gadragon
04-26-20, 12:48 PM
Hello everyone!
New to the forum and in reptile hosting community, so please be gentle :)
I have been fishkeeping for quite sometime and always wanted to build an aqua terrarium and maybe host a reptile. So, in these days of quarantine, there was plenty of time to do some research on the matter.
Given what i have read so far, my budget, and the available space in my apartment, i came up with a design probably most suitable for me. Please check attached pics!
It is a mix wood/glass build, with external dimensions: ~160cmX40cmX70cm (60inX15inX28in). The aqua (glass) compartment is ~20cm(8in) deep. The "land" is ~120cm(45in) at the longest point and ~40cm(15in) at the widest point.
Thinking of using 18mm(3/4in) pine wood or okoume plywood treated with some sort of reptile friendly sealant (advice on this is welcome!) and for the water part, 5mm(1/4in) glass put together with aquarium safe silicone.
The two glass doors will be on sliding runners.
In this marvelous setup, i'm hopping to host a milk or a corn snake!
So, about equipment, i figured i need:
Substrate, maybe something like that: https://www.trixie.de/heimtierbedarf/de/shop/Terraristik/TerrarienEinrichtung/Substrate/Pinienrinde/?card=12378
A heat lamp and/or a heating pad for the basking spot. Not sure about what wattage i need for either, and where exactly to place them (about that i definitely need advice :confused: :confused: ). The heat lamp will be on a timer, and both lamp & pad should be on a thermostat (right?).
Since the snake might not do very well in excess humidity, i thought putting two adjustable fans on the top will allow me to regulate humidity.
I will also need hiding spots, one for the hot and one for the colder spot. I may buy a couple of readymade ones, or use materials from nature (i know i have to bake/disinfect everything from nature first).
I got the water part covered with a 50W thermostat and an internal filter 400l/h (hope to need partial water changes only once or twice a week).
There will be three led flood lights (20-30W each) for lighting, also on timer. (overkill?)
About decoration, i have to look for quite a few tree branches/roots and rocks to fill the space. Some of these, i think should be placed in a way that helps the snake get in and out of the water. Also would love some live plants, but i think i have to check for compatibility with the snake.
That's it so far! I would love to hear your thoughts and advice on the build and the equipment! Thank you in advance!!
P.S. if you have a suggestion for different reptiles for this setup, i am interested to hear (but i am not willing to keep one that needs live feeder colonies)
New to the forum and in reptile hosting community, so please be gentle :)
I have been fishkeeping for quite sometime and always wanted to build an aqua terrarium and maybe host a reptile. So, in these days of quarantine, there was plenty of time to do some research on the matter.
Given what i have read so far, my budget, and the available space in my apartment, i came up with a design probably most suitable for me. Please check attached pics!
It is a mix wood/glass build, with external dimensions: ~160cmX40cmX70cm (60inX15inX28in). The aqua (glass) compartment is ~20cm(8in) deep. The "land" is ~120cm(45in) at the longest point and ~40cm(15in) at the widest point.
Thinking of using 18mm(3/4in) pine wood or okoume plywood treated with some sort of reptile friendly sealant (advice on this is welcome!) and for the water part, 5mm(1/4in) glass put together with aquarium safe silicone.
The two glass doors will be on sliding runners.
In this marvelous setup, i'm hopping to host a milk or a corn snake!
So, about equipment, i figured i need:
Substrate, maybe something like that: https://www.trixie.de/heimtierbedarf/de/shop/Terraristik/TerrarienEinrichtung/Substrate/Pinienrinde/?card=12378
A heat lamp and/or a heating pad for the basking spot. Not sure about what wattage i need for either, and where exactly to place them (about that i definitely need advice :confused: :confused: ). The heat lamp will be on a timer, and both lamp & pad should be on a thermostat (right?).
Since the snake might not do very well in excess humidity, i thought putting two adjustable fans on the top will allow me to regulate humidity.
I will also need hiding spots, one for the hot and one for the colder spot. I may buy a couple of readymade ones, or use materials from nature (i know i have to bake/disinfect everything from nature first).
I got the water part covered with a 50W thermostat and an internal filter 400l/h (hope to need partial water changes only once or twice a week).
There will be three led flood lights (20-30W each) for lighting, also on timer. (overkill?)
About decoration, i have to look for quite a few tree branches/roots and rocks to fill the space. Some of these, i think should be placed in a way that helps the snake get in and out of the water. Also would love some live plants, but i think i have to check for compatibility with the snake.
That's it so far! I would love to hear your thoughts and advice on the build and the equipment! Thank you in advance!!
P.S. if you have a suggestion for different reptiles for this setup, i am interested to hear (but i am not willing to keep one that needs live feeder colonies)