frogs¿

curiosity..

good luck

[dart345]

That wood, is it still wet? I am not sure if it would pose a threat or not, but IME, dealing with mold in water restoration, sometimes the mold strains can be a issue. I do not think the mold is a concern to me, but the mositure in the wood cabinet can possibly be.

Just want to make sure what ever you to that enclosure that you wont have any more warping issues. Wood has a moisture content between 10-18% depending on regions, and more water within the wood, then you start having issues depending on the type of wood, it could be mold, rotting, warping, or loosing its integrity to hold anything.