Mega-terrarium

[blokeman]

Now that I have your attention I am going to be going full out, and making a setup that will put my current terras to shame. If you've seen Titom's or Labine's setup, I'd like it to look a lot like that, basic, yet effective.

So I hope to make a very basic frame out of 2x4's, I have some Red Oak left over from my dad's deck renovations, the dimensions would be 6 feet wide, 3 feet deep and 3 feet tall(maybe taller). The back wall will be mirror, as well as the sides; I found a couple in garage sales for real cheap. Speaking of walls, they will be plastic sheeting, and maybe I will try gluing some Mylar or other reflective material to the plastic walls. Lighting will be four F48T8’s (two cool white, two warm white) and a F36T5HO. I will remove the ballasts from the housings and place them on the outside of the grow area, as to try to keep the temps down. But just in case, I have made in the past, some pc fans wired in parallel, which can serve as input-output vents. I have to find a way to make it so that if any condensation runs down the walls, it would not accumulate on the floor, my landlord wouldn't be too happy...
That's where I am stumped... What can I possibly use as a bottom that will hold water, yet have the dimensions I am looking for?? I was considering pond liner with a small frame within the frame, but that would cost $, and I am trying to make this terra as low cost as possible. Maybe I could use a couple busboy tubs... Rockwool seems to be an ideal medium to keep the humidity up, so the tubs will have a base of that.

Anyways, that's the idea behind my brainstorming, now that I have the room for it... long story short: Let's just say I won't be storing any of my fiancées stuff anymore.

If anyone has ANY suggestions, anything at all, I am open to criticism/input/opinions...

I shall post pics of the steps along the way, from start to finish hopefully, and a one year later after that

And BTW, this will be a NEPENTHES setup, Jack's got me on the bandwagon with a Sanguinea, and now rug's Raff... I got bit and it is spreading fast

I'd be very grateful if any of you can help

 

[Grey Moss]

Sounds good, but I'd forget the rockwool because people report that its bad for your health.

 

[Chomp]

Oh, I can't wait to see pics of this...

 

[GrowinOld]

Hi,
Your idea using the frame bottom with pond liner is the way to go, BUT instead of pond liner,
you can simply use some cheap black/clear plastic they sell 10'x25' at the hardware store
for a few bucks. (NOT the real thin painters plastic, but the bit heaftier kind.)

I have a terrarium that is about 20 years old, and replaced the plastic once when I resized the whole thing. The KEY is to use a few layers of plastic, and use care when working near it to not puncture it. That way if one layer does get punctured, the other layers will still function. (I have about 3 or 4 layers lining the bottom, and it works perfect!)
Well, thats my suggestion, for what its worth!
Good Luck!
Paul

 

[blokeman]

much appreciated, you have contributed to this, i'll personally keep you posted

 

[F R e N c H 3 z]

For the flooring I'd check into plexi glass of plastic sheeting. I'm not sure how much such a large piece would run for though but with some hot glue along the edges that would keep the water from getting all over your floor. Just a thought, the prices may put this idea to a halt though. Pictures when you get started

 

[Tony Paroubek]

Can you describe your lighting plan a bit better? You mention 3' or higher which is quite tall but only 4 4'T8 tubes and some (or is one tube??) 3' T5 high output. But you are also going 6' wide? Sounds like you need more lighting to me.

I think you should be considering something like a couple of those 200-250w CFL fixtures...

 

[blokeman]

tony: as for lighting, I was going to put two double fluo 4 footers (4 tubes total), and a T5 3 footer in the middle. That could be a good idea to throw in a couple curly fluo's too. As for 6 feet long, I think it will be reduced to 4.5 feet, and more like 3 feet tall max, I intend to have the tops of the pots at 18 inches from the lights more or less.

Yann: I really trust Growin Old's setup, I can't afford a leak if the glue were to let go due to the weight of the water on the sides. Plastic sheeting will take the shape of it's frame, so I am certain my frame will be able to contain it.

here's my idea for lighting with your input added

 

[Tony Paroubek]

That looks pretty decent with the reduced width. Especially if you can raise the plants up for those that are small and don't have much height. Fluorex makes a 100w 6500k fluorescent fixture available at HomeDepot and I think Lowes? It is designed for outdoor floodlighting but it is a fairly cheap fixture and puts out some nice bright light for indoor plant growing. The only catch is they are not wired so need cord and plugs and they are bit ugly since they are in the outdoor water resistant type fixtures. I have also heard they a bit unreliable in their durability. The ballast is in the unit and not the bulb in these fixtures. You can buy regular screw in twisted CFL in a variety of sizes but the problem then is what do you put them in. If you are handy you can buy bulb bases and aluminum or stainless sheet flashing and make your own little light fixtures. You can of course purchase all sorts of CFL light fixtures from hydroponics stores but they are a bit pricey.

More HO T5 would do the trick too but they are none too cheap either.

Whatever you decide, don't skimp on the lighting. Even if it means holding off on other things or your plant purchases. You will be much happier in the long run with properly lit plants.

 

[Delwin]

I second Tony, dont skimp on the lighting. I will add a double glass on top of the tank seprating the light and the plant. This will reduce the heat transfered to the tank interior.

 

[blokeman]

Delwin, is that a byblis as your avatar, that's some insane coloration on it!
And thanks for the tip, but I am not too worried about the temps getting too high, my current setup has two t5's and it only gets up to 26 celcius. In such a large enclosure, I am not too concerned about it. However, I will definately have to fine-tune it before introducing any plants into it. Besides, anything between the lights and the plants will only filter out some of the intensity. Being an electrician, I can easily wire together some pc fans to get the air moving, as well as for my lighting. My other terra has 4x 36 watt cfl's wired in parallel, homemade.

 

[Delwin]

Thats D. hartmeyerorum.
Hope to see your set up soon.

 

[Chomp]

I don't know much about anything that you guys are talking about, but could I make a suggestion for the terra? Make a waterfall!

 

[Delwin]

I don't know much about anything that you guys are talking about, but could I make a suggestion for the terra? Make a waterfall!

Good idea, that will increase the humid