False bottom, Temp -heater, soil and Humidity ?

[valcan222]

Ok, I was wondering...what is the false bottom method like described on http://badmanstropicalfish.com/vivarium/vivarium.html ?

I want a waterfall like his, and how do I heat it because it gets cold where I live and I have no idea how to heat it. What happens if they have babies ? Are they hard to raise or do the parents do it all by themselves ? How do I separate the soil like the gravel for the water and the other soil and what kind of soil should I use and should I use moss ? What does the temp and humidity need to be ?

Thanks in advance, and if you can make the replies very detailed, it would help.

Thanks again !

[Rih]

I've never used egg crate for a false bottom, i use plastic pegboard from home Depo, much sturdier and easier to shape. I also make the false bottom flat and cover it with screen, after i add a section which may be removed if i ever have to service the pump. sphagnum moss or gravel on top of the screen, then make the general shape of the stream or waterfall, make sure it slopes enough to flow nicely, in my first tanks i used plastic wrap under the graven in the river beds, but it only lasts about 2 years, what you can do is silicone a piece of screen shaped as you desire, and use that for the base of the stream, and you can add gravel to the base to get the desired water depth. If you have any more questions sent me a message, i build quite a bit of these things, this week i have 2 (55) gal. 2 (29) gal. 5 (10) gal. well i hope this helps. and good luck.


Rih