# 65 gallon Iwagumi style Paludarium for vampire crabs.



## geektom (Dec 17, 2012)

I love paludariums and will be following with interest!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

geektom said:


> I love paludariums and will be following with interest!


Awesome! Yeah paludariums are fun and create all kinds of new challenges.


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## TacitBlues (Aug 4, 2016)

Cool, following here now!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So one thing I got right the previous build was that the lavarock inside island would provide a lot of habitat for the clean up crew. When I removed the top of the island that lava rock inside was crawling with springtails.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Nothing too exciting to report been pretty busy lately and it has been a slow process breaking down the old one. A few things I noticed when breaking it down.

There was a good bit of mulm in the lava rock but less than I expected. Also there was a ton of silt from the clay in there. While the water never got cloudy a ton had settled in the substrate and behind the island. I am going to try and prevent clay from entering the water the next go round.

Here is a picture of the silt with MTS trails throughout










Also isopods were climbing up the cords and getting stuck on the duct tape quite a bit.










Like I said nothing too exciting.


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## LadyWonkyMcJankeypants (Nov 7, 2018)

Just read through your previous build. Can't wait to see how this one turns out!


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

I think one of your MTS had been drinking!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

LadyWonkyMcJankeypants said:


> Just read through your previous build. Can't wait to see how this one turns out!


Awesome I appreciate you taking the time. Hopefully the jumbled up ball of ideas in my head come to fruition and I can pull off my vision. Only time will tell.

Bump:


KayakJimW said:


> I think one of your MTS had been drinking!


Ha! In it's defense I did tear apart probably the only home it's ever known. That'll drive any snail to drinking.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Ok quick update. I have had a little bit of free time over the holidays and finished some other nagging projects and had a few minutes to work on this one.

So the idea for this scape is to incorporate concepts of Iwagumi and apply it to a paludarium. Basically I will use the main stones in the iwagumi to divide the land and water portions. Here are the three stones I am using for this build:










Oyaishi:










Fukuishi:










Soeishi:










I started messing around with them and how to stabilize them, I set them on some spare matten filter I have to add height and used it to stabilize as well. I am thinking I wont go that route since in areas where the matten is doubled up there is 4" of material and this would take up a lot of substrate to cover up. Any way here are some arrangements I came up with that I liked (sorry for the dirty glass) 




























Need to play around more to see how I want to arrange and stabilize these rocks. Any suggestions I am all ears.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

No one has any Iwagumi advise? Oh well I guess I'm on my own then ha ha.

People who followed my previous build might know I am a big fan of isopods. Wondering if I should put some of these in there:










I am only halfway serious as they are pretty expensive and prefer it on the drier side (probably would have done better in the old tank) but it would be pretty cool to have isopods that were more than twice the size of the fish I am planning on.


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

Can't help with Iwagumi arrangements other than shooting for the generic "rule of thirds" focal point design... As far as stabilizing, what about making the clay as used in your previous build to make a custom foundation to keep the rocks in place? I really hesitate to give advice because you're pretty far beyond me creatively, but I look forward to see what you come up with! I'm sure whatever you do will really "tie the room together" :icon_wink


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## Rush3737 (Jan 15, 2013)

I can only assume this is an aquarium with only fish that swim forwards the same way they do backwards?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

KayakJimW said:


> Can't help with Iwagumi arrangements other than shooting for the generic "rule of thirds" focal point design... As far as stabilizing, what about making the clay as used in your previous build to make a custom foundation to keep the rocks in place? I really hesitate to give advice because you're pretty far beyond me creatively, but I look forward to see what you come up with! I'm sure whatever you do will really "tie the room together" :icon_wink


Yeah trying to incorporate the rule of thirds as much as I can. It gets a little more tricky with this tank since the front pane is 18" and the back 28". I have concluded I will use the front pane as far as measuring and the rule of thirds. This is mainly due to what water depth I want and the size of the rocks. As far as stabilization the clay can't be under the water or it get all mushy. I started playing with making a cradle out of eggcrate, I am thinking I could cover that in pond foam to further secure it. Hopefully it will be a valued tank by the time I'm done.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Rush3737 said:


> I can only assume this is an aquarium with only fish that swim forwards the same way they do backwards?


Ha took me a minute.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Not too much to update since it's been too cold around here to drill the tank. Got the last of my supplies needed but now am thinking of doing an auto top off as well. Went to a local green house and had a couple cool finds.










This is selaginella kraussiana brownii a clubmoss that only gets 1-2" high. Hopefully they will have more in stock as this was the only pot.










This pitcher plant is Nepenthes ventrata I might just put this in the room to catch fruit flies and find Nepenthes ampullaria as it stays smaller and is good for terrariums. Then again this will probably be slow enough growing that I may use it. Geosesarma are known to hang out in pitcher plants and eat the bugs that fall in, I am going for trying to recreate that in the terrarium.


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## bgmoore (Feb 10, 2019)

Just joined this forum. My wife and I are about to take on a DIY paludarium. Got a used 125 gallon tank and hope to learn enough to avoid some major problems. Just reading your thread has been very educational. Looking forward to following you along. Any suggestions of where I should look for info would be appreciated. At this point we know very little so please bear with us if we ask what might be a silly question.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

bgmoore said:


> Just joined this forum. My wife and I are about to take on a DIY paludarium. Got a used 125 gallon tank and hope to learn enough to avoid some major problems. Just reading your thread has been very educational. Looking forward to following you along. Any suggestions of where I should look for info would be appreciated. At this point we know very little so please bear with us if we ask what might be a silly question.


Thanks! A 125 paludarium will look awesome. As far as info dendroboard has some tank journals of paludariums that I found helpful as they are quite detailed. There's always youtube. Also looking for inspiration the annual AGA contest has a paludarium category that many times will have the aquascaping materials and plants they used laid out. It's pretty cool to see how the paludarium has evolved throughout the years.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So I am still at a stand still with drilling the hole in the glass but decided I would test my sump / plumbing design and also see if the pump I selected would work for this application. The thing that makes the selection of the pump difficult is that I needed to have a pump strong enough to clear the 5'+ head but also not too strong for such a small volume of water. I was pretty nervous it wouldn't work out. The pump I am using is a danner 350. I was trying to keep it as simple as possible since this is my first dive into sumps and diy plumbing.

Anyway here is a picture of the sump. I has 3 chambers divided by poret foam. The first is where water returns then it goes through 10ppl foam to the main chamber, this will possibly be for quarantine or raising shrimp and scuds or maybe just for additional filter media (or both). Next water passes through 20ppl foam and to where the pump is located.



















The idea for the plumbing was basically hashed out through this thread https://www.plantedtank.net/forums/8-general-planted-tank-discussion/1228226-paludarium-plumbing-questions.html as well as one on dendroboard. The idea is to be able to control the flow through 2 valves going off a tee. One goes back into the sump the other powers the waterfall in the main tank.



















I ended the section of plumbing that goes directly back into the sump to end in a tee and then embedded that into the poret foam. The idea is that it will act as a makeshift wet/dry filter.



















Here are pictures of the valve on the line that goes to the waterfall.



















I turned on the pump and........it couldn't have gone any better! I had a respectable flow but nothing too crazy coming out with both valves completely open. This means I could probably went with a smaller pump but oh well. If it is too much flow I can adjust it with the valve going to the waterfall but this will cause the pump to operate with some back pressure (which I have been told is not a big deal).










I chose to go with reinforced vinyl as my tubing for increased flexibility and also with it being in general easier to work with. I used this tool to cut the tubing and it went through it like butter.










Setting this up has gotten me really excited to get this project moving. Hopefully I can get some free time and a nice enough day to do the drilling this weekend. Although if this phase made me this nervous I can't imagine what drilling into the glass will do. Not to mention once I have and seeing if the bulkhead is large enough. If anyone has any insight as far as the plumbing for this system I would be interested to hear it.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So I finally took the plunge and drilled my tank! I have wanted to do this for a very long time but was always hesitant thinking I may crack the glass.

I had a unseasonably warm day and had the wife help me move it outside. I figured with it being my first time I would use a guide. It helped for the initial grinding but I would probably only use it at the very start of the drilling in the future.










Here is the diamond tipped drill bit I used.










I ran water from a hose over the hole continuously to cool the bit which helps reduce the risk of cracking.










This picture shows the tiny shards of glass created by grinding the hole.










The drilling didn't take nearly as long as I thought it would. I wish I went slower because as you can see I had significant chip out.




























As said I wish I went slower and maybe practiced on another tank first. The glass on the back is painted black so I was having trouble seeing how far down I was. I also read that drilling from the opposite side when almost all the way through will help but with the shape of the tank this was not an option. Also the glass on this tank is pretty thick so not sure if that played a role in the chip out. I was told that even with as much chipping as there is I should be fine if I seal the bulkhead with silicone. 

Although not the most pretty hole in the world I still can say I have a hole in my tank and no cracked glass so all and all a good day.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

I have been thinking of the stocking of the water portion of this tank. I want to do micro fish. The tank itself will hold around 22 gallons and the sump an additional 7. I know that with the smaller fish you can get away with a little more than the old 1" per gallon rule. I was thinking something like this:

24 x Microrasbora kubotai (Microrasbora kubotai)
8 x Clown Killifish (Pseudepiplatys annulatus)
6 x Scarlet Badis (Dario Dario)
3 x Sparkling Gourami (Trichopsis pumila)
10 x Tiger Shrimp (Caridina cantonensis sp. Tiger)

I am pretty set on all the fish but could do another microfish if I can't find microrasbora. I also might add more of them If I can get away with it. I went to aqadvisor and it says my stocking is at 44% (and that is not with the additional volume from the sump) this seems quite low to me but perhaps that is because I am dealing with such small fish. There are some fish on my maybe list and I also have considered adding a second school of microfish. Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

As far as the land section I am going with vampire crabs again. I will probably go with 8 Geosesarma hagen. I had Geosesarma dennerle in the old tank but they hid a lot and I hear the hagen are more bold.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Just did a title change, hopefully it will garner a little more attention so I don't feel like I'm talking to a brick wall ha ha.


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## LadyWonkyMcJankeypants (Nov 7, 2018)

Those vampire crabs look really cool! I have been playing around with the idea of putting together a crabitat....hmmm


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

LadyWonkyMcJankeypants said:


> Those vampire crabs look really cool! I have been playing around with the idea of putting together a crabitat....hmmm


Do it! Do it! Do it!

Bump:


LadyWonkyMcJankeypants said:


> Those vampire crabs look really cool! I have been playing around with the idea of putting together a crabitat....hmmm


Do it! Do it! Do it!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Not going to get any work done for a while


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## LadyWonkyMcJankeypants (Nov 7, 2018)

I love my tanks, but puppies will always trump fish!!!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

LadyWonkyMcJankeypants said:


> I love my tanks, but puppies will always trump fish!!!


Yeah honestly I think I blocked from my memory how hard the first few weeks with a puppy are. Throw a 4 year old into the equation and I'm ready to pull my hair out.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Slowly getting some things done. Had a petco giftcard and a 20% off coupon that was expiring so I bought some aquatic plants. Here is what I have so far:

Hemianthus callitrichoides Dwarf baby tears
Utricularia graminifolia
Bolbitis heteroclita X 3
Riccia fluitans
Bucephalandra sp. "Green" X 5

These will be in both aquatic and emersed areas of the tank. I was actually pleasantly surprised at the quality of the plants.

I am going to order a few more aquatic plants probably from buceplant (anyone have any experience?) I am planning on getting some:

hygrophila pinnatifida
Mini Xmas Moss
Fissidens fontanus
Cryptocoryne wendtii 'Tropica'
Cryptocoryne parva
Possibly Bucephalandra[censored]Mini Coin

I am still going to get a Nepenthes ampullaria, the particular morph (lime twist) I want I can only find a large plant of and it comes with a large $130 pricetag. I don't think I will do it since this is my first attempt at growing Nepenthes in a terrarium and I find mixed reviews on how that'll go. I will probably go with a cheaper morph of Nepenthes ampullaria but then again I made a little hobby money selling isopods and springtails so it might soften the blow if I can rationalize that yes I just spent $130 on a plant but I made that money selling bugs lol. 

I have also started cutting out the skeleton/false bottom out of eggcrate. Pictures to follow.


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## LadyWonkyMcJankeypants (Nov 7, 2018)

I've only ordered from buceplant once and it was recent but so far I'm satisfied with the quality of what I got (crypts and flame moss). The only thing I noticed though is that they are often out of stock of the particular items I want so that's why it took me so long to actually order from them. I also purchased a few things from Aquarium Plants Factory and they'll occasionally have sales and specials. What I got was good quality, but I've been dealing with melt issues (java ferns, anubias from multiple sources, and buce) but everything is starting to bounce back now that I've been dosing ThriveC. 

I would personally start with a cheaper plant and see how it goes. I'm not really a gambler though, but I'm also a little hesitant to spend much on individual plants these days because I've had enough $10 plants (both aquarium and house) die on me.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

LadyWonkyMcJankeypants said:


> I've only ordered from buceplant once and it was recent but so far I'm satisfied with the quality of what I got (crypts and flame moss). The only thing I noticed though is that they are often out of stock of the particular items I want so that's why it took me so long to actually order from them. I also purchased a few things from Aquarium Plants Factory and they'll occasionally have sales and specials. What I got was good quality, but I've been dealing with melt issues (java ferns, anubias from multiple sources, and buce) but everything is starting to bounce back now that I've been dosing ThriveC.
> 
> I would personally start with a cheaper plant and see how it goes. I'm not really a gambler though, but I'm also a little hesitant to spend much on individual plants these days because I've had enough $10 plants (both aquarium and house) die on me.


Yeah looked into APF but they didn't have that great a selection of moss. Buce has all of what I need right now so I am going with them. I will probably go with a smaller cheaper plant. Although it's tempting, maybe next time.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So this weekend the family had nothing on the books so I kept it that way and made some real progress (finally) on this tank.

First I started with a basic skeleton I made out of egg crate and zip ties. This is the framework that will hold the lava rock and form the waterfall portion.










Next I added some planters to the structure as well as some walls for what will be a shallow pool.



















Then I siliconed in the egg crate along with a material called hygrolon, this is a material that is very good at wicking water and will help to keep the clay/sphagnum moss wet. I cut this to shape by basically just eyeballing it.




























After the silicon dried I created the cork bark mosaic. I arranged the cork bark to have multiple ledges to increase overall usable area in the tank. I arranged it with no real rhyme or reason other than to create the most visually appealing layout and also creating as much horizontal surface area as possible to increase the amount of usable land area for the crabs. I then siliconed all the cork to the back wall and sides of the tank. One concern I have is the upper most piece on the left side of the tank. I am hoping it will not impede the opening and closing of the lid of the tank. Only time will tell and if that is the case I will have to remove it.

After the silicone dries the gaps in between the cork will be stuffed with sphagnum moss and clay. 

Will there be enough cork?










Finished product.










Sorry I didn't get more pitures of this process but you have to move fast when doing it. I am happy I made some actual progress. Next step will be arranging the lava rock and foaming them in.


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## tredford (Jun 29, 2018)

Looks great so far! Seems like you made some nice progress. Keep the updates coming!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

tredford said:


> Looks great so far! Seems like you made some nice progress. Keep the updates coming!


Thanks! I was arranging the lava rock how I'd like it for the waterfall feature while it is still on its side. I am almost ready to foam the rock in place.


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## Hobbes1911 (Mar 2, 2009)

Make sure you have a lot of land area as the crabs spend most their time on land. They mold in water (or at least that's where I found most molts) but they live on land. They also bury so make sure your substrate is deep enough.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Hobbes1911 said:


> Make sure you have a lot of land area as the crabs spend most their time on land. They mold in water (or at least that's where I found most molts) but they live on land. They also bury so make sure your substrate is deep enough.


Thank for the advice. I'd Like to think that with all the space with the background along with the land portion they will have plenty of terrestrial space. This ain't my first rodeo with vampire crabs. I actually found at least with the crabs I have kept that they spent far more time in the water than conventional wisdom teaches. Could be that their favorite food were pest snails.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Arranged the lava rock and started foaming. Unfortunately I underestimated how much foam I would need and couldn't finish. I am planning on getting some more tonight. I am wondering how the new foam will stick to old foam I am assuming I will need to sand or cut the old stuff to roughen up the surface so the new stuff can take hold.


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## varanidguy (Sep 8, 2017)

Following!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

I started carving foam last night and forgot how time consuming it is. I think I have enough foam in place that I could sit the tank upright and no rocks would shift. Still have a little carving to do then I am going to foam in a few places I missed with it still on its side, then I am going to flip it upright to foam in the two basins the one at the inflow and the one on the lower level.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Got done craving foam then decided to foam again with the tank on its side. After carving again i decided I needed to foam again with it sitting upright. So much foaming and carving but it's finally done! I think I will scrap the lower basin as it is just too hard to see where to carve it out and I am not sure it would look how I envisioned it. 

Any one who followed my previous tank will know my main goal was to get some lush moss growth on the clay walls. I have some encouragement for this in the form of one of my dart frog vivs. If I am starting to get this in a viv with no water feature and only hand misting I would like to think it will happen once this one is done. 



















Bump: I also tried over the weekend to bond the main 2 rocks together using the cigarette filter / super glue method and failed miserably. I think the glue I was using (gorilla glue brand) was more of a gel type than liquid and just sat on top instead of soaking in and causing the reaction. It could have been worse as the rocks are not stuck together so I can try again. Anyone out there that can recommend a good glue to use?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So did a little research on super glue and the video I found he was using loctite 401 (in case anyone was wondering) so I went ahead and got some thru prime. 2 Days can't come fast enough.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So believe it or not I am still using photobucket for image hosting. It looks like on June 1st I am going to lose all/some of the photos I have posted. Just curious what do other people use as a free image hosting site to post here?


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## LadyWonkyMcJankeypants (Nov 7, 2018)

I can't wait to see how the waterfall turns out! I'm most definitely living vicariously through your project right now since I just don't have the resources to do a full paludarium right now. The best I can do is riparium set ups with a foam rock wall for plants that will eventually go behind the tanks. It is my first project using spray foam and I don't know how many times I had to go back to the store for more cans hahaha.

As for image hosting, I use imgur. Its free and pretty straightforward and easy to use. It's also a great place to find cat gifs. Speaking of pets, how is the puppy?!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

LadyWonkyMcJankeypants said:


> I can't wait to see how the waterfall turns out! I'm most definitely living vicariously through your project right now since I just don't have the resources to do a full paludarium right now. The best I can do is riparium set ups with a foam rock wall for plants that will eventually go behind the tanks. It is my first project using spray foam and I don't know how many times I had to go back to the store for more cans hahaha.
> 
> As for image hosting, I use imgur. Its free and pretty straightforward and easy to use. It's also a great place to find cat gifs. Speaking of pets, how is the puppy?!


Thanks! Just signed up seems pretty easy testing it out below.










Ripariums are pretty cool too, I have never set up one. As far as foam definitely buy more than you think you need, you can always return it after the fact. I thought I would need 1 can, I ended up using 4. Granted the last 2 were not completely used up. I am not fully convinced that I won't need to get more eventually. I am planning on testing the waterfall over the long weekend. Fingers crossed. 

As far as the puppy unfortunately he and my older dog were not getting along so he is being taken care of by another loving family.

Bump: Test 










Bump: Ok that one got it!


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

thedudeabides said:


> Bump: I also tried over the weekend to bond the main 2 rocks together using the cigarette filter / super glue method and failed miserably. I think the glue I was using (gorilla glue brand) was more of a gel type than liquid and just sat on top instead of soaking in and causing the reaction. It could have been worse as the rocks are not stuck together so I can try again. Anyone out there that can recommend a good glue to use?


I see you ordered the Loctite, but I'm sure you're right about the glue needing to be a liquid form and the gel just sitting on top and not penetrating the fibers.

I use Flickr and like it, but there's usually extra stuff to trim off. Like before and after your pics there's that visible


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

KayakJimW said:


> I see you ordered the Loctite, but I'm sure you're right about the glue needing to be a liquid form and the gel just sitting on top and not penetrating the fibers.
> 
> +1 I also use Imgur and like it, but there's usually extra stuff to trim off. Like before and after your pics there's that visible text, I had to go back and edit/ trim the fat because mine would add the link to Imgur as well. Still figuring it out myself but at least pics appear and it's free! Just hoping it stays that way[/quote]
> 
> ...


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

thedudeabides said:


> Hopefully! Yeah the pic I posted seems huge does anyone know if I can make them appear smaller. Not the most technically savvy in the world.
> 
> Bump: Never mind It's the size of all the other pics



Whoops, I'm an idiot. I use Flickr, not Imgur (darned made up words...) In Flickr when you choose to share a BBC code it gives a drop down menu with the following size options:
Square 75 × 75 
Thumbnail 100 × 56 
Square 150 × 150 
Small 240 × 135 
Small 320 × 180 
Medium 500 × 281 
Medium 640 × 360 
Medium 800 × 450 
Large 1024 × 576 
Large 1600 × 900 
Large 2048 × 1152 
Original 4128 × 2322 

I just played around clicking "preview post" on this forum until I thought it looked right. Went with Medium 640 x 360 Might be something similar on Imgur?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Got a decent amount of work done on the tank. First I tested the waterfall, it worked perfectly. I took a little video below. It doesn't have crazy flow and the water stays where I want it. If I could give one piece of advice for water features it is to let the inflow go into and spill over a basin as opposed to letting it flow right out of the hose. This leads to less splashing and looks more natural IMO.






I also got the sphagnum / clay on the walls. Still cleaning up from this.










I got some holes drilled in the lid for misting and the in flow. I also connected all the plumbing and it doesn't leak!

Next will be fusing the 2 big lava rocks and setting them in place.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So my daughter had her tonsils out and I took the entire last week off of work. She wanted mommy for the most part so this freed me up to do a ton of work on the tank. I will be making several post that track my progress. Unfortunately my pump failed after just a day of use (not sure why) so I am at a bit of a stand still as of late.

The first thing I did was secure the main rocks used in the scape. I did this using an interesting technique involving a chemical reaction with cigarette filters and super glue. When combined it creates a incredibly strong bond.

These are the materials I used










Here is the material in the filters.










It may be hard to see but the reaction creates a smoke while taking place. This was a test piece. 










After this I tested the strength of the bond. I was able to pull them apart but it took a lot of effort. I think it was the rock itself that pulled off and if it wasn't lava rock it would be an even stronger bond.

I decided to go with a configuration that provided max stability. While not as visually pleasing as I could have made it, it is more secure. 










I was having a tough time securing the rocks while bonding. After the first attempt they broke apart after I moved them around a little to much right after setting them (did not allow enough time to cure). I tried numerous things to temporarily bind them together (rope and various frames) but in the end good ol fashioned zip ties for the win.



















Much more to follow.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Also added some brackets to the stand to keep the tubing in place.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Can anyone guess what I am doing with this stuff? It's a surprise!


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## Jaye (Mar 11, 2015)

Mmmmm, beer?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Jaye said:


> Mmmmm, beer?


Nah I leave that to the hands of professionals


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So another hiccup that came up was I am getting the dreaded sucking of air with my bulkhead. I though that it would be such a low flow that it might not happen. I have some ideas on how to remedy this but I have gotten no input thus far. I am going to try to do a modified durso standpipe with my bulk head. I may also try to get a weaker pump to cut down on the flow.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So the after this I got my hardscape together. Due to the way this tank is built I wanted to do the scape so it was interesting looking at it head on as well as from above. There is a trend with paludariums where you have a large island on the left, a smaller island on the right and water in the middle. I wanted to do something different so I tried to incorporate some of the elements of an Iwagumi aquascape and used 3 large lava rocks that transition the water and land portions. This didn't quite work out the way I envisioned it in my head but I can live with the results. I wanted a smoother transition from the land to water. I haven't decided if I will go back and try to modify the hardscape make that happen. 

The aquatic section is basically the same as my old set up where it is whitish sand up front aquasoil in the planted section. These sections are separated by lava rocks. The planted section is on the right side and extends to the back of the tank where the bulkhead is.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

OK now on to the fun stuff. I was able to plant the tank while on my stayca. Here are some of the plants.

Anubias Nana Petite, I didn't realize how much of this stuff I was sitting on. It has been in a tub on my floor since I tore down the old tank.










Bucephalandra Green wavy, I would not have included this if I knew how much petite I had.










These 2 were glued in mainly near the waterfall section.










Fissidens nobilis in addition to this I also had some mini x-mas moss and Riccia that I just chopped up and glued various places in the tank










Hygrophila pinnatifida originally I planted this in the water behind the big rocks but I removed them and planted it in the wall. These weren't in the best shape so not sure if they'll do anything.










Cryptocoryne wendtii 'Tropica'










Cryptocoryne parva










Equisetum scirpoides










In addition I had some narrow leaf java fern and one anubias nana I planted. I also had dwarf baby tears and Utricularia graminifolia that were in bad shape and I ended up not using and tossing might get some more of the DBT.

As far as terrestrial plants I only took pictures of Tillandsia bulbosa.










There is also selaginella kraussiana brownii, selaginella kraussiana golden, Bolbitis heteroclita, Pleopeltis percussa and Pellaea rotundifolia. I am going to add Nepenthes ampullaria when I can get my hands on a good specimen. I also added moss spores I got a while ago not sure what kind of moss.

This is what it looked like all planted.










I also added the misting nozzles.




























Ideally you would have the nozzles at the front of the tank facing the back. I couldn't do this due to the design of the tank and having to push the slanted lid to open the tank. Although it isn't the best placement I am able to get good coverage when misting. I will get a video of the misting and put it up shortly.

I also added giant orange and powder blue isopods and tropical pink springtails.



















Still wainting on my new pump and stuff for the durso. Not too much I can do until then.


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## livebearerlove (Aug 20, 2013)

My pump went out today on a tank.... I had to lower the water level- just to catch all the fish... 
I couldnt help but think, dang- this thing is sexy even without water but your isopods takes the cake!


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## tredford (Jun 29, 2018)

Nice, the planting looks awesome! Can't wait to see it fill in.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

livebearerlove said:


> My pump went out today on a tank.... I had to lower the water level- just to catch all the fish...
> I couldnt help but think, dang- this thing is sexy even without water but your isopods takes the cake!


Yeah it's frustrating for sure. Isopods rock!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

tredford said:


> Nice, the planting looks awesome! Can't wait to see it fill in.


Thanks! Yeah that is always the fun part.


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## livebearerlove (Aug 20, 2013)

@thedudeabides

Recently in the wetlands by my home- I found hundreds of water mites- Bright red, adorable...... I palmed a couple to get a proper ID. Water Mite - Hydrachna. Those little swimming bright red dots were so much fun to watch as they were larger than normal.... I feel a new tank coming on....


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

livebearerlove said:


> @thedudeabides
> 
> Recently in the wetlands by my home- I found hundreds of water mites- Bright red, adorable...... I palmed a couple to get a proper ID. Water Mite - Hydrachna. Those little swimming bright red dots were so much fun to watch as they were larger than normal.... I feel a new tank coming on....


Had to look those up, pretty cool!


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## livebearerlove (Aug 20, 2013)

thedudeabides said:


> Had to look those up, pretty cool!


 They swim similar to daphnia- but the bright red color is striking. Here is one in my hand... I really just want a tank filled with them now- lol.

Edit: ok- my hand looks gross.... but i was trying to keep it in for a photo before releasing it.... but it looks like a lower intestine. ugh.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Still waiting on the pump. Got some plumbing parts to modify the outflow so hopefully it wont suck so much air.

In the meantime I added some inhabitants, a couple Ammano shrimp that have survived in a tub on my floor for the past year or so.


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## livebearerlove (Aug 20, 2013)

thedudeabides said:


> a couple Ammano shrimp that have survived in a tub on my floor for the past year or so.


Ha! People think im nuts as I leave plants with some Amano in a bucket when Im in between tanks... Now I dont feel so alone.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

livebearerlove said:


> Ha! People think im nuts as I leave plants with some Amano in a bucket when Im in between tanks... Now I dont feel so alone.


Yeah they are tough ol' buggers. Wasn't planning on them being in there as long as they were and most if not all survived.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So I got a video of the misting system:






I also have good news and bad new as far as the plumbing for the system. The good news is I modified the outflow on the bulkhead and now there is no sucking sound.










Now the bad news, my outflow cannot handle the amount of water pumped into the tank. When originally planning for this tank I took several things into consideration and knew this would be a challenge. 

I originally figured that with the tank and sump I would be dealing with around 25 to 30 gallons of water. I also wanted the tank to turn over around 4 times per hour. That would mean I needed around 100 to 120 gallons of flow coming into the tank. A 1/2" bulkhead should handle ~200 gallons of flow an hour. For this reason I figured a 1/2" bulkhead would be perfect. It still may be but here is the problem I am running into, when the water is pumped into the basin some of the water is draining behind the background. I had anticipated this but not at the levels where it would create a problem. Even with the slightest of trickles coming out of the water feature the outflow still cannot keep up.

In retrospect I should have just drilled a larger bulkhead but I feel it is a little late for that. I also could have gone with a smaller pump. I had figured for around 5' of head but looking into it I probably have closer to 4', this is due to me calculating from the pump and not the top of the water in the sump. The pump I have operates at 270 gallons per hour at a 5' head. I figured that with the return going to the sump and water choosing the path of least resistance this would reduce the output of the pump significantly. It probably does but not at the capacity to reduce flow to the 100 gph mark. I feel I can still use the pump since I can adjust the flow coming into the water feature and getting a smaller one would not fix the problem of the leaking basin. 

I am figuring that the easiest fix is to seal the basin. The problem is that with the shrimp and plants already in there I don't know if I should use silicon or a product like flex seal with it having to cure and with living things involved. I am wondering if a product like the aquatic epoxy sticks would work for this and they claim you can use it wet or dry and it is safe for animals. I also considered using pond liner repair tape that I have lying around. The first thing I will check on when I get home is how fast the water is draining out of the basin and go from there.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Any insight on sealing the basin would be greatly appreciated.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So I was playing around with the flow and figured out I can maintain a steady water level in the tank and sump, but it now looks more like a drip wall instead of a waterfall lol. I wanted low flow but this seems ridiculous. I am at a loss for why the outflow can't handle more water than a trickle. Maybe the strainer and 90 degree elbow slow down the flow that significantly? Who knows.

I also took the lid off (no easy feat right now) and looked at the basin. It did not leak nearly as much as anticipated. I am thinking I may just plug up some of the larger holes with super glue gel.

The pump ran successfully overnight with no drop in water level for the sump so that is promising.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

I am also considering that I am allowing too much air in the system with the tee for the modified durso. My thinking is if I allow too much air there is not enough room for any significant volume of water to pass. I am considering just getting a valve so I can adjust the airflow entering the system.


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## livebearerlove (Aug 20, 2013)

I would love to give you advise- but I seem to have nothing but trouble getting my overpowered Eheim to NOT have bubbles in it- I must have a leak somewhere, so I keep taking it apart. Starts out well but a few days later the flow slows and makes that wonderful (dreaded) gurgling noise.

So in other words- I cant help you as I cant even help myself. Ugh.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

livebearerlove said:


> I would love to give you advise- but I seem to have nothing but trouble getting my overpowered Eheim to NOT have bubbles in it- I must have a leak somewhere, so I keep taking it apart. Starts out well but a few days later the flow slows and makes that wonderful (dreaded) gurgling noise.
> 
> So in other words- I cant help you as I cant even help myself. Ugh.


Ha, yeah this is set up is kinda unique so I am having trouble finding answers. There are somethings I could try to modify the set up. From what I can find my intuition on too much air entering the system might be what is happening. I am thinking that the valve going off the tee wouldn't do much as the air could still be sucked in through the strainer on the wet side. What I might have to do is have an elbow coming off the bulk head on the wet side so the strainer is submerged. This wouldn't allow for surface skimming and I am not sure if I have enough water depth to accomplish this. As for now the I can live with the trickle coming out of my water feature but hopefully I can figure out how to increase the flow.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So I am heavily leaning that the best solution for my tank is redrilling for a larger hole size. At least 1 inch maybe even 1.5. I did a lot of research prior to this build but still did not read up on static pressures for the inflow and outflow. I am convinced this is definitely the problem. The problem is I will have to drill with the tank upright at this point. It can be done but makes me nervous seeing how I have only drilled the one hole and had a pretty significant chip out.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So since the last post I have decided I am ok with the 1/2 inch bulkhead for now. It is less than ideal and a larger hole would solve a lot of problems (it would increase filtration of main tank and right now I still have some surface scum). But there is something relaxing with watching the water slowly drip down the wall as opposed to a steady trickle. That coupled with the fact I would have to redrill with the tank vertical with stuff in it is enough for me to keep it as is. I put more sand in and like the look of it. I will get a whole tank shot sometime soon.










Moss and riccia is starting to grow



















This is moss starting from spores.


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## livebearerlove (Aug 20, 2013)

Can moss be adorable? yep, i guess so!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

livebearerlove said:


> Can moss be adorable? yep, i guess so!


Yes it can! Hopefully not for too long though I want my moss to be beast! Ha Ha


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Got my pitcher plant! It is a Nepenthes ampullaria 'lime twist'. Put it in there. Not sure if it will stay where I put it since there is some drops of aquarium water falling on it and they like water without a lot of nutrients in it.




























Here is a whole tank shot:


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Not too much to report, patiently waiting for the moss to grow.



















Also have what looks like it might be some liverwort growing all over the place. Not sure what it is, anyone that can chime in?










Another volunteer I'm not too sure about.










I am waiting till the weather cools a little to stock the tank with some fish/shrimp and the crabs. Might get some scuds here soon to try and get a population going in the sump.


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

Man that's looking awesome! The riccia looks super cool out of water, it all looks great really.

The last volunteer looks like lobelia cardinalis


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

KayakJimW said:


> Man that's looking awesome! The riccia looks super cool out of water, it all looks great really.
> 
> The last volunteer looks like lobelia cardinalis


Thank you for the kind words! Yeah my main focus with this one was creating a environment where moss thrives. One of my fears is that the riccia may take over and choke out the slower growing mosses. I guess time will tell.

lobelia cardinalis looks like a good guess for the volunteer, thanks!


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

I love this entire setup so much. Especially your orange isopods.

Are you running a MistKing system?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

somewhatshocked said:


> I love this entire setup so much. Especially your orange isopods.
> 
> Are you running a MistKing system?


Thank you!

Yes I am running a mistking for the first time and I love it! One thing I did not mention is the fact that I had a leak in the tubing where it kinked during delivery and have yet to fix it. In the meantime I have been misting by hand and realizing how spoiled I am when it works.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Oh and one cool thing about the orange isopods and this tank. They are underwater way more than you'd expect. I will try to get a picture at some point.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

A couple updates. Got some new inhabitants got some super tiger shrimp from TPT user @jmontee the other day. They are still pretty small so I am keeping them in the sump till they put on some size. 



















Also one of the plants I am worried wont have time to take off before others choke it out is the fissidens nobilis. I found some new growth even among some of the other mosses in the tank so that is encouraging.


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## livebearerlove (Aug 20, 2013)

Yeah. Those shrimp are adorable. 
I need some new species other than my Amano and Cherries.... Interesting: yesterday I saw my Amano attack and kill a young cherry. Never saw that before. .. So apparently I have the jeffrey dahmer of shrimp in one of my tanks. So I might just wait a bit... lol.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

livebearerlove said:


> Yeah. Those shrimp are adorable.
> I need some new species other than my Amano and Cherries.... Interesting: yesterday I saw my Amano attack and kill a young cherry. Never saw that before. .. So apparently I have the jeffrey dahmer of shrimp in one of my tanks. So I might just wait a bit... lol.


I believe he has more if you are interested in the super tigers. I am equally worried about the Amanos as I am the badis in the tank (they are a rather large variety of badis)


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

[/url]via Imgflip Meme Generator[/IMG]


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## ipkiss (Aug 9, 2011)

Haha been reading up some of the older posts. Is the pitcher plant still in there? What are you feeding it on occasion or is it one of the many dangers lurking in your tank for the bottom of the food chain guys? 

"You shall live in a paradise, but its a dangerous one!"


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## Thelongsnail (Dec 2, 2015)

What type of badis do you have? Can't seem to find it in the journal, but I could just be missing it. My Badis Badis single-handedly takes out ALL shrimplets in a tank with 10-30 adult neos in, so I hope you're not hoping to breed them!

Lovely tank by the way!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

ipkiss said:


> Haha been reading up some of the older posts. Is the pitcher plant still in there? What are you feeding it on occasion or is it one of the many dangers lurking in your tank for the bottom of the food chain guys?
> 
> "You shall live in a paradise, but its a dangerous one!"


Yeah the pitcher plant is in there. It lost one of its cups but that happens a lot when transferring. It is Nepenthes ampullaria and they have adapted to eating detritus. I dump my fruit flies that I feed my darts over this tank usually around 10 - 20 fall into the tank. So I figure at least a few probally fall in. I have also tossed in leaves from time to time.

Bump:


Thelongsnail said:


> What type of badis do you have? Can't seem to find it in the journal, but I could just be missing it. My Badis Badis single-handedly takes out ALL shrimplets in a tank with 10-30 adult neos in, so I hope you're not hoping to breed them!
> 
> Lovely tank by the way!


Thanks! They were sold to me as Badis badis in the LFS but they are not. I thought maybe they would color up when I brought them home but they are pretty drab, either brown or black with a little red thrown in. My plan is to keep a population in the sump and move adults into the main tank when possible, if the shrimplets in the main tank get got oh well.


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

livebearerlove said:


> Interesting: yesterday I saw my Amano attack and kill a young cherry. Never saw that before. ..


Sorry this happened but thanks for sharing that experience. I've witnessed it too and know Amano shrimp to be aggressive to smaller shrimp although most say they're harmless. My Neo populations really took off after removing Amanos from my tanks


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Quick update here is a whole tank shot.










Also someone asked about the pitcher plant. Here it is next to the Selaginella kraussiana var. brownii that is really taking off.


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## Thelongsnail (Dec 2, 2015)

thedudeabides said:


> Thanks! They were sold to me as Badis badis in the LFS but they are not. I thought maybe they would color up when I brought them home but they are pretty drab, either brown or black with a little red thrown in. My plan is to keep a population in the sump and move adults into the main tank when possible, if the shrimplets in the main tank get got oh well.



Mine's the same, I think a lot of the photos of Badis Badis online are of males in breeding colours though, they seem to be pretty drab fish in general. That said, mine was sold as a Dario Dario, so who knows. Great little personalities on them anyway.


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

This looks so good. Still curious what the beer keg/ air pump project was.... Did I miss it?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

KayakJimW said:


> This looks so good. Still curious what the beer keg/ air pump project was.... Did I miss it?


Thanks! No you didn't miss it. I am just lazy ha ha.


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## aquanerd13 (Jun 22, 2019)

When will the crabs go in there?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

aquanerd13 said:


> When will the crabs go in there?


Soon! I usually wait till this time of year to get animals shipped to me in the mail. I am going to check out the LFS first as they sometimes get them in.


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## aquanerd13 (Jun 22, 2019)

Cool! Can't wait.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

test


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Quick update. These pics are almost a month old but I never added them. Here are 2 aquatic favorites growing just fine terrestrially.

Java fern










Cryptocoryne wendtii tropica










There is a volunteer fern popping up all over the place, my guess is from the moss spores I added.










And the liverwort is the same.










Here is a gametophyte coming up from a liverwort.


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

Cool man, it looks like there's nice growth coming out of that NLJF in the first pic. Much better than the stuff I put in my emersed tub about 3 months ago, mine looks the same as when I put it in... Also, check out all those new leaves popping out of the Anubias rhizome below it! If that is from a month ago, I'd love to see the same pic again soon/ next few weeks to see how those 2 plants have filled in... Your updates are always cool :icon_cool


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

KayakJimW said:


> Cool man, it looks like there's nice growth coming out of that NLJF in the first pic. Much better than the stuff I put in my emersed tub about 3 months ago, mine looks the same as when I put it in... Also, check out all those new leaves popping out of the Anubias rhizome below it! If that is from a month ago, I'd love to see the same pic again soon/ next few weeks to see how those 2 plants have filled in... Your updates are always cool :icon_cool


Thanks! Yeah I have been fairly diligent at removing old leaves off the Anubias and have noticed it accelerates new growth. The crytp. has really taken off since then and the java fern on the other side (which actually stays drier) is really taking off. I am going to trim the JF to keep the leaves smaller. Also the voluteer ferns are taking off as well. I will get some more pics tonight if I remember.


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## aquanerd13 (Jun 22, 2019)

Have you gotten the crabs yet?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

aquanerd13 said:


> Have you gotten the crabs yet?


Don't ya think I would have posted about it if I did?! Just kidding, I am going on vacation next week so I am holding off till then.


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## varanidguy (Sep 8, 2017)

thedudeabides said:


> Don't ya think I would have posted about it if I did?! Just kidding, I am going on vacation next week so I am holding off till then.


I think we're all chomping at the bit to see the little buggers. lol


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

varanidguy said:


> I think we're all chomping at the bit to see the little buggers. lol


If anyone has been paying attention, I don't do anything fast in this hobby :grin2:


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

@KayakJimW this update is just for you buddy! Although I swear I took a picture of the crypt. but it is nowhere on to be found my phone.

Whole tank shot:










Here are the 2 java ferns



















Volunteer fern growing nicely:










Buce wavey green is starting to take hold:










I've got some moss that has turned orange. Not sure if this is a deficiency. They are in the brightest lit spots. All other moss looks fine:



















Also super excited about this one put my pitcher is starting to produce new cups!:




















I'll get a picture of the crypt soon.


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

Thanks! That NLJF looks so good, I need to give mine a pep talk for being a slacker

Glad to see your pitcher is thriving too, such a cool plant


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

KayakJimW said:


> Thanks! That NLJF looks so good, I need to give mine a pep talk for being a slacker
> 
> Glad to see your pitcher is thriving too, such a cool plant


Thanks!

Yeah I didn't notice till I took the picture but that is the dead cup from the pitcher directly below the new one that's growing. Circle of life and all that.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Here's that crypt:


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Also couldn't get a photo of them since they are so tiny but I now have shrimplets from the super tigers in my sump. I may move a couple of the adults to the main tank now.


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## A_Cun (Sep 13, 2011)

Hello, sorry to use your post! Just didn’t think it would be worth to create a new post for a simple question. 😃

Does anyone know if limestone is a good choice of rock for a Geosesarma? I understand they prefer a little high ph and a little hard water, which I think limestone does... am i correct? 

Best regards,

Dash


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

A_Cun said:


> Hello, sorry to use your post! Just didn’t think it would be worth to create a new post for a simple question. 😃
> 
> Does anyone know if limestone is a good choice of rock for a Geosesarma? I understand they prefer a little high ph and a little hard water, which I think limestone does... am i correct?
> 
> ...


Honestly have no idea


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Couple pictures here is the pitcher cup from the previous post:










Volunteer fern getting bigger:










Microgramma vacciniifolia starting to branch out:










The land portion is growing just fine. The water not so much. All the crypt parva melted and has not come back, dwarf horsetail did not fare well either. All I'm left with is Java fern and a few sad looking crypts. May be looking for some other plants to fill out the water portion. Any suggestions?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So I made a trip to LFS store last week. They sometimes have geosesarma crabs but I didn't have any luck. Instead I took home 8 beckfordi pencilfish. I also got some more crypt. parva and some micro chain sword to see if they hold up better in the water section. I might eventually add a more powerful spot light for the water area.

I also got some scuds monia and cyclops to culture. I add some of them to the sump not sure if they will all live in there or just the scuds.

I put in a order for 6 epiplatys annulatus, 6 sparkling gouramis, 6 otto cats and 12 pygmy corys. This will probably be it for fish unless I get more pencilfish.

I have another lfs that says they are getting some crabs in this week. There is also another one that has them but they can't give me good species info.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Tried to get a few quick shots of the fauna so far.

beckfordi pencilfish










sparkling gourami










Epiplatys annulatus










pygmy cory cats










Otto cat










Bump: Whole tank shot


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

I am definitely liking the mix of fish in the tank. Last night I dumped a bunch of springtails in the water and the clown killies went nuts over them. It was cool to watch them pick them off one by one. I also am liking the pygmy corys, watching them school and dart up to the surface to gulp some air is fun. I may somewhere down the line get more of the pygmy corys and beckfordi pencilfish to try and get a little more schooling going on. I may also try and get a bigger fish that will serve as a threat to get them into tighter schools, the tricky part is getting something they will see as a threat, but wont harm shrimp. Any suggestions?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

No one thinks my fish are cool  

I know what you all want.










I'm withholding all other crab related pictures. MY FISH MUST BE ACKNOWLEDGED lol.


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## varanidguy (Sep 8, 2017)

Are those clown killies? I love the fish selection and also MOAR CRABS! lol

Seriously, you're doing a fantastic job here, kudos to you. The entire set up is stunning!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

varanidguy said:


> Are those clown killies? I love the fish selection and also MOAR CRABS! lol
> 
> Seriously, you're doing a fantastic job here, kudos to you. The entire set up is stunning!


Yes as a matter of fact they are clown killies, thank you for asking! Ha Ha. It's probably obvious that I have to work on my fish photography skills but they look fine on my phone but when I put them on here they look like hot garbage. Although I think the one of the sparkling gourami turned out well. The killies are starting to color up better so I will need get some better pics of them.

As far as the crabs unfortunately one of the six died shortly after putting them in there. Out of the other five I only see one out and about for the most part. I am not panicking yet cause I used to not see my old crabs for months at a time lol. Hopefully they are hiding and will come out when they feel more comfortable. I was not a huge fan of how the crabs were shipped. They had a good bit of water in the bag with a few Styrofoam peanuts and 3 crabs were to a bag. The last time I got crabs shipped they were individually bagged in small cordon breather bags with just a very tiny bit of water in the bag. These crabs were probably sloshed around the whole trip and if I had to guess couldn't hold on to the floating peanuts that well and were probably latching on to each other during the trip. Hopefully the others are still kicking it and won't become isopod food.

Thank you for the kind words! The tank looks like it is starting the phase where everything will hopefully take off and start filling more. One way or another I will make sure there are MOAR CRABS ha ha.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

So over the long weekend I was feeding my isopods Repashy Bug Burger and figured I'd throw some in the sump to see if the shrimp would like it. They want absolutely hog wild for it. After the initial trail I put some more in the next day. They were eating it before it hit the bottom of the tank!



















I am amazed how fast the shrimp population has grown. I am also probably the only one, but I am beyond excited that I have pest snails in the sump. Probably from the plants I got with the shrimp.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Unfortunately I found another crab dead in the enclosure. Like I said I don't think they were in the best shape when I got them. This one had really under developed claws so maybe it wasn't able to defend itself against the others, the other one I found had the same issue and was one of the smaller ones. I am pretty sure this recent one was the one that I see the majority of the time. I saw another one the other day that was hanging out on the top of the waterfall as far as any others I am hoping they just found good hiding spots. I am thinking I will get more eventually. Not sure if I will start looking soon or wait till the spring.


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

Dang Dude sorry to hear that. "Another" crab? I missed where you'd lost more. What's the count?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

KayakJimW said:


> Dang Dude sorry to hear that. "Another" crab? I missed where you'd lost more. What's the count?


Yeah I mention it a couple posts back. So I started with 6 and am down 2 so hopefully I still have 4 but who knows. 

It was definitely a shock because I saw some crab poop near the bug burger I set out for them and thought, "this is encouraging," but right after that I look in the water and see the crab belly up.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Ok time to post some of the crab pics I was withholding lol.

These are from the day I got them and they were still out in the open.




























This one hits home I took this picture only to realize later this crab was dead (he was the first one I discovered) as you can see his claws were pretty small as was the other dead one.










I now have a little more faith that the other 4 may still be around even if I don't see them often. In this picture you can see how good the crabs are at hiding I noticed the legs, can you find them?










Here's the same crab after I scared it trying to get a picture.










Also got a better shot of the E. annulatus


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Made a quick (and bad ha ha) video of feeding springtails to the fish. The nice part is that any that don't get got by the fish or crabs become part of the clean up crew.


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

Cool pics and video, Dude. The first crab in the pics is pretty psychedelic looking! Found the hiding crab, but are you sure he was hiding and not just trying on a green afro wig? Great pick of the killi too

Keep the feeding vids coming plz! Wouldn't mind seeing it from the front glass view as well, fwiw. I'm sure the fish love the live springtails. Are they easy to culture?


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

KayakJimW said:


> Cool pics and video, Dude. The first crab in the pics is pretty psychedelic looking! Found the hiding crab, but are you sure he was hiding and not just trying on a green afro wig? Great pick of the killi too
> 
> Keep the feeding vids coming plz! Wouldn't mind seeing it from the front glass view as well, fwiw. I'm sure the fish love the live springtails. Are they easy to culture?


Thanks! Yeah there's a lot of variability with the crabs I got. I am liking the moss afro theory lol. 

Springtails are super easy to culture and if you have top feeders they are great live food for them. If you ever want to try your hand at culturing them I can let you know how plus I've got a really prolific strain.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Well this is very encouraging. I found a crab out and about last night before I fed the fish. He was patrolling the edge of the water and got real excited when I put the food in. I was actually able to get a quick video of the little guy. He stayed visible for quite some time.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Did a quick video of the whole tank. Isn't my best work ha ha.


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## TacitBlues (Aug 4, 2016)

Things are looking pretty good there!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

TacitBlues said:


> Things are looking pretty good there!


Thanks, I will get a better video up here eventually.


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## TacitBlues (Aug 4, 2016)

Boy, I get that. Been experimenting with YouTube and it’s kind of a pain to get good enough footage of all the little denizens to make it feel worth the time to post 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

TacitBlues said:


> Boy, I get that. Been experimenting with YouTube and it’s kind of a pain to get good enough footage of all the little denizens to make it feel worth the time to post
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


It actually has nothing to do with that. I had my brothers 40th birthday that night with copious amounts of sangria and a limo ride home. I am pretty sure I can do a better job when sober lol.


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## qa2744 (Dec 18, 2018)

Have the crabs eat any of your plants? 

I have two VC in a palladium also and I noticed that one of my Chara plants recently was eaten. The buce also look nibbled on, I was thinking transplant shock, now I am not so sure.

The tank only has: 

Chili Rasbiora (5)
Orange Sunkist Neonshrimp (5)
Random Scuds
Nerite snails (4)
Vampire crabs (2)

Thanks,
Paul


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

qa2744 said:


> Have the crabs eat any of your plants?
> 
> I have two VC in a palladium also and I noticed that one of my Chara plants recently was eaten. The buce also look nibbled on, I was thinking transplant shock, now I am not so sure.
> 
> ...


I would be willing to bet my house it's the scuds.


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## qa2744 (Dec 18, 2018)

Seriously? 

That would have been my last (uneducated) guess! They seem so small and harmless, although they are very active.


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## qa2744 (Dec 18, 2018)

Scuds it is - I saw them munching away last night. they aren't bothering the other plants yet, it's just the Chara plant that they really like.

I will be culling the scuds this weekend to keep the population down.

thanks,


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## Thelongsnail (Dec 2, 2015)

Love the photos/videos, and the crabs!

Did I see you growing some crypts out of water earlier in the journal, or am I mistaken?

And do you still have your badis? Would love to see a couple of pics if so


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

qa2744 said:


> Scuds it is - I saw them munching away last night. they aren't bothering the other plants yet, it's just the Chara plant that they really like.
> 
> I will be culling the scuds this weekend to keep the population down.
> 
> thanks,


Told ya!

Bump:


Thelongsnail said:


> Love the photos/videos, and the crabs!
> 
> Did I see you growing some crypts out of water earlier in the journal, or am I mistaken?
> 
> And do you still have your badis? Would love to see a couple of pics if so


Thanks! Yeah I have a few crypts doing just fine terrestrially. I will get a few pics of them now. I still have the badis but they are by far the most reclusive of my fish. I will see if I can get some pics.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Thelongsnail;11288159 And do you still have your badis? Would love to see a couple of pics if so :)[/QUOTE said:


> I took a bunch of pictures of a Badis but they are elusive little buggers and I need to clean some algae off my glass so this is the only one I'm not ashamed to share.


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## KayakJimW (Aug 12, 2016)

Good Camo! Without the eyeball, his head would be hard to tell from that rock


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

KayakJimW said:


> Good Camo! Without the eyeball, his head would be hard to tell from that rock


Yeah they are definitely masters of it. Even the light bars are the same color as the sand. There's one that's territory is in the back of the tank where it's ADA soil and that guys is always pure black.


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## bgmoore (Feb 10, 2019)

Thanks for the advice. What is dendroboard? I have been away from the forum for a while and have not started the tank yet. My biggest concern is my lack of knowledge of plumbing like sumps and filters. YouTube is somewhat helpful but really have not found anything that will get me thru sizing and flow issues. Also i want to keep a low water level around 10 inches so do I need to have a hole in the tank at that level to do that or is there a plumbing and pump option. 
Thanks


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

bgmoore said:


> Thanks for the advice. What is dendroboard? I have been away from the forum for a while and have not started the tank yet. My biggest concern is my lack of knowledge of plumbing like sumps and filters. YouTube is somewhat helpful but really have not found anything that will get me thru sizing and flow issues. Also i want to keep a low water level around 10 inches so do I need to have a hole in the tank at that level to do that or is there a plumbing and pump option.
> Thanks


No problem! Dendroboard is a forum just like this one but it's focus is on poison dart frogs. As far as plumbing this tank is drilled and has a sump. I feel that is the best way to go with paludariums. I was having trouble finding information too, mainly figuring out the flow rates for bulkheads considering it is a gravity fed system. After it was all said and done I wish that I had drilled a larger diameter bulkhead as mine can only handle a very little flow.


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## bgmoore (Feb 10, 2019)

Thanks I will check out that forum. My tank has 3 holes in the back but too high for the water level I want. I am thinking 6 to 8 inches max and they are 14 high 2 inch holes. Based on what you said I will be sure to drill a good sized hole.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Update.

Just some growth on the terrestrial java fern and crypt:




























Also got a pic of the super tiger shrimp in the tank. I have been adding the shrimp I find in the filter sock when I clean it and am getting a decent colony in the tank.










Also I don't know if this picture does it justice but this Amano shrimp is an absolute beast!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Haven't updated in a while and unfortunately this isn't a good one. I was in my laundry room the other day and found a dead dried out crab on the floor. Now I am not sure if I have any surviving ones in my tank. I am not sure if I will try again with the crabs or just keep it fish only as far as fauna. I purposely tried to eliminate some potential hiding places thinking it would bring them out in the open more. My old tank they could stay hidden (and did) where I wouldn't see them for months at a time. I am wondering if this might have caused more territory issues which led to death. I truly think some of the deaths were due to the condition I got them in too. As far as the escapee that too is a concern, since I can't completely seal the tank I am not sure if I should get more in case it may happen again.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Haven't updated in a while since I usually do when I'm bored at work.

The other day while doing maintenance got a huge surprise. There are baby crabs in there! I don't think there are any adults left so they must have bred before they all died out. I have found 2 individuals at a time but I'm sure there are more being that they are so small and the tank is so big. Hopefully they make it to adult status.


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## monkeyruler90 (Apr 13, 2008)

wow, read your old journal and your new tank. Very interesting about the tank drilling, background, and sump issues 

I personally love the fish stocking that you have, I agree that the cories are awesome and that they move all over the water column. Interesting about growing and feeding the scuds, I have to try this out 

great news about the baby crabs! hopefully they make it and you get a new generation


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Right when you thought you were crabs free.. haha 

Interesting tank and lookin forward to seeing baby crab pix!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

andrewss said:


> Right when you thought you were crabs free.. haha
> 
> Interesting tank and lookin forward to seeing baby crab pix!


Easier said than done! The crabs are tiny and grey, the same color as the background. Plus they scatter as soon as I open the top. I am trying to get a good pic but none so far.

Bump:


andrewss said:


> Right when you thought you were crabs free.. haha
> 
> Interesting tank and lookin forward to seeing baby crab pix!


Easier said than done! The crabs are tiny and grey, the same color as the background. Plus they scatter as soon as I open the top. I am trying to get a good pic but none so far.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Well this tank has just been full of surprises lately. I was messing with it late night and lo and behold there was an adult crab! I have not seen one for around 3 months. I am assuming it is the female that had the babies but did not check.


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## monkeyruler90 (Apr 13, 2008)

ha, great that you built a tank with plenty of hiding spots for these crabs


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

monkeyruler90 said:


> ha, great that you built a tank with plenty of hiding spots for these crabs


Yeah true, and to think I designed this one to limit the places they could hide.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Speaking of this tank being full of surprises. I was cleaning out my filter sock. When I do this I dump it out over some aquarium water in case there are any shrimp or snails stuck in there. This time when I dumped I found a baby fish! It was a Badis. I guess it got sucked in there when it was smaller through the intake.



















I also haven't seen a new cup on my pitcher plant for a while but I was trimming back some ferns and look what I found!



















It also looks like one of my bulbosa's is going to flower!










Also got some pics of crabs:




























Also check out this terrestrial Bolbitis heteroclita.










The tiger shrimp I've added to the main tank are doing good and slowly multiplying.


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## andrewss (Oct 17, 2012)

Wow very strange surprise! Cool pix, would like some more full tank shot for a bigger view!


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## monkeyruler90 (Apr 13, 2008)

love the tiger shrimp!


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

andrewss said:


> Wow very strange surprise! Cool pix, would like some more full tank shot for a bigger view!


Yeah I was pretty shocked. I guess the inside of a filter sock isn't the worst place a fry could end up. I will get a whole tank shot for ya soon.

Bump:


monkeyruler90 said:


> love the tiger shrimp!


Yeah they are the super tiger variety. I like them cause they give a little pop of color without looking too gaudy and unnatural.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

One thing I forgot to mention is there appears to be 2 generations of baby crabs. There's one that's close to being adults by now and another that is much smaller.


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## thedudeabides (Feb 29, 2012)

Figured I'd give an update since I haven't for over a year. Had a slight disaster when I tried to move it a while back. The bulkhead caught on a wall and cracked the glass. When this happened I was very worried that it would leak so I turned the water feature off for a couple weeks. I didn't think that through as the heater is in the sump and it was winter time in my basement so the water in the main tank got cold and I had a good bit of fish die. Eventually I decided to roll the dice and start up the water feature with fingers crossed. It has been running this way for months now with no issues. The crack is above the waterline and the back panel is covered with some kind of coating which helped ease my mind as far as leaks. Still have a good bit of crabs in there that still produce babies every now and again. I will snap a few pics when I get around to it as it has changed quite a bit over the months.


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