Huge Ecobulb Riparium Jungle for Rare Fish on DIY Branch Stand

About two months ago, I obtained a really incredible container - the giant jug that I use in this video to be specific. I wasn't quite sure what I would do with it, though, so I left in the garage to collect dust. Eventually, I had a general idea of what I wanted to create and I got to it.
Since it's fairly tall, I thought that a riparium or paludarium would be a cool option. However, I didn't have a dedicated spot for it. So I began by making a stand out of tree branches. It seemed like a cool direction to go since the container itself is so unique. With that, I also felt that it made sense to include some rare fish. What better than the Orange Medaka Ricefish?
Anyway, this is how I turned an incredible container into a lush, live planted riparium setup that's really unique. Let me know what you think of this build and enjoy the video!
Learn More in my Blog
www.serpadesign.com/blog
Follow SerpaDesign
Instagram - / serpadesign
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Second Channel - / tannerserpa
00:00 Intro
00:26 DIY Tree Branch Stand
03:26 Riparium Plant Platform
05:38 Adding the Marginal Plants
07:05 Filling the Container
07:20 Adding Aquatic Plants
07:39 Adjusting the Stand
08:26 Time for Water
08:35 Finishing Touches
09:17 Adding Fish and Snails
09:34 Completed Design
#riparium #aquarium #serpadesign

[@SerpaDesign]

I've been planning this one for quite a while and I'm very excited to finally make it happen! I think it's a pretty unique piece that's a great addition to the animal room. What do you think? Let me know! ALSO, I totally forgot to mention that I added floating plants prior to adding the fish and snails. I used Salvinia minima and Duckweed.

[@datgaydangernoodle1315]

Its gonna look so cool!

[@jorgemeza6148]

I love your videos you do the best tanks

[@Dornul]

Looks awesome! Although I was wondering why you added the floating plant section before the bottom part. Wouldn't it have been easier to work bottom up?

[@Ob1Dk]

Am I the only one who is getting tried off the moss on evything Personally I would like to see you make a few videos whit out using moss to see if you actually hav the skills or it's all in the moss

[@jennifersummers3689]

SO COOL!! That looks so cool man.

[@TheUrbanNemophilist]

This is definitely not an easy build considering the narrow opening of the container. I can very well imagine your level of patience and hard work behind the scenes to put this all together. End result looks fantastic like always!

[@mrmatticus9693]

i agree, especially after seeing how impatient/angry i get when planting with tweezers and the roots won't stay put

[@ettaz]

My dad and I built our first terrarium last summer. It was a similar size bottle as the one in the video, but a much smaller opening, maybe 5-6 cm (2 in). There was no way to put hands in there, and it was too big for tweezers. We fashioned some tools out of wire and could only put smaller plants in there. Most of them died though, because we left it outside in the cold one evening in the fall. Some of them lived though, and we added some new ones as well. Mostly the moss is thriving, but I'm really happy about it! Especially because it was our first project like that and it was really ambitious!

[@TheUrbanNemophilist]

@@ettaz nice to know. Thanks for sharing

[@cfoster6804]

@@ettaz That sounds awesome.

[@ettaz]

Thank you all for the nice comments. This channel is not only a source of a lot of information for us just starting to get into the hobby, but it also fosters a really nice and supportive community 😊

[@SRMal8723]

After watching marine biologist reacting to horrible aquariums, this soothes my mind and seeing how good the environment is for the fish.

[@meljunmercado220]

Ajnv or something

[@Momo-qx7cm]

WAS IT AVNJ

[@NB-hz5nc]

no way do you watch AVNJ?

[@dinocub1]

Love this. These "jug" type containers were all the rage in the 70's and early 80's for the Terrarium craze. My uncle was a florist and parents owned a hair salon where these were all over the place. My dad would create these with little themes to each. Seems what was old is now new again. Awesome job! Giving me some inspiration.

[@-JustABookworm-]

Respect to you for being able to build this stuff and being able to pronounce the plants names

[@ShamankingZuty]

This is absolutely beautiful! I honestly could see this being in a museum or the home of some rich celebrity. You've really outdone yourself once again.

[@itowwillian]

EXACLY

[@Jo-yp8wy]

I agree!! If I had a truckload of money, this would at the very top of my shopping list.

[@dawiddawid7198]

youre kidding right? this looks super ugly bro, some broken branches around a big glass bottle? well, you havent seen much if thats your beauty standard

[@ShamankingZuty]

@@dawiddawid7198 That's very rude.

[@dawiddawid7198]

@@ShamankingZuty yes very crude

[@ghomerhust]

watching this build has made me think of something about your house. it must have the most awesome smell, with the fish tanks, all the water, and so many plants filtering the air. i'd love that! i like when im servicing my tanks when i pop the covers up and get that whiff, it's just a nice nature smell.

[@andreascreasatmarkwijayasi7191]

Smells like an healthy Substrate of the forest 🤣, healthy terarium does...

[@justafurrywithinternet317]

I remember when I once opened a closed terrarium and it just smelled damp.

[@rynow1992]

I love this comment! Everytime, like you said, love opening my planted tank and it smells like a good earthy river smell. Always say it when I open it up and tell my fiance how much I love the smell. She's doesn't get it lol still love her though 😆

[@hollisblinn7910]

Your critters always look so happy in their new environments. And it's so peaceful watching them, I'll bet you'll never have to worry about having high blood pressure.

[@liev_x]

Your creativity and ingenuity will never cease to amaze. This looks absolutely stunning.

[@ethanstiles159]

so beautiful, and what a unique way to solve the problem of creating the “land area” the stand is just beautiful, u never cease to amaze, tanner!

[@woodfield9584]

If the video was twice as long, I still would love every minute of it.

[@loganmariutto8450]

can we all just take a moment to appreciate all the work and effort he puts in his builds to make incredible ecosystems to all his animals

[@annaflannagan2870]

Your so right. This man is incredible

[@chantalrochon3566]

I am sending this video to my son. He loves making indoor ponds for his aquatic friends. Thank you for this video.

[@tonyolo4591]

this is definitely my favorite, it has that whole ship in a bottle feel. I have never been into fish/aquariums( i'm a reptile guy), but this makes me want to give it a try .

[@KOTO-cod]

fr same

[@abee5723]

i love how much you challenge yourself, the results are amazing!

[@arcanedame3015]

LOVE the more ‘artistic installation’ feel of this piece. The unique silhouette is so refreshing to admire 💛

[@dolphinboi-playmonsterranc9668]

Man, that's one rad jar. Gotta say, I'm a big fan of the lichen embellishments. Maybe it's because I'm just a rainforest man at heart.

[@difax9935]

Wow. That is completely stunning. Well done. I love it.

[@Fingerwizard91]

Absolutely gorgeous! You should be proud of yourself for a job well done!

[@stevenwilliams3182]

Wow, dude. You put a lot of work into this one and it came out great. I watch you do this stuff and it’s so inspirational to me to see these interesting creative ways to bring nature indoors and create living art. I hope you’re doing these projects and sharing them online for many years to come. Cheers!

[@BigShrimpin416]

Tanner, you have the patience of an absolute saint! I would have lost my mind trying to get things in and out of that thing 🤣🤣 amazing job tho! It came out awesome!

[@MrBluemanworld]

Thanks for sharing your talent with the world. You've become a creator of worlds instead of a destroyer

[@stampinturtles]

Gorgeous! What an amazing unique piece!

[@dragonslayer_eyre2315]

This is such a piece of art! And you impress me so with how you solve problems like putting the platform down in pieces. I immediately get a build-itch! 😄

[@ohFoou]

I said it before and I will say it again. This man is the best I have seen in making the perfect terrarium. I legit watch him all the time. And re watch old videos just because his skill blows my mind away. Keep up the good work tanner!!!

[@dogalrorn]

I usually watch these build videos for relaxation, but watching you construct the platform gave me anxiety for some reason. Still an awesome outcome.

[@jomassey4207]

Love the hanging planters with the syngoniums.....great container. This is another stunning work of art! Jo.

[@bennyboy4026]

Haven’t finished the video but I know it will be a great build so thanks for all the content

[@djpseudoname2023]

Tanner you are amazingly creative; talented in turning the most ordinary items into visual master pieces. You never fail to inspire creativity and produce great KZbin videos. Keep up the great work Tanner. Sending you continued success, best wishes, and more blessings to come for you, your family, and your assortment of loved pets. Pets who thrive in the safe environments and animal kingdom you’ve created for them.

[@SerpaDesign]

Appreciate your kindness. 💚

[@bluemoon7785]

I don't think there's nothing I'm more attractive to than a nerdy man who's passionate about something like this, and does everything by hand

[@keepruvthknight]

You are so crafty and creative. I love watching how you invent new ways to create unique designs and solve problems, - all with beautiful results!

[@jurassic_hobbyonmyaltaccou3878]

Hi serpa I found two amazing looking branches that looked like driftwood’s and it reminded me of you. I love your content you deserve a lot more subscribers for the work you do ❤️

[@furhadnasserjah123]

He’s already got 1.2 million putting plants in a jar. Chill out

[@shiyadh7355]

I have been here from the start and still don't know his name 😅😅

[@jurassic_hobbyonmyaltaccou3878]

@@shiyadh7355 it’s Tanner I think

[@jurassic_hobbyonmyaltaccou3878]

@@furhadnasserjah123 Yeah but he makes a terrarium almost every week do you even know how much time money and effort that is?

[@shiyadh7355]

@@jurassic_hobbyonmyaltaccou3878 ohh ya that true ,I'm so sorry tanner

[@lucycannon6732]

I really love the natural appearance of the stand you created! My favorite by far! Gorgeous work, as usual!

[@tessahryhoriw6745]

I HAVENT EVEN WATCHED THE VIDEO YET BUT ITS ALREADY IN MY FAVES!!! THIS LOOKS AMAZING

[@daniellehinton9607]

SO COOL!!!! I can't imagine how much patience and perseverance this build took! Thanks for sharing! 😊

[@CameronT93]

One of my favourites that you’ve done I think, really unique design and I like how you kept it simple with the livestock. Great job.

[@JB-hp6up]

Aquascapes/rarium builds are such an underated art medium, beautiful

[@tailznscales2854]

This was a good build. This definitely gave me early KZbin vids of you vibes. Loved it.

[@rachelmottram4682]

Your dedication to this challenging project is simply amazing and the finished riparium looks stunning! Great work!

[@itsoktonotbeokay]

Your creativity continues to impress and inspire me!!! Beautiful build 🙌🏻

[@wheelchair_charlie]

Gorgeous! Simply a gorgeous, one of a kind setup. That glass jug is so unique by itself, using it for a Riparium and on that amazing tree stand is the perfect setup for it!

[@Tubbytubsterify]

I absolutely love your creativity blended with your talent. Your videos are some of my very favorite. I always look forward to seeing them. Thank you so much.

[@henrystp]

Looks incredible, Tanner! Awesome work

[@null9090]

Stunning. I'm impressed by your ability to bring a vision to life--literally to life, with flora and fauna.

[@raymondhole6624]

This is one of my favorite of your builds! The piece is so unique and the base you constructed really ties the whole thing together.

[@brooklynbauer8013]

What an absolute work of art! The hanging platform. Is genius.

[@marileenoostingh5575]

Omg Tanner this is your best design up till now! Sooo beautiful!

[@claywise43]

Absolutely amazing! And the Medaka Ricefish are a perfect choice. I’ve just gotten into Medaka recently and I’m excited to see them multiply.

[@nomoremrniceguy007]

That's on another level. If I were a wealthy man, I'd try to get one just like that, how gorgeous! Also you have the right idea with natural ecosystems in planted tanks, I have three tanks that I only top off, never do water changes on and have tons of plant growth/fish/shrimp/snails that live for a long time. With that duckweed and frogbit though, you'll be keeping it up daily for sure. I think the first thing I'd add would be snails as well, I might stick just to ramshorns in the future as opposed to intentionally introducing bladder snails, but they have their unique place all the same.

[@partticle2222]

Awesome conceptualization to build, Tanner! -A Teardrop of Earth💧🐌🌱 🌎🐟

[@JustinGomes1016]

Wow! Great work with that tank it looks amazing

[@pokeppokep]

Your creativity, patience and talent are just awe inspiring!

[@auntieelaine]

This build was so ingenious! What an amazing piece of living art.

[@josephlloyd9636]

The jar & planting are Amazing!! So inspiring!! Great job.. how about an update on its growth & changes since you started it !!

[@joannhempel6374]

All I can say is WOW… I loved watching each step & you made it sound so easy to do!! That is stunning….subscribed😊!

[@IronArk65]

Haven't watched the vid yet but I just want to say, U make the coolest stuff and have great content if I'm ever bored I'll just play one of your videos! Keep going your the best! Edit: that is probably one of your best creations, so creative.

[@lavender-hearts]

Hey Tanner! Love your videos, and I absolutely love this build. I can't even imagine how hard it must have been to get everything into that narrow opening, but the result is stunning! As an aside, I was wondering: would you ever consider doing a terrarium that displays phalaenopsis orchids as the star of the show? I know they're a very common plant, but I adore them so much, both with and without flowers. I'd love to see what you would do with them, because I'm sure you'd really showcase their epiphytic nature and we could see all those crazy roots doing what they were meant to!

[@sheenajerome-wasberg4714]

In love with this one. I have a large jar like the one thank you for inspiration on what to do with it.

[@lorihutton9535]

I wish you could see the look on me and everyone on the break room. After thirds over,were not going to bed. Thrifting for large jar container thangs. Lol,thank you. We promise not to copy exactly. Love it!

[@Megankacz]

Amazing build! This is truly one of the best builds you’ve ever done, and that’s saying a lot because your builds are always pretty epic.

[@ThomasGush]

Your such an Inspiration, Have a great day!

[@WhitneyStephen-cq4uq]

Absolutely amazing I always wanted a room turned into a ecosystem.

[@lynettevalentin9411]

That is beautiful.. loved watching the set up it came out beautifully

[@arla.s720]

this was amazing! Love the channel and what you do ❤

[@OfficiallySnek]

I am working on a big palladium project. I have been doing a lot of research, but I still can't seem to find exactly what I am looking for. I need some recommendations for small species of colorful tropical-looking freshwater fish (that's a mouthful). If any of you have ideas, it would be greatly appreciated!

[@alexsmolen3194]

I would recommend Danio margaritatus, the celestial pearl danio, often referred to in the aquarium trade as galaxy rasbora or Microrasbora sp. 'Galaxy'. They are relatively easy, nicely looking fish.

[@OfficiallySnek]

@@alexsmolen3194 I have been doing a lot of research on small colorful fish, and I really like this option. Thanks for the advice, I'll probably be on the lookout for these once I finish the palladium.

[@tiffanybryant4170]

Neon injected colored guppies and mollies look great!! They have them in tetras too

[@OfficiallySnek]

@@tiffanybryant4170 By "neon injected" do you mean glowfish? Or are you just talking about fish like the neon tetra?

[@justger3059]

i think this is my dream piece, and i was blown away by the detail in the process.

[@jaa7286]

Just when you thought you had a favorite tank, Tanner goes and creates something outstanding

[@ptiitq177]

just imagine if that was your dad... a whole another world to explore...

[@harveyanimations8974]

I want to explore his house. There’s probably cool stuff like this everywhere

[@giseladegner5009]

How are you so making aquariums and stuff? I wanna be like you! I Love youre videos!!!

[@deathloopgamer8872]

I think it's pretty freaking crazy the randomness of knowledge you can obtain by just watching KZbin videos every day and in some cases even applying that knowledge in building something for yourself. I gotten so many ideas from youtube.

[@umbralnymph7238]

This looks like something you would find in a fantasy setting! Absolutely gorgeous!

[@QKsilver58]

Hi Tanner, amazing artwork as usual this week, I'm always inspired by your designs. If I could have one suggestion to even further improve your amazing content; it would be to add this type of static shot 9:41 zoomed out just a bit to capture the whole setup, and put it for 10-30 seconds after you peace out at 10:56 so the Serpa Squad can marvel at the completed system for a bit after your wonderful commentary ends. The more shots of your work we get to see at the end the better, especially with such apt music for it playing :) (the ending shot 10:54 you picked is great but it ends so quickly, it bums me out because it's so darn cool - let me keep looking at it please)

[@JackyCola92]

Gotta say after all I learned about how sensitive fish can be, how easily your water balance can get off etc. I doubt that this one will work out in the long term. But I'd love to see myself corrected! However, water changes look like they can be very challenging with this setup and I was so shocked to see you just let the fish in the water. Don't they need drip acclimation? Fish usually don't do too well if they just get dropped into water... I hope you just didn't show this part, but I strongly encourage you to do so in the future so that others wo want to do something similar don't make this mistake. Please keep us updated, I'm curious if this setup works out!

[@uberchipmonk2568]

It's all about bioload vs nutrients in/nutrients out. With all the live plants in there absorbing nutrients, finding the balance point is easy

[@M.Mae.M]

The level of detail and patience always amazes me!

[@CharityGalbreath]

you are easily my favorite terrarium builder

[@tristambre632]

My favorite project so far, it looks incredible !!!

[@alexisnemnem]

Wow. This might be my new favourite set up of yours! What a stunning piece, i love pink ramshorn snails.

[@GlamGoreChaosQueen]

This is heartstoppingly stunning. Also want to hear the story of how you acquired the receptical

[@harveyanimations8974]

This is the most awesome thing I’ve ever seen.

[@HonchoHundo]

This is such an inspiration I’m a jazz musician at heart but lately even been getting a lot of signs to find another side passion to ease the stress of my main passion I’ve been watching your videos for months and truly believe this is what I really wanna do

[@TheRememdium]

Great job, that's absolutely beautiful.

[@SmallFryAmI92]

Projects like this are why I’m grateful to have very small wrists and hands

[@jeremyfrost2636]

Yes, you're lucky.

[@dorksorcery]

it looks so whimsical and beautiful! can't wait to see how the plants will grow

[@alienbaby_9003]

The pink snails are the cutest things ever. I was kinda hoping to see some shrimp in there but the fishies are adorable too!

[@DeaththeKid93]

it looks amazing and must have been very frustrating trying to reach through the top of that big container and getting everything in place with only one hand, you did a great job!

[@butterscotchsmolboi1884]

This is my FAVORITE of all your creations!!!

[@aolster3198]

Impressive! The container and your custom stand provide a stunning frame for the plants and animals you selected!

[@myczycz]

Incredible. I can't believe how creative you can get!

[@davidmickelson]

These videos are so calming and relaxing

[@exeggcutebenedict]

That thumbnail is the most beautiful terrarium photo. Unbelievable work

[@claroo2580]

That's one cool lamp! Love the wicker lamp shad! Cool stuff man.

[@Nonea350]

That piece is STUNNING!! My goodness!!! ❤️

[@renatabubblegum6524]

If I had such a masterpiece in my home i would look at it all day. Excellent work

[@lume380]

Amazing!! I love the natural but yet magical feel you get by just looking at it. Easily became one of my favorites tanks set ups.

[@Xensaurei]

This is incredible. I wish I would catch a live class with you! That would be so awesome!

[@dericmccoy8175]

You can tell how passionate you are, you make this look so easy!! Looks sick!

[@dougjacksonw]

That's very inspiring! Good Chicago Winter project to consider.

[@jaimeegusquiza8753]

I LOVE YOUR WORK,,,VERY CRAFTY AND UNIQUE,,,CONGRATULATIONS,,,!!!😻💗🙀

[@pamelanadel3787]

Beautiful, Tanner. Just beautiful.

[@rickyspanish492]

Another winner, looks so cool! Really good job on the base, the ropes and glue make it nice and polished