Vivarium Construction 101 Why a Vivarium?

Vivariums have been exploding in popularity over the past few years or so. The re are several advantages of a vivarium over a traditional terrarium setup. The re s often much less upkeep, they are much more aesthetically pleasing, and the lu cky inhabitants love the extra hiding, climbing, and breeding spaces provided. When set up properly, upkeep should involve nothing more than cleaning the glass . Introduction & Construction Basics There are a few basic aspects in the initial construction of a true vivarium; a drainage layer, a screen separator (or similar), and the substrate layer. (see picture right) The drainage layer keeps the substrate layer from becoming soggy and allows for an "airy" substrate. The best type of drainage layer in our opinion is made of hydroton (or an equivalent) expanded clay media. Some hobbyists use gravel or false bottoms, but we've had bad experience with both. Gravel is so heavy it ca n crack the bottom of a terrarium if it's bumped, and false bottoms don't encour age microfauna & beneficial bacterial growth as well as hydroton does. This lay er should be at least 2.5" high, but it corresponds to the size of the actual te rrarium used. Rinse it thoroughly before using it, and don't add water to your drainage layer until the vivarium is completed. Pouring water over the plants t hrough the substrate will ensure it won't move around and it'll add beneficial t annins from the leaf litter & soil that wouldn't be present otherwise. Water sh ould rise about 1/3-1/2 way up the drainage layer. Never let it get too close t o the substrate layer, and try not to let it dry out completely. Above the drainage layer is the screen separator. It's a non-toxic fine screen mesh that allows air & water to pass through it. The purpose of the screen sep arator is to keep bits of the soil from reaching the drainage layer and wicking up the water, creating a very soggy substrate above. Pre-cut pieces are availab le online for most common size front opening terrariums, but standard mesh from your local hardware store works too. Substrate is a topic of debate. There are so many substrate recipes out there containing so many different ingredients it's impossible to keep up. Simply put - a proper vivarium substrate must sustain plant life, microfauna life, and the lives of the herps inhabiting the enclosure. Sounds simple, right? Well it al so depends on the type of animal you are housing. For most tropical & temperate vivariums we suggest the following substrate mixture: Coir (this should never exceed 50% of the mix), AAA sphagnum (fine/med), charcoal (fine/med), orchid bar k (fine/med), and tree fern fiber (fine/med). If you are housing larger animals that have sensitive skin or dig, consider skipping the tree fern fiber. We sel l a pre mixed vivarium substrate here. Contrary to what has been said on may in ternet forums - straight coconut fiber is NOT an appropriate vivarium substrate. It is extremely easy for it to become compacted and soggy. Worse than straigh t coconut fiber is potting soil or potting soil mixed with coir. Both break dow n far too quickly and even "organic" potting soil often contains a lot of unwant ed ingredients. Decor & Hardscaping Aside from the three basic elements already covered, most vivariums have either a background or some type of hardscaped feature. Neither is 100% necessary, bu t it greatly enhances the look, and when done correctly the inhabitants will gre atly appreciate the extra climbing room. Adding loose wood pieces is a common p ractice, but more often they are added to complement a background.

For backgrounds you have a few options. There are many pre-made backgrounds av ailable today, which generally look & perform very well for the money. Custom b ackgrounds usually look and function the best, but they are costly and often tim e consuming. We usually go with the polyurethane foam & silicone based custom b ackgrounds, but there are many ways to go about this. Kitty litter (clay) based backgrounds are becoming more and more popular lately, but they only hold up we ll in vivariums that will sustain 75%+ humidity. Some people use concrete and o ther faux-rock styles that can come out looking really fantastic. If you choose a custom concrete (laticrete, grout, or other) style rock background, be sure t o check for PH neutrality before planting it. There are a few different types of wood that can be added to a vivarium's hards cape: Grapewood - Nice looking and very inexpensive, however it will not hold up well in a humid habitat. It will quickly mold over and eventually begin to rot. We suggest only using grapewood in more dry environments. Mopani - Beautiful but heavy and expensive. This wood sinks in water, and is one of the hardest and most dense types of out there. Will hold up long term in just about any setting (even underwater!). If you are using this wood in a wat er feature, consider boiling it for awhile to get the tannins out. Once it's be en boiled, rinse it and boil it again 'till the water remains semi-clear. Tanni ns aren't harmful (technically beneficial) but can turn the water a "tea" color. Malaysian Driftwood - A bit harder to find than mopani, and also fairly expens ive. Holds up long term in humid settings, with beautiful textures & shapes. A nother extremely dense wood that sinks underwater. Not to be confused with norm al driftwood which often won't hold up as well in high humidity. Cork - A lighter wood that's middle of the road price wise. It holds up great in most vivarium conditions. This wood is one of our favorites for it's availab ility in different shapes & sizes. (tubes, rounds, flats, etc) It's rot & mold resistant, and floats in water. Ground Cover & Flora Selection The most popular ground cover for most vivariums is moss. It's beautiful, some what inexpensive, and pretty easy to grow (if you get proper live stuff). Howev er, a beautiful carpet of bright green moss is not really a natural looking choi ce. Leaf litter covers most tropical & temperate habitats with moss & other pla nts peeking through occasionally. For the most realistic looking vivarium floor , consider a mixture of moss, leaf litter, and other smaller vines & climbing pl ants that can peek out here & there. Rocks, pieces of wood, and other decor can help make it look even more realistic. Choosing the right flora for a tropical or temperate vivarium is absolutely key to the success of the contained ecosystem. It depends very heavily on the type of animal you ll be keeping. Different species call for different humidity levels , housing size, lighting, temp levels, and more. The most important things to c onsider when choosing a plant is the size & growth rate, conditions for optimal growth, and the plant's ability to withstand the potential abuse from the animal . Getting into a list of appropriate plants for each individual species would b e impossible, but in general medium & small herps (under 3") can use just about every plant we offer online. Just consider the type of environment the plant ne eds. (lighting, humidity, etc) For larger animals we have a list of appropriat e plants available here. Processing & Planting You should process all plants before adding them to your vivarium unless you gr ew them yourself in traditional vivarium substrate. For more info please check

out our plant processing sheet here. Please don't skip this very important step ! So long as you keep the plant's optimal growth conditions in mind, the rest sh ould be a piece of cake. Bromeliads and other epiphytic plants should be mounte d up and off the floor of the vivarium on backgrounds and other pieces of raised decor. Tillandsias can be a bit tricky (check out our Tillandsia care sheet he re) You can attach vines & climbers to backgrounds with toothpicks or florist w ire. After a few weeks of acclimation, the plants will begin to throw their own grips on whatever they are resting on. Eventually the supports will no longer be needed. Lighting Most plants do best with about 6500K color temperature bulbs. Required intensi ty varies per species, but we've had luck with using a variety of bulb types. C ompact fluorescent (20W-26W), T8, and T5 bulbs have worked very well for us. T1 2s are OK too, but are a bit dim for the amount of wattage used. Never put a vi varium in direct sunlight. It will cause the tank's temperature to skyrocket in a very short period of time. Lights should be timed for 12 hours on, 12 hours off. Lately we've been hearing a rumor being spread about plant lighting. Plants do not need UVB lighting. They will not benefit from it. The only time UVB lighti ng is necessary is if you housing an animal that would benefit from it. Save yo ur money and get some inexpensive grow bulbs! Misting & Humidity Most vivarium inhabitants will do best with 60%+ humidity, and if this is the c ase with your chosen species you might want to consider having a partial glass l id cut to fit the terrarium. It will help hold in the humidity between misting. Automated misting systems are a huge help from our experience, especially with species like dart frogs that do best with multiple mists per day. Regardless, f or the first week (at least) that your vivarium is set up, pay extra attention t o the plants until they acclimate properly. Selecting Appropriate Microfauna Microfauna species are the clean up crew that makes sure the vivarium stays in top shape. They help break down decaying flora, eat fungus & mold, and even the vivarium inhabitant's waste. For many vivarium herp species, the right microfa una can mean no cleanup whatsoever for the owner. We suggest using captive bred microfauna only. Springtails (Collembola) are the most common, most available, and usually least expensive type of vivarium microfauna. They aren't technically insects, but he xapods. There are dozens of species of springtail, and many are vivarium approp riate. The common ones are usually broadly divided into "tropical" or "temperat e" species. Honestly both will work in either type of vivarium, but we've had l uck with our temperate cultures. They breed like crazy do an excellent job keep ing things clean. If you are interested in buying or breeding these, check out our springtail caresheet here. Woodlice (Isopods) are another very common microfauna species for vivariums. T hey are significantly larger and much slower breeding than springtails, but they have the ability to clean up a much bigger "mess" than springtails can alone. Both species can coexist in one vivarium with no problems. We use woodlice in l arger gecko vivariums, but leave them out for small species like dart & tree fro gs.

Tips, Tricks, and Other Useful Info Have your vivarium set up for at least 1 week before introducing animals. A mous very lus" cies mixed species vivarium is something to be considered only if you have an enor tank and plenty of knowledge & experience with the involved animals. It's important to understand that mixed species vivariums have nothing on the "p side of things besides aesthetics, and have many negative aspects. One spe per vivarium is the best practice to follow.

If your animals are new to you, consider a standard quarantine period before in troducing them to the vivarium. This can save you a huge headache! If you are housing an insectivore who is at risk for impaction when diving for food, consider offering insect prey items in a deli cup placed in the vivarium t emporarily. Always use dechlorinated water. Reverse osmosis water is an excellent choice f or misting, since it won't leave water spots on the glass. Avoid getting supplement powder on plants. It can quickly kill them! Build the environment for the animal. Don't select an animal for your environm ent as an afterthought. Mold? No worries. A little mold after the vivarium is first set up and cyclin g is completely normal. It will go away on it's own in time, and until then it' ll act as a food source for springtails and/or isopods. A nice landscape is key to a nice looking vivarium. Try sloping the substrate layer slightly from high to low (lowest at the front) to achieve a nice illusion of depth. On the topic of seeding a cage with microfauna; We've seen people suggest "brin ging in dirt from outside and throwing a bunch in the vivarium" and that's it. That's extremely risky and I'd never suggest doing that. The potential for cont amination with countless parasites, as well as other bacterial & fungal issues g reatly outweighs the risks. Please seed your vivarium with captive bred microfa una.