Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok, planning in my head for future tank. Concerning a stream/river in the tank, does the weld bond and peat 5050 mix work well where it is 100% wet all the time or under water? It would be easy to build one with this, but I'm concerned about anything leaching into the water from the weld bond OR peat. I could make it out of rubber, but I want realism. I would probably put pebbles in the "Creek" anyway, but peat and weld bond would make a nice medium.

Any tips are highly appreciated!

matt

WCUMAGIC,
I have made a few river/streams and what i did was took some aluminum screen and bent it into the shape I was looking for.
Then I coated the screen with fiberglass resin (like you would use on a car or boat to do body work). This took several applications to fill in all the screen holes. It worked very well and I have never lost a frog. Hope this is a little help.

TonyT

Hey Tony, do you have any pics of one of your aluminum screen streams? It sounds like an interesting idea...

Thanks

Actually I do not. I have taken both tanks apart. One was a 125 gallon and the other was a 30 gallon. It worked like a charm though. you can easily trim the edges with an old dikes. That way there is no sharp edges to hurt the frogs.
But sorry about the pics.

TonyT

For a stream, peat moss mixed with Marine epoxy would work really well. I used it to build a waterfall. It looks like real earth, dries rock-hard and is not supposed to be toxic once it cures.
First, just mix the two epoxy ingredients together, then mix in peat moss untill it's dough like in consistancy. Use the mixture to cover whatever material you've made the stream out of. It can be "mashed" into thin layers or it can be molded into whatever shape you like. Any rough spot can be easily sanded.
Marine Epoxy Resin is kind of pricey at $20 ( two 16 oz. containers for 32 oz. total ) but it works really well. The stuff is almost impossible to get off skin so wear rubber exam gloves. I bought these at Lowes in the paint department. They are thin enough to allow good dexterity when working with this stuff.

Gus

Thanks for your help ya'll. I knew it would work for backgrounds, but I didnt know how well it would stand up UNDERwater. $20 looks pricey for a tube of "stuff", but hopefully the finished product will look better than any $20 bill!

matt

have you ever thought of trying the silicon soil method. seems to me alot safer than trying the fiberglass method.
it's pretty much what the name implys.
get some silicon and mix with the soil/stones you wish to use and mold it to your land shape.
if you are interested i can send a link to the message about it.
pa.walt

I've just built entire background of weldbond mixed with peat and crushed tree fern particles. Looks and feels great. One of the major breeders in my area uses weldbond in his tanks without any problems for a while now.

You'll have no problems. Weldbond is non-toxic and looks better then anything I've ever seen.

Go nuts.

Ok what is weldbond?
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Kyle
www.kylesphotos.com
1.2.0 D. leucomelas
0.0.2 D. azureus
1.0.1 D. imitators

Does the weldbind crack when it dries? I just made a background from concrete bonder mixed with peat/coco, and it cracks a little as it dries. Also, can you put it directly onto the glass/acrylic, or do you have to lay foam down first?

Thanks
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Matt

Yes it cracks a little. I noticed the more water you add the more it will crack... but who cares, you'll never get it perfect the 1st time anyways, so 2 or more coats are normally in order. Next tank, I'll incorporate some driftwood into the background, it should look cool.