Diy waterfall with viewing area

[YYWW]

Such good work!!! Good luck!


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[aussieJJDude]

Wow looking good!
I question that I didn't think about is what type of glass are you using? I hope you're not using plexiglass, plexiglass and silicone do not hold well for long so my may notice that your pool will start to leak.

[crabitatitude]

1/8" standard glass. I hate plexiglass for any type of enclosure. I built my tortoise table with a plexiglass front and it is crapping out after a year. Plus it scratches so easily
*Just a note, the only reason I'm using 1/8" glass that is untempered is because it will be resting on the glass that makes up the front of the tank. I usually use tempered glass.

[Breeezy]

Me too! I did the acrylic sealer tonight. I'm off tomorrow, so I am going to finish the tortoise enclosure and then assemble the hermit falls!

What kind of sealer did you use? I learned the hard way that crabs love to pick apart that foam haha! I sealed mine with silicone and they have torn it to pieces!!

[crabitatitude]

Oh no. I used an acrylic spray sealer first (4coats) and then silicone (2 coats). If push comes to shove I will add a layer of grout.

[crabitatitude]

Well, a boat maker I am not. Or a fountain maker for that matter. In my rush I completely forgot to seal the bottom! so I'm going to let it dry and seal the bottom.

[aussieJJDude]

1/8" standard glass. I hate plexiglass for any type of enclosure. I built my tortoise table with a plexiglass front and it is crapping out after a year. Plus it scratches so easily
*Just a note, the only reason I'm using 1/8" glass that is untempered is because it will be resting on the glass that makes up the front of the tank. I usually use tempered glass.

Ahh, good! Thank goodness!

[crabitatitude]

Arg! Ok. I'm taking all that I have learned from this first fountain remaking the entire thing. Instead of quick drying adhesive, I'm going to use an aquarium silicone so that I'm not relying on the foam to do most of the water proofing. This will give me a chance to make it deeper and give my large crabs more places to tuck in. I'm slightly bummed but crabtopia, much like Rome, was not built in a day. Or week...

[Breeezy]

I might be misunderstanding what you are changing from before, but if I'm understanding correctly, I'd highly recommend not just using the aquarium silicone alone. That is what I did, and like I said, they have completely destroyed it. If you don't mind replacing it in the future, go for it! The most annoying part for me was that it started to get caught in my filters. I was having to clean them daily so they didn't clog up. I'm not sure if the crabs can eat the foam either, and I'm assuming it wouldn't be good for them!

[crabitatitude]

I used glue and relied on the foam to waterproof the frame the last time. This next time I will seal during construction. Because I just can't seem to get this thing to hold water. And I'm going to coat the whole thing in grout.... Or cement.

[Breeezy]

I used glue and relied on the foam to waterproof the frame the last time. This next time I will seal during construction. Because I just can't seem to get this thing to hold water. And I'm going to coat the whole thing in grout.... Or cement.

Oh I didn't mention that! I used Quikrete (sp?) first, and then the aquarium silicone. Not sure which is to blame for the crabs picking at it, but I am definitely looking into how some terrarium forum people set their waterfalls up because they never seem to have problems. Might cost a little more, but in the end I think it will pay off!

[crabitatitude]

Biscuits!!! Man, building an awesome habitat for these guys is way harder than my tortoise. *sigh* maybe I should just epoxy rocks together....

[Breeezy]

I'm not you can't do it. Maybe I just suck haha? But I'm going to do a lot more research and maybe some trial pieces before I add it to my next tank! The silicone worked great for keeping my glass panes in and the entire waterfall itself in. Just not on the surface. Let me know if you figure a new idea out!

[crabitatitude]

I will! And you let me know!

[ErikRasmussen]

OH MY GOD! this is amazing! i am so going to do this! What kinds of little roadblocks did you run into and what kind of adjustments did you make to fix them? If any.

Do you think the skeleton could also be made from card board?