Paludarium | Aquaterrarium question(s)

I've currently got in the works a paludarium/aquaterrarium for my 60L upcoming re-scape. I just wanted to ask members what experiences they've had making/maintaining them.

I have in mind a lava rock/driftwood waterfall flowing into a water section around 30-40L.
The stocking would be 3x amano shrimp 1x female honey gourami and if there's enough room 3x Ottocinclus.
I'm currently cutting up PVC foam sheets to make a filtration compartment that will house the pump and filtration media. All the plants (including aquatic) are pretty much all sourced except for moss that will be collected from the garden for the landed area.

The other question I have is the use of lava rock as a hardscape. I had also seen a scape made from expanding foam, that was then coated in aquarium silicone and then smothered with lava rock dust to create a natural look. If I were to copy this, would any long-term problems occur? Or would it be a safer choice to use lava rock and driftwood as hardscape?

Anytime I tried using anything but glass as attached structures, they haven't held. My 'paludariums' (a lot of ideas get covered by the name) have worked well. Easy to maintain and with patience, they have great plant growth. At the moment, I only have one, in a 150L tank.

GaryE said:

Anytime I tried using anything but glass as attached structures, they haven't held. My 'paludariums' (a lot of ideas get covered by the name) have worked well. Easy to maintain and with patience, they have great plant growth. At the moment, I only have one, in a 150L tank.

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I wonder if I used a mixture of lava rock and expanding foam to create the waterfall while attached to the filtration compartment would be heavy enough for it to remain still and in place? I have been using Super glue gel to create the filtration compartment which holds really well. But I don't want to use that on glass. Aquarium silicone will be my go-to for attaching to the glass.

There's it's my turn to say "I do not know anything".

Attempts years ago to glue styrofoam into place with silicone collapsed under the slightest uneven pressure. I plan to build one this summer, with a glass retaining wall and decorative elements added on. I want to have a lower wall across the entire back, filled in behind. I'll have a waterfall feature with emergent rocks for plants, but also a planted bog section as a fry refugium. The glass gets hidden by plant growth if the set up is in natural light.

Perhaps inventment into glass may be the better option. This was my current design for the filter compartment. 2 PVC boards cut into an L shape with the shorter side being the entrance for water flow. The first compartment would either be a fine sponge or a heater. The second would be a pump with hosing up to the top (waterfall) with mesh bags of ceramic media/carbon placed in between. I had an idea of having this 1 inch off the bottom of the tank and using a Matala mat as another form of mechanical filtration + to give me some more height for the landed area.

MattW3344 said:

Perhaps investment into glass may be the better option.

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Stay with PVC, you can do much more with it. In the second picture, you cut a hole in the PVC (well done!). With glass, you have to use a hole saw to make that opening. Glass is just so difficult to work with.

Bad news, silicone does not adhere to PVC very well. Good news, leave a gap between the PVC and glass for the silicone. This will create a gasket which will hold and create a watertight seal. Below is a picture of a sump I made using PVC sheet,




In the first picture, the vertical black strip is silicone. This is very strong and water tight. In the second photo you see silicone in the corner. that really wasn't needed and over time, it will come loose.

Good luck in your project, I am interested in how it comes out.

MattW3344 said:

I wonder if I used a mixture of lava rock and expanding foam to create the waterfall

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What I seen people do, super glue the rocks together to create your structure. Stuff paper towels between the gaps in the rocks, this will prevent the foam from expanding thru the rocks. Spray foam behind the rock structure. If any foam start coming thru, push it down.

Remove the paper towels. If any towels remain, apply super glue to them. Apply silicone to the gaps and cover with substrate.

I used blue insulation foam, which you can get at any lumber store or hardware store. Fish-safe silicone sticks to it very well. But don't bother with the silicone-lava rock dust method. Go to your hardware store and get some Drylok Original (check the ingredients and make sure you don't get the kind with mold inhibitors) and some concrete pigment. I believe drylok is available in the UK. Color it to match your real rocks, then paint the foam with it. Once it cures fully (you'll know because it will lose its smell), it is completely fish safe and lasts for years.

If you scrape the foam with a butter knife, it will develop a surprisingly realistic, rock-like texture. Paint it with your colored Drylok, glue it in place, and Bob's your uncle!

WhistlingBadger said:

I used blue insulation foam

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Clearly i am missing something here. If Mr. Matt wants to create a "lava rock/driftwood waterfall flowing into a water section", he has to seal up the gaps between the rocks. Maybe the problem is, I thinking about rapids flowing into the water.

madmark285 said:

Clearly i am missing something here. If Mr. Matt wants to create a "lava rock/driftwood waterfall flowing into a water section", he has to seal up the gaps between the rocks. Maybe the problem is, I thinking about rapids flowing into the water.

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Yeah, I kind of went a whole different direction. ha ha Should have explained better. Instead of using real rocks and filling up the gaps with expanding foam, I just built walls and waterfalls and all out of fake rock. So I decided to explain how I did that.

You can get expanding foam in black and brown, if you're lucky enough to find it! Then it isn't such a big deal if a little bit pokes out through the gaps.

Had found this. More expensive but I think worth the price compared to a generic foam

WhistlingBadger said:

You can get expanding foam in black and brown, if you're lucky enough to find it!

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Or use the Dryloc and paint the foam between the rocks.

MattW3344 said:

More expensive but I think worth the price compared to a generic foam

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Cheap foam (Great Stuff here in the USA) make have big air bubbles when you cut into it. Using a premium foam for the waterfalls may be a good idea.

Note: when the foam cures, the top skin is very slick and silicone will not adhere to it. Just cut off the top layer. So you can paint between the rocks with Dryloc or apply some silicone between the rocks and cover it with sand/gravel. You can fine tune the flow of water by glueing in a pebble if needed.

I've got quite a selection of lava rock and wood at hand, which I will include. Just need to start planning a scape. One piece of mopani wood I have was cut at a 90 angle which could be useful

madmark285 said:

So you can paint between the rocks with Dryloc or apply some silicone between the rocks and cover it with sand/gravel.

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will have a look at dryloc as well thanks!

MattW3344 said:

Just need to start planning a scape

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I was thinking about making a paludarium but I truly suck at grow plants, not watering them doesn't help So with plants you have terrestrial, aquatic and emersed(??just roots in the water) plants. For me, emersed plants sounds like a winner! You can't drown them nor do you have to water them

So the question I have in designing a scape, should you gravel beds which water flows thru for emerse plants?

madmark285 said:

I was thinking about making a paludarium but I truly suck at grow plants, not watering them doesn't help So with plants you have terrestrial, aquatic and emersed(??just roots in the water) plants. For me, emersed plants sounds like a winner! You can't drown them nor do you have to water them

So the question I have in designing a scape, should you gravel beds which water flows thru for emerse plants?

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Yup, just roots. I currently have 3 species that are emersed except roots. Pothos, monstera, and peace lily. Great root and leaf growth as well.

Gravel vac?? I haven't done that to a tank in years

For the base layer, I will use a 1cm layer of JBL manado as the aquatic plants I'm choosing are all epiphytes