new build...I need people's expertise... help!!!!!

Discussion in 'The Bucket' started by GSUBiology, Feb 27, 2014.

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  1. GSUBiology

    GSUBiology Feather Duster

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    ok guys, I am trying to build something like this.


    The guy on the video uses expanding foam. Im going to build this on a 75g.. how many bottles do you guys think I need to use to recreate it?
    It's definitely not going to be exactly like his but Im definitely going to be using way more than he did.

    Also, Im not sure what soil he used, since he didnt really state it. Do you guys know what soil is best to use for the plants portion of it? what type of lights for the plants used.. how big of a pump should i use? etc..
    and where to get supplies for this type of build?
    I know a lot of people here are not experts in this field, so if there is another forum like 3reef that would help me with this ordeal, feel free to point me towards it.
     
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  3. chris adams

    chris adams Purple Tang

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    wow pretty sick.

    Well the plants you need to find a lfs that carries the stuff or look online(can't remember the place my wife used to use). Your 55 is only 15gal bigger than his so pumps are not going to need to be much if at any bigger(depends on what you want for the water flow pond flow and pond size). Notice he/she had 2 pumps , 1 for the waterfall and 1 for the trickle bar they ran across the top back(can't see) but can see the water trickling in diff spots(to keep the moss wet and living).

    The foam stuff you can get at home depot or lowes but we aware that stuff expands like crazy(of course just make sure you get the black). You should probably do a couple test sprays on a paper plate or something to get hang of using it. I use the stuff for my koi pond waterfall to fill gaps.

    Very impressed, must have taken them some time to put that together.
     
  4. GSUBiology

    GSUBiology Feather Duster

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    I found the foam at fosters and smith. They call it tetra foam. It's already black i believe. I was kinda hoping for a site where I could get everything basically together. It is a school project where my teacher is paying for it so it can't really be something that's not online as she doesn't have time to go buy it personally.

    oh and if you see the description, he says it only took him a few hours to build! o_o
     
  5. chris adams

    chris adams Purple Tang

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    ah sorry not sure why I thought it was a 55.. I would say 1 can should be enough but better safe than sorry.
     
  6. GSUBiology

    GSUBiology Feather Duster

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    I told my teacher to get around 5 so that we can play around until we get something we like.
    Im just confused as to what type of soil he used.. if he had fertilizer.. and how did he clean his filter since it was in the back covered by all that stuff. It would be a pain to have to dismantle things to change it.

    He also didnt mention how much light would be necessary. I know the plants he has are in the low end of the light needs, but in case I wanted to keep more demanding ones.. should I have MH on top of the tank? lol
     
  7. GSUBiology

    GSUBiology Feather Duster

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  9. ingtar_shinowa

    ingtar_shinowa Giant Squid

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    black jungle has all the plants you would need.
     
  10. GSUBiology

    GSUBiology Feather Duster

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    Do you know where I might be able to get black soil for planting the plants that would be safe to use?
     
  11. chris adams

    chris adams Purple Tang

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    Well your lighting should be based on species of plants and animals you are going to keep. MH seems a little extreme to me as we used power compacts on our planted tank.

    I will PM you with a link but you could also go look at pollywogs world of frogs.
     
  12. kstafford003

    kstafford003 Feather Star

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    Yes you will need 2 400 watt MH with at least 2 DIY actinic strips for dawn/dusk lol.

    EDIT: Just kidding about MH's :)

    Check out the builds on poison dart frog forums. I almost went vivarium instead of reef this last time (glad I went reef though :) ) They have some very impressive builds and lots of journals. I remember seeing one where they used Great Stuff from the hardware store, covered the entire back like this video, and then hand painted the entire background to like rocks. Looked awesome but I'm sure took days to complete.

    Here's a link to one of these dart frog forums. They like to do their builds like we do (going big), but for their little dart frogs instead.

    Dart Den • Home
     
    Last edited: Feb 28, 2014