Wow your Boa is going to love it, there's tons of space to get creative.

She better love it. This thing is bleeding me dry!

-DH

Good heavens! That is huge! Big enough to be a shower stall! (Is it?) I assume it's acrylic, because of the paper stuff still on it. It's taller than I had thought. Good thing you're going with a metal halide! Make sure you put only very light-demanding plants near the top, or they will get fried. Like a vanda orchid. Have fun! =)

Oh it's big enough for a shower, and has the plumbing for it too now that you mention it (I turned a sprinkler upside down and strapped it to the top). Hell, I'm half tempted to advertise a tropical room for rent.

-DH

Updated the pics a bit. The link is the same. I am ALMOST done. hehehe

-DH

You know, you can buy ready made showers for a few $100, with door and strong base and drainage. I wonder if this is a good way to build a large terrarium? Or is that what you've done?

No this isn't a shower. It's custom built.

-DH

http://img103.exs.cx/gal.php?g=img03068yv.jpg

We are nearing completion :)

I didn't have enough coir so I had to order some more. I also have some plants coming, so it shouldnt be long before it starts to look like an actual terrarium.

-DH

WOW! Nice waterfall, and I really get an idea of the scale now that I realize those two plants are large hanging baskets of pothos! I bet you ran out of coir!!!! That is going to take a LOT of plants! Must be insanely expensive. . . if it was me, I'd get only one or two at a time, and give them time to grow in between. That pothos could really take over, so I'd give it a wide berth. On the other hand, you don't have to search high and low for tiny broms to suit the scale of your terr, you can go with the big ones! That is going to look really sweet! Did you do the waterfall yourself? If so, how? I want an almost identical design for my new waterfall (when I make it. . . after I get my new tank).

Thanks for the praise saho, it's nice to see an expert likes it. The two plants that are in there in that pic were actually the only two plants in my old snake pit. I carried them over because they have done so well. You are right about them taking over, they are probably around 7 feet tall now. So yeah, that should give you an idea of the scale :) Originally, I was doing the waterfall myself, but I am afraid I had to give up. I had a much much larger one than that I had made from fiberglass, but when I installed it in there and put water to it, I could smell the resin again and there was a bit of film on the water. I wasn't about to take any chances so I just took the axe to it. The one you see in that pic was $120 and was purchased at home depot. It appears to be made of fiberglass, but they put gravel in the resin so it looks very good. It's smaller than I wanted, but it looks better than anything I could have done. As for plants, I decided to start small and safe. I have a black jungle rain forest sampler on the way (along with 13 more bricks of coir). It has 8 plants in it, all different. I think its a good way to get my feet wet. My snake is loving it too, she has been spending some quality time in the waterfall. The water is heated to 85 degrees, so I think she is enjoying that. Once I have a few more plants in, I will take some more pics. I need to get some large durable vines that I can grow through the air around the top. The emerald tree boa I am going to add to it will need them. Best of luck on your new tank sahoyaref, if I can help let me know. I am not a plant expert, but I know how to build things :)

-DH

Okay, I have finally got my first set of plants in there. There are 19 all in all, and I think I am going to leave it at that for right now. At least until I get used to things and am certain there aren't any problems. Comments are welcome! If you have suggestions or see problems by all means let me know.

http://img103.exs.cx/gal.php?g=img03068yv.jpg

-DH

Nice! I LOVE all the broms, and the Allocasia! The aloe will probably rot away quite quickly, since they do NOT like to be constantly moist, and the AV might get squished by your snake, but otherwise, good plant choices! Oh, and personally, I would put the nep in a hanging basket or at least plant it higher up. That way you can enjoy the hanging pitchers more, and it won't just end up crawling along the ground, getting hidden by your other plants as they grow bigger.

Well the soil for the Aloe isn't that moist, unless by moist you mean humidity (I maintain 70-80 percent at all times). I've tried to place the plants based on their light and water needs. I put the alocasias behind the waterfall where it is darker, the broms on the right where it is more moist, and the nep I am unsure about right now. The soil where it is is moist but well drained, but you are right, it won't climb much there. I want to try to rig it up on the waterfall somewhere, but I haven't had time. The AV I'll just have to hope ends up okay, though it seems fairly stiff and resilient. Hopefully my snake will be gentle :)

-DH

http://img103.exs.cx/gal.php?g=img03068yv.jpg

Okay, once more. I wanted a pic of my newest edition. She is on the wood in the last pic. I'll take one more when the brazilian is done shedding.

-DH

Hey, great choice with the wandering jew! Any stems that your snake breaks off will just re-root where they land, and the plant will grow like CRAZY, making it perfectly suited to your very large shower stall-I mean vivarium. =) I love the coleus (new?), and I hope it does well for you. They are reputed to need lots of air movement, and make sure you pinch it back to keep it bushy. Now would be a good time to start. . . it looks like it's only one stem. Is that right? You could pinch off the top, leaving one set of leaves on the original stem, and stick the top in the substrate. It should root, and the original stem will branch and grow two new stems from the leaf axils. The aloe really won't like it in there. They like it DRY. Think desert plant. My mother in law can grow the biggest, best aloes ever because she forgets to water them all the time, while I kill them constantly through overwatering. They just aren't tropicals. It also looks like there's a ponytail palm in there, and they are also desert plants that need to dry out really well between waterings. It is a nice one though, so perhaps try potting it in it's own plastic pot in a very sandy mix, and just sink the pot into your substrate so it's hidden. You'll probably never need to water it because of the high humidity. Just make sure you use very gritty sand, not beach sand or play sand (which will turn to cement and suffocate the roots). I think I also saw a pic of your snake! She's so cute and tiny! I assume she will grow bigger, justifying this massive set-up. . . =)

Great eyes sahoyaref, the coleus and the wandering jew were the only things I added. And yes, that was my new snake. I just got her on saturday, and she has some attitude! My brazilian is in there too, but she is shedding and not very social right now. Any ideas on removing the tea color from the water that the coconut coir has caused? It's not critical, but it would be nice.

-DH

Your new setup looks great. I think that you might have problems with the Aloe and the ponytail palm as well. Ponytail palms are notorious for loosing their roots if kept too moist. The Bromeliads will do great. You might want to try a Philodendron species because they are easy to find and will do really well.

So you got an Amazon tree boa as well? It will be really nice to see the tree boas activities in such a large terrarium. They really are beautiful snakes.

I think you will have to do a series of water changes until the coir stops bleeding colour into the water. When I soak coconut husk chips before potting my orchids I rinse it about four or five times over several days to remove salts. The water is quite dark the first few rinses.

You might never get rid of the 'tea stained' water. Believe me, it takes only a tiny bit of dark water to make a whole bunch of fresh, clear water look stained. I wouldn't rush it. The only way to do it is through water changes, but the coir will continue leaching tannins (what causes the dark water) for a long time, so it might be pointless. It is totally harmless though, so you may just have to get used to it. That's what I decided to do with my terr. =) Still haven't gotten a new tank yet. . . I miss it. =(

Thanks sahoyaref, I figured it was a longshot. But as long as it is harmless it won't bother me much. I just don't want my snakes drinking bad water. I hope you get your terarrium soon, I am very interested to see what you do with it, and what you put in it. I took a couple more pics, probably the last ones for a while. My brazilian finished shedding last night so I took a couple action shots :) I am so pleased with how this has turned out, its better and more fun than I could have guessed. Alocasia is quickly becoming my favorite, and my nep is already growing new pitchers. Thanks to everyone who has helped and put up with my newbish questions, I think I will stick around and offer up what I can!

http://img103.exs.cx/gal.php?g=img03068yv.jpg

-DH

Sweet snake! I may get one someday. . . though I don't relish the tought of feeding it mice. . . but the way they move is so fascinating! Pure muscle. . . crazy!

As for the water, I would do regular 10% water changes (or something like that), because of course the snakes do poop (right?), and you don't want that just building up in the system. The plants will do a really good job of cleaning the water, but still, better safe than sorry!