Hello, Ive been doing a lot of reading on the forum here and figured I better ask for advice if I plan on having any type of luck with a project like this.
I've noticed that you guys really frown on growing fly traps in any kind of terrarium, but I'm a poor college student who is stuck in a dorm that only gets 3 hours of sunlight max. I don't have the option of planting outside either. Sadly, Im really only interested in fly traps, so I wouldn't really have the motivation to put any other species in there. If you guys think this would be a viable project, then I wouldn't mind putting a lot of time into in order to make it just right.
Most of the terrariums I've seen on here keep the plants potted. I suppose this is just to keep soil mixtures/water levels separate for the different plants?
I have a 5.5 gallon fish tank (rectangular/long) that I plan on using. I've read that fly traps like occasional rain, but not very much humidity. So what if I used this for a bottom substrate,
http://www.herpsupplies.com/product.cfm?groupid=13390&id=HYD310
and then put the recommended potting mixture above that, with a screen divider. Then I would run a pump in the corner to run bottom water up to the top of the tank and into some kind of drip style tubing. This would be set on a timer to go off a few times per day.
I might be able to rig up some kind of float/valve system inside the tank so that it would hold a steady water level, but that would be an extra credit project
Then for light... It seems like just about every terrarium I've seen on here has a comment about "lack of light". I haven't really done a whole lot of research or shopping around yet, but I do realize that a LOT of light will be needed. This will also be on a timer, so I can slowly adjust the hours per day in order to mimic the seasons.
I will probably setup one of those computer fans for ventilation to keep humidity relatively low. I'll also have to wait and see how the light setup affects the temperature of the tank and so I'll have to play that by ear.
I won't be able to start this for about two weeks, so that's why I'd rather get "shut down" now if its a bad idea. Im very open to comments and suggestions so please don't hold back.
Thanks a lot for the help ahead of time.
I've noticed that you guys really frown on growing fly traps in any kind of terrarium, but I'm a poor college student who is stuck in a dorm that only gets 3 hours of sunlight max. I don't have the option of planting outside either. Sadly, Im really only interested in fly traps, so I wouldn't really have the motivation to put any other species in there. If you guys think this would be a viable project, then I wouldn't mind putting a lot of time into in order to make it just right.
Most of the terrariums I've seen on here keep the plants potted. I suppose this is just to keep soil mixtures/water levels separate for the different plants?
I have a 5.5 gallon fish tank (rectangular/long) that I plan on using. I've read that fly traps like occasional rain, but not very much humidity. So what if I used this for a bottom substrate,
http://www.herpsupplies.com/product.cfm?groupid=13390&id=HYD310
and then put the recommended potting mixture above that, with a screen divider. Then I would run a pump in the corner to run bottom water up to the top of the tank and into some kind of drip style tubing. This would be set on a timer to go off a few times per day.
I might be able to rig up some kind of float/valve system inside the tank so that it would hold a steady water level, but that would be an extra credit project
Then for light... It seems like just about every terrarium I've seen on here has a comment about "lack of light". I haven't really done a whole lot of research or shopping around yet, but I do realize that a LOT of light will be needed. This will also be on a timer, so I can slowly adjust the hours per day in order to mimic the seasons.
I will probably setup one of those computer fans for ventilation to keep humidity relatively low. I'll also have to wait and see how the light setup affects the temperature of the tank and so I'll have to play that by ear.
I won't be able to start this for about two weeks, so that's why I'd rather get "shut down" now if its a bad idea. Im very open to comments and suggestions so please don't hold back.
Thanks a lot for the help ahead of time.