10 gal, 1st viv!

[trixr4eddie]

Hey im eddie. im brand new to this. i went to a reptile & amphibian store to see what i need to do to get started. they gave me a book that explained things okay, but i have a feeling that there are a lot more things i need to do to get this tank going well. here are a few pics.

front:


top view:


side:


angle:


I have three pieces of corkwood in it. the three plants are angel ferns from home depot (thats what the store recommended). ive also sprayed it down every day with aged water. im guessing i should have a drainage level. should i use gravel or should i do egg crate? what kind of background should i put on the back? also, should i reconstruct it to have a small pond, or will the water bowl be enough? i have just a lamp on it right now for the pics. do i need lighting with a ten gallon? i would have gone bigger than ten, but i live in a college dorm and size is not a luxury i can have. any and all ideas are appreciated!

[d00m]

The plants need some sort of lighting that emitts UV to preform photosynthesis. As for a drainage level you can use Lecca which are clay balls that expand and hold water well, gravel, or egg crate. Really up to you. The egg crate way takes longer to construct though. Aged (dechlorinated) water is fine. I personally use reverse osmosis water for my cage. As for backgrounds it's up to you. Im sure other members can point you in the right direction.

[Frogtofall]

You're off to a good start. You don't have to do a background, its just personal taste. But PERSONALLY, I would at least make use of some of the "air space" in there by adding some upright pieces of cork or drift wood and then adding plants to them in some fashion. Or you could just wait until the plants grow in and that will do it.

I would also highly recommend some sort of drainage layer b/c if you don't you'll have soggy soil and the plants can rot if they are too wet all the time.

This is one of my 10 gals that I have setup horizontally (most my 10s are verticals b/c of thumbs that I have or plan to purchase). It was sort of "thrown together" but it has grown in kinda nicely. I wish now that I would've put in some sort of driftwood in the middle left-ish area to add some depth to it, but I didn't have the "right" piece, if you know what I mean. Either way, maybe it'll give you some ideas.



This is a slightly larger one of 29 gals that I setup for D. azureus.


I hope I was of some help.

[mack]

i just want to chime in and say that almost all plants do fine without UV light. plain old flourescents will do fine. check out this link for more light info. http://dartden.com/viewtopic.php?t=936&highlight=light

[outcold720]

Theres UVA and UVB Im pretty sure that plants need UVA and all fluorescent bulb produce that the special ones like repti-sun produce UVB which plants and frogs dont need.
but of course I could be wrong.

[trixr4eddie]

looking at other forum topics has inspired me to completely redo my viv. new pics coming soon!

[mack]

i'm gonna start a new thread on UV, 'cuz i'm interested.