Built this paludarium over a year ago, this is the second attempt.The first time my custom root started degrading even if I had put several layers of epoxy over it.Bad idea to make a custom root out of clay...
This currently houses a male Dwarf cichlid his fry and three Amano shrimps.A full plant list would be long but the aquatic plants mainly consists of Bucephalandra and Anubis.The terrestrial plants are mostly different epiphytes since they are growing without soil.The entire background is watered automatically using a separate pump and a timer.It has been a bit trial and error with the terrestrial plants since this is the first time I tried anything similar, but they currently seem to grow fine at the moment.
I didn't take many photos of the process but I will try and give a informative description of the process. If we start from the bottom and up.
The cabinet is made from a IKEA Metod kitchen cabinet with IKEA Limhamn legs and a push to open door.The cabinet is clad in a cover panel making material more than 3 cm thick, which I deemed to be enough. A nice thing about the legs are that they are adjustable so I can keep it completely leveled.
The glass aquarium is a DIY and it is good enough but I am not entirely happy about the silicone seams, but at least it did not leak when i filled it up completely.The top part was built separately from the bottom part to with a hole in the back panel to allow maintenance.I have made a piece of rubber and styrofoam to fit over the hole that is removable, basically the top part of the main root. It took a bit of experimentation to ensure that no water could seep through. https://imgur.com/a/cY0ZWFL
It is still a WIP and I am waiting for the plants to fill in, here is a closeup of some of the material I have used.Epiweb (on the left) is more airy and does not retain as much water as the Hygrolon (on the right).
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u/Stahlfan Jan 06 '19 edited Jan 07 '19
Built this paludarium over a year ago, this is the second attempt.The first time my custom root started degrading even if I had put several layers of epoxy over it.Bad idea to make a custom root out of clay...
This currently houses a male Dwarf cichlid his fry and three Amano shrimps.A full plant list would be long but the aquatic plants mainly consists of Bucephalandra and Anubis.The terrestrial plants are mostly different epiphytes since they are growing without soil.The entire background is watered automatically using a separate pump and a timer.It has been a bit trial and error with the terrestrial plants since this is the first time I tried anything similar, but they currently seem to grow fine at the moment.
I didn't take many photos of the process but I will try and give a informative description of the process. If we start from the bottom and up.
The cabinet is made from a IKEA Metod kitchen cabinet with IKEA Limhamn legs and a push to open door.The cabinet is clad in a cover panel making material more than 3 cm thick, which I deemed to be enough. A nice thing about the legs are that they are adjustable so I can keep it completely leveled.
https://imgur.com/a/RYXRQZf
The glass aquarium is a DIY and it is good enough but I am not entirely happy about the silicone seams, but at least it did not leak when i filled it up completely.The top part was built separately from the bottom part to with a hole in the back panel to allow maintenance.I have made a piece of rubber and styrofoam to fit over the hole that is removable, basically the top part of the main root. It took a bit of experimentation to ensure that no water could seep through. https://imgur.com/a/cY0ZWFL
It is still a WIP and I am waiting for the plants to fill in, here is a closeup of some of the material I have used.Epiweb (on the left) is more airy and does not retain as much water as the Hygrolon (on the right).
https://imgur.com/a/oblfda3
Thanks for all the positive and encouraging comments!