r/paludarium

Hello! I set up my first paludarium this weekend (picture 1) for some vampire crabs (waiting for the system to regulate/settle first before adding them) and am looking for some advice.

Question 1: Picture 2 is the spider wood I have in the water part, and when I got home from work today, it seems to have developed that slimy film on it. Will that sort itself?

Question 2: Picture 3 are the bubbles my air stone is producing (has been since setup on Saturday). Will those also sort themselves out once I do weekly water changes?

Isopods and springtails are already added to the enclosure.

Thanks in advance!

Definitely have a lot more work to do, this is how it looks after putting it together, ended up dampening the “ rainfall “ due to the loud trickling noise, can’t wait to see how it grows out. Also filled the water flush to the trim line.

Hey everyone, longtime lurker finally making my first post here!

I've been building planted tanks and paludariums for a few years and I'm currently working on a new build that I wanted to get some feedback on from people deep in the hobby.

The concept I'm experimenting with is something I'm calling “The Fallen AI Core.”

The idea is that a machine meant to control nature has been sitting in the environment for years and nature has slowly reclaimed it - vines growing over it, moss taking hold, plants slowly engulfing the structure while the ecosystem develops around it.

The concept image is more of an artistic direction. The final enclosure will end up much more plant-heavy and natural looking like my previous build, also attached.

The enclosure itself will be a large vertical paludarium:

48" long × 27" deep × 66" tall

with roughly ~21 inches of water depth (75 gallon aquarium) and the rest dedicated to the planted arboreal section above.

Right now I'm planning to build the background using a mix of:

• carved expanding foam for structure and ledges
• cork bark for climbing surfaces and hides
• sealed surfaces (Drylok style coating) so plants can attach and roots can establish
• potentially materials like EpiWeb or Hygrolon to help plants grow over the structure (but I've never used these before!)

The “AI core” itself would likely be embedded partially into the background so it functions more like hardscape rather than just a decorative object.

I'm also experimenting with a Raspberry Pi based monitoring/automation setup to track things like humidity, temperature, lighting cycles, and misting - mostly to help stabilize the environment once the enclosure is established.

I'm curious what people here think about the idea.

Have you seen any paludariums that successfully combine a strong theme with a natural ecosystem like this?

Also very open to suggestions for materials or techniques that work well for getting plants to establish on artificial structures.

I want to add more of a cleanup crew in the water of this tank…. There 2 snails in the water right now but they have a high waste load… so I was thinking of adding cherry shrimp or scuds/aquatic isopods. Thoughts?

I have built a couple of setups for my leopard frog. This is the first big bioactive option I have built. Still learning as I go!

Now to wait a good 2 months for everything to grow in🫩. but im happy with the results since it's my first time ever doing this!

I’ve been adding more climbing spaces and planting opportunities in my 3 vampire crab setups using cork bark tubes cut and glued to the glass. It’s a good way to add height to the tanks and could be an alternative to spray foam although I do also have a tall tank that uses spray foam at the back and then spray foam pieces that I’ve carved into planters and siliconed on to the glass.

I fill some of gaps between the tubes with live sphagnum moss and the crabs burrow into it allowing for opportunities to spot them when they think they’re hidden.

Hello !

It’s been around 5 weeks that I made this paludarium (it’s 120x50x50). My hamster died recently (RIP Michelle), after 3 years so I decided to push for my aquatic desire and repurpose her enclosure. Not everything is perfect and I got a few issues during the process (my waterfall wasnt a waterfall initially but a godamn pressure washer lmao) but it ended up really nice. Water is stable, land look to have passed successfully the mold stage (that vinewood went through hell, now its a lot better). Springtails and isopods are growing super fast and I recently added my shrimps. I dont mind the color mixing, I have Red and Blue ones. (Yes I acclimated them with the drop method for around 2h30), no death yet so I might have done it "ok"…

I have a really small pump on the left to push a bit waterflow on the part with almost no mouvement, hopefully it’s enough.

Finally, I know my moss isnt the happiest, probably bought it already quite dried, might have to update that part.

Planning to add some male guppies and vampire crabs down the road (i know about the 80/20% rule between land and water but the terrarium beeing so big, I guess having more water isnt an issue. Soil is pretty deep too so they could burrow easily

Hopefully things wont go south but for now, im quite happy with the result ! (Spent way too much time watching YT DIY videos about Paludarium, was scary to begin).

Few questions if I may. Could I possibly house a genus of arboreal vampire crabs in this? It’s 12 gallons. Top canopy layers have plenty of caves/hiding spots. Looking at 2+ inches of soil on the top section and 4+ at the bottom. I’ve managed to set the pump to hit the rock at the back (centre top) and other outlets to provide a small amount of flow- drips nicely in some part’s. Water section at the bottom which is about 3 inches max.

I’ve found a hitchhiker ant (no queen) and a few very small centipedes.. anything to worry about?

Continuing to let it cycle for a month and will monitor. I’ll be adding springtails, and isopods based on response. Thanks in advance 🙏

My first paludarium's been up and running for a few weeks, and while plants need to grow in and I still want to grow moss on the background, I'm a little stuck on what to put in here. There's a stream that runs along the back, and the land sits above the water so there's a "cave" beneath it with some hidden cholla wood half rounds for future critters to play in, possibly.

It's a 40 gallon breeder, with around 12ish gallons of water and the flow of the stream is fairly substantial. I'm not looking to cram a bunch of animals in here at all, either. I don't need something that will use the land, but it would be nice. I was contemplating firebelly toads, but I think the flow is too much for them, plus lack of an easy in/out of the water.

My first build is a work in progress. Water 'spills' from the left, mid and right corners. Suggestions on planting options are most welcome.

Back is growing in beautifully and finally stood her upright, finished product will have another island on the left side with a water feature. Still not sure what will go in it. Open to suggestions

A good bit of time ago I posted asking about a pump that clogged during tank cycling. Life happened and answering questions didn't happen. I'm sorry for ghosting on my own post.

This project has been one problem after another, but it's slowly coming together! "Updates" even though I haven't shared it yet in any honest capacity.

An Ikea FABRIKÖR conversion. Empty it's about 12-ish gallons, filled as I have it it's about 10. This is still my old pump, a fountain pump rated for a 10-20 gallon tank but it still cloggs pretty often. It's surrounded by course foam, fine filter floss, and window screen. Every time I clean the pump, about every two days, it's a snot-like clump of biofilm. I have a bigger pump, I just haven't had the time to install it yet.

At the moment the water has been planted for about three weeks, not that you'd know it. Everything still looks melty and not much has spread, despite the injected Co2. The rotala OJ in the back isn't doing too bad so I cut and replanted it four or five days ago.

The christmas and sphagnum moss are doing well above the waterline, but below is another story. I'm trying to get it to cover the pump box and fill in between the rocks and the roots. I know it takes time, I'm just impatient and might buy some more to stuff it in.

The upper part still needs more plants. All of those cork shelves are plant-holes mostly for ferns. I have one weird looking asparagus fern that I'll change out. Finding ferns this time of year has been difficult! Mostly looking for rabbit's foot, maidenhair, if I could find small licorice ferns I'd love some! I have an eyelash fern in there, I like it more than I thought I would and will probably get more.

I'm hoping to finish filling it out over the next month or so, as stores are refreshed.

I'm not sure how I feel about the lighting yet. It's nice and bright up top, which is good for those plants! But a LOT less bright in the middle of the water portion. Which I know the fish prefer, but the plants might not? I have to keep an eye on it.

At the moment there are seven chili rasbora, a crap-ton of bladder snails, even more shrimp, and an assassin snail. Given how much biofilm there is, and how the snails exploded from it, I fully expect the shrimp to do so as well. Again.

I have so many shrimp.

And tons of springtails already! Good thing they walk on water. They've been able to climb back out when I see clumps of them floating. The Frogbit helps.

I'm having a tannin problem. Not that I mind the tannins, and I know the fish like them. But it's a little strong. Most of my shrimp are orange and you can't see them in orange water! I keep doing water changes, but there's a lot of cork. It's going to take time.

I'd still like to add decor. More fairy and fantasy stuff to go with the tea-set themed waterfall. Hidden between the plants. I'm planning glowing crystals too I just haven't had time to do much more than maintenance. So that's the next bit, after the pump replacement.

My moss wall has really grown in well over the past few months, but recently theres also alot of mold. I added some springtails a few weeks ago but havent noticed a big difference yet and barely see them. What else could i do to preserve the moss but stop the mold? I have a fan pulling air out for about 30 minutes every few hours. Any other suggestions?

You guys seemed to be very interested about my paludarium on one of my previous posts, so here are some photos I just took - including the highly requested ant close-ups!

Enjoy!