Vivarium help needed

Vivarium help needed

Postby firefly » Mon Jan 21, 2008 11:30 am

I have decided to redo my whole frog viv. This is what it looked liked at some stage... Image

I have replanted it twice. Played around with water depth etc etc. But the plants keep on dying!

Now I am starting all over. Couple of questions (I am in the north of pretoria).
1- Where and what kind of light should I buy to help the plants grow, and how many hours a day should it burn?
2- Where can I buy sphaghum moss from (It is what I should use for a base just after I lined the eggcrate with mosquito mesh right?)
3- Where do I buy nice looking cork flats to use as an backround?
4- Where can i buy indigenous ferns and moss from?

Please help!
firefly
SA Reptiles Member
 
Posts: 284
Joined: Sat Oct 08, 2005 5:20 pm
Location: South Africa

Postby gaboon » Mon Jan 21, 2008 1:48 pm

The repti glo 2 is a good light. You gonna have a problem with heat though if you put the light under that hood. You can try putting a sheet of glass on top of the tank and get a smaller hood and raise it above the glass to let the heat escape.

Most petshops should have spagnum

Animal kingdom has the cork flats.

Avoid indigenous plants as they wont survive in the tropical climate you are trying to create. Philodendron is a nice creeping plant as well as ficus pumila. Pretty much any plant you by in the indoor section will thrive. Just post before you buy them. Do you have a pump running to circulate the water? How much oxygen gets into the viv?
gaboon
SA Reptiles Member
 
Posts: 378
Joined: Thu Aug 18, 2005 11:04 am
Location: Northriding

Postby Kristo » Tue Jan 22, 2008 8:05 am

A combination of cool and warm white flourescent tubes!, I find that repti-glo bulbs sometimes cause uncontrolable agae blooms, flourescent tubes are fuss free and low on the heat output! The plant growth tubes available for aquarium plants also work very well, just make sure you get ones with a 'white' output of light!

Plants require a combination red and blue (not violet) rays to grow and thrive, most specailised plant growth tubes have an indicator/table on the sleeve which shows you how much of each wavelenghth the tube emmits!

These tubes are relatively inexpensive, that shop near Menlyn isn't bad!

Some mosses mould off in a constantly wet enviroment.I Agree with Gaboon on indigenous plants but many of the ferns and mosses found in mountain streams are perfect! I know a good collecting spot near hartabeesport!.Try growing some Java Fern on some drift wood in shallow water the leaves will grow above the water and help keep it clean!
"The prey equals in importance to the preditor and the preditor to that of the prey!"
User avatar
Kristo
SA Reptiles Member
 
Posts: 203
Joined: Mon Aug 20, 2007 11:00 am
Location: JOHANNESBURG SA

Postby Kristo » Tue Jan 22, 2008 8:08 am

Oh, if you use flourescent tubes, power them with those lil ballasts by H20, They run nice and cool! would recomend two tubes for the tank in the pic!?!
"The prey equals in importance to the preditor and the preditor to that of the prey!"
User avatar
Kristo
SA Reptiles Member
 
Posts: 203
Joined: Mon Aug 20, 2007 11:00 am
Location: JOHANNESBURG SA

Postby firefly » Wed Jan 23, 2008 12:17 am

Thanks guys. I'll keep you updates on the viv. I've got an old repti-glo 5 in at the momet. Would this work or would it be too strong for the moss and ferns?
firefly
SA Reptiles Member
 
Posts: 284
Joined: Sat Oct 08, 2005 5:20 pm
Location: South Africa

Postby Kristo » Thu Jan 24, 2008 6:19 am

No Problem!

I'd say too strong!.......And algae?? With that light It,l go mal!!

A good quality plant growth tube for that tank shouldn,t cost more than say...R40.
"The prey equals in importance to the preditor and the preditor to that of the prey!"
User avatar
Kristo
SA Reptiles Member
 
Posts: 203
Joined: Mon Aug 20, 2007 11:00 am
Location: JOHANNESBURG SA


Return to Natural vivariums

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests

cron