my prospective viv... thoughts?

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Posted by jmorris on April 28, 2003 at 14:40:11:

In Reply to: my prospective viv... thoughts? posted by archie on April 28, 2003 at 10:16:59:

<:Sounds like a great plan. just a couple of suggestions/ideas.>

Thanks for taking the time! I love constructive criticism!

<:1. I personally would not worry about the anoles drinking contaminated water. If you are going to put a mister in the tank, I doubt they would drink from the stream.>

Good point about the misting... But the Atlanta Botanical Gardens substrate mix produces a lot of tannins in the drainage water, so I'll still probably go with a partition, just so the pool water isn't tea colored

<:2. Since you are making a custom cage, why not drill a hole and use that as drainage (along with the false bottom).>

That is part of my plans, but for the sake of brevity, I left it out of my original description.

<...run the pump from the bucket up to the back of the tank (you could drill another hole for the input).>

This is what I meant by a sump... an external reservoir for an internal water feature.

<...you could run a filter in the bucket, since you are worried about the anoles drinking the water.>

I'm thinking a powerhead with a sponge/activated carbon filter.

<:3. I love the look of those light. Assuming those lights put out as much light as they look like they will, you are going to have superb and very bright light.>

The 85 watt lights (at 13" long!) are supposed to produce the equivalent of about 400 watts incandescent! Also, the ESU Super UV coil lamps are self-ballasted, and so will not need the NANO ballast I linked to, that was an error.

<<< How do you plan on mounting the lights?>>> are you going to use a reflector of some sort?>

I'm using ceramic keyless light sockets mounted to the hood via metal pancake boxes, wired with 14-3 wire. The idea I have for a reflector is kinda weird actually... Have you ever seen the emergency blankets sold at Wal-Mart, Kmart, and camping stores? They are almost as reflective as Mylar, but cost about $3, and I'm planning on lining the hood with this material! Cheap, but hopefully effective!

< :4. Have you looked into order the acrylic yet? Do you know prices, shipping etc? I ask because I am interested in some of this stuff, but I never got around to looking into it seriously.>

Solacryl is damn hard to track down! I found small pieces at Vivaria Projects, but had to call about 10 different places (and look fruitlessly on the web for hours!) before finding a distributor of it. It's only real commercial use is in tanning beds, so you can see why it might be had to find! Here is the # to the company, Suncorp, which sells it: 1-800-336-6031 (they do not have a website). Buck, the owner, estimates $3/square foot for most orders, with large sheets being slightly less expensive.

<:5. All I have to say, is take your time and plan, plan, plan... It sound like you are going to put a lot of resources into this tank and I would hate to have it thrown together in a rush (I say this because I know this is what I would do... I get too excited when putting together a new tank...)>

I know what you mean! I've learned the value of planning and taking my time with the last two tanks I built. I'll be spending around $400 on this project, and want it to look like it cost even more.

<:overall all sounds great.... please if you can, take pics as you put it together, and of course of the finished product.>

Will do!

Thanks for the response,
Jared

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