elevated land area - thoughts/opinions

[flatsco]

I was planning the setup & design of my larger terrarium, and a thought came to me, but I don't know if there's any value in doing it, or even if it's a good idea.

My idea was to have an elevated land area created using glass or acrylic sheets, with a solid bottom and an inward-angled lip to make moving from water-to-land easier (not shown, because I'm lazy). Instead of attaching the lip directly to the bottom, I would offset it by a fraction of an inch and connect them along the entire span using a non-metallic mesh instead (see poor illustration below).

Black lines represent glass attached to the sides
Pink circles represent the mesh sections

Inside the elevated area would be a layer of clay substrate (bottom), then more mesh on top of this, then my soil/moss/bark/etc land mixture and plants (top... obviously). The water level would be kept above the bottom of the sloped lip, but below the top of the clay layer.

The thought was that the mesh would allow fresh water into the aquifer, and also provide drainage to prevent the land area from flooding. Whether these benefits are worth the extra steps... I don't know. I also don't know if there are potential problems with this idea (for instance, the without fastening the lip to the bottom, it would probably be considerably weaker).

Does anyone have any thoughts on this idea?

 

[blueberlin]

Hi Scott,

As axolotls are purely aquatic, you may want to ask this question in the Newts section, where people with more experience will find it. Sorry I can't be of more help.

-Eva

 

[Otterwoman]

I moved your thread. I can't exactly picture what you mean, but people have successfully tried all kinds of things. I would give it a try and see how it goes (before adding newts!)

 

[Jennewt]

I also can't figure exactly what you have in mind. But I will say that, structurally, the attachment of plexiglass/acrylic with silicone will be much weaker than an attachment of glass with silicone. So if your construction will bear any weight, it should be made with glass, not acrylic.

 

[flatsco]

I'll give it a try and 1) post actual pics of the concept, and 2) let you guys know how well (or poorly) it turns out.

 

[flatsco]

I spent a bit of time working on a more complete illustration and explanation:

This is a side perspective of tank.

• The black represents glass (the general consensus seems to be that glass would be better).
  Note: I will use a more gradual incline for the lips than shown, and add something to grip.
• The red arrows point to where I would span the gaps with mesh or non-metal screen.
• The brown would be my aquifer layer (lightweight clay substrate).
• The green would be my topsoil layer (bark, soil, moss, plants etc).
• The light blue would be the water level.

The fresh water from the rest of the tank would be free to flow through the aquifer (not implying any sort of current), keeping it from becoming stagnant. It would also free me from having to worry about how much I water my plants, as the runoff would simply drain into the rest of the tank instead of flooding or muddying the soil.

Does the idea make more sense now?

 

[michael]

I've made an elevated land area in my 55 gallon tank by putting a plastic tub with bricks and cocofiber in it on top of some bricks in the tank. Their are some plastic caves and cork bark hanging on the side of the plastic tub. The salamanders can swim under the land tub and easily climb in. It is similar to your idea without the screen and questionable attachment. I just have to water the land area. With your set up I would be afraid the top soil substrate might get saturated.

 

[flatsco]

Would the water soak up through the clay substrate (the pea-sized ones) enough to saturate the soil? I do plan on having a screen divider between the soil and clay layers (mentioned in my original post but omitted from my re-explanation), so the soil and clay would mingle very little.

And with regards to the "questionable attachment" (I didn't take offense, so don't think I'm getting defensive... I'm only quoting), the land area would be relatively small 10" (max), by the 11.5" width of the tank, and at most 3" deep. My plan does not include any rocks or other heavy objects, the clay balls actually float, and the topsoil would be mix of actual soil and (probably) some other lightweight substrate, so I didn't think weight/attachment would be an issue.

If I am wrong, or if you still have concerns, I am willing to hear them out (that is the very reason I posted it: you guys are the experts)

 

[michael]

HI Scott,
I just know what has happened to some of my set ups with a gravel layer under cocofiber. After awhile everything gets saturated. Of course I wasn't diligent enough to put a barrier between the layer. I didn't mean to naysay your set up.