Hey thanks for the additional info.

You say to stick with truly warm growers, I was thinking of using more intermediate growers. I have a bunch of pleuros, stelis and the like already. These don't particularly like summering in the southern States so I thought putting them in a terrarium would be more to their liking. Do you not think so? They would also be tickled to death in a more moist, humid environment, within reason.

Do you feel orchids like masdies or dracs could handle living in a wet zone near a water fall? Again, I already have a couple I was thinking of placing in that area. I was thinking of using diatomite as a substrate in the hopes that, although it holds a lot of moisture, it also drains well,so rot should be less of a problem. I was also thinking of using a thin layer of bark as a type of 'mulch' as I don't really like the 'look' of diatomite in this situation. I suppose I might have to just try it and see what happens.

I have far too many 'ideas' to fit into one 30 gallon aquarium but I figure I have to start somewhere.

Oh, yeah, I have absolutely no plans to put any frogs etc in here.

Besides the above mentioned orchids, I may put some bulbos and/or cirr in the aquarium too depending on what type of environment unfolds.

I'm assuming to a certain extent you just have to set the tank up and see what you've actually created prior to planting it.

Laura

Sahoyaref,

Good info -- can you tell me what kind of hydrofogger is small enough for a terrarium? All the units I see are greenhouse/industrial size!

Thanks,

Jim

Laura: You'd have to talk to bada about terrs for pleuros. Mine is not set up for them, because it gets too warm for them from the heat the lights put out (which is really only slightly above room temp), and I have no cooling system. I believe the trick is to have lots of fans to cool the air, but still somehow keep the humidity high by using a cool mist. There was a long discussion of this at least a year ago. Try searching for it. I think you should find it if you type in 'cooling systems' or something like that.

I think that any orchid that likes to stay moist could be planted in the splash zone if they are in the appropriate medium. I have no experience at all with diatomite, so I really can't say a thing about it, but I would actually use a medium that was not very water-retentive. For instance, i wouldn't use sphagnum for sure. I'd probably use bark chips or CHC, and larger ones than one would normally use for such plants. Of course it really will depend on how your waterfall turns out. It will be affected by factors like how strong the pump is (how strong the flow is), and what the waterfall is made of, and if you want more of a gentle trickle, or more of a rush like I have. Of course a trickle won't splash nearly as much. With my waterfall, it is constantly splashing and spraying, so water-loving orchids would either have to be mounted in order to get enough air to their roots, or, if they were terrestrials, it would have to be an extremely open mix. Everything in the splash zone is basically being constantly watered. So yeah, you do basically have to just set up your tank and see what the conditions are like.

Jim: I don't know about hydrofoggers. Hopefully Homer will answer that one, but I believe that the ones he uses are the ones you can buy at Michael's and other craft stores. They are sold for use in fountains, to give that 'dry ice' mist effect. And if you use the weekly 40% off coupon at Michael's, they're not expensive at all. As for how to actually hook it up and hang it from the top of a terrarium, I have no idea! Try doing a search for 'Homer' or 'hydrofoggers' or just 'foggers'.

I did a google search of ultrasonic foggers, and I've seen one in action. The are tiny, absolutely quiet, low power, never clog, and only $25.00.

I learned that commercially built fish tanks at a local pet shop are often cheeper than what I build myself, better constructed, and available in sizes I want. I knew I wanted four feet wide and tall and it's available for $109.00 A complete fish tank set-up cost maybe $300.00 but the tank by itself is not so expensive. Powerful compact-fluorescent light/tops are also available at the pet store.

Here is a link that might be useful: terrarium

Hi again sahoyaref,
Terraiums with waterfalls seems the ultimate environment for tropicals. Thank you for the information that you have experienced and shared with us.
For me, I am a newbie and taking it slowly and one step at a time to see my accomplishments and learn from my failures and the support/help from all of you.
Thank you,
Theresa

Theresa:
If you want to try a very simple waterfall and inexpensive, go to Black Jungle, terrarium supply, on the left there is a menu, go to Waterscape it's the WF-1 Habi-Scape Waterfall,cost: $35. It works great, no splashing, just a nice running water sound. that's the one I have in my terrarium.
Jim:
go to the same page in black jungle, just under the waterfall there is a small Hagen Exo-Terra Fogger for $40 I don't know how it works 'cause I don't have or need one.
Laura..... did you get hooked on terrariums?
Sayo:
Thank you for the good info. I made a copy and will keep it handy.
Ana :)