Making a DIY IKEA Cabinet Living Wall Fish Paludarium

In this week's video I decided to transform an IKEA FABRIKÖR Cabinet into a paludarium complete with a living wall and some of my favorite fish. I wanted to do it in a way that was easy and reliable. Not only that, but I wanted it to look cool as well. Something that looks a little more unique than a standard aquarium or paludarium.
What do you think of the completed setup? Let me know in the comments!
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[@SerpaDesign]

I’ve been wanting to do something like this for a while, but I had to come up with the right concept first. I went back and forth on various options, quit on the idea, and recently circled back when I saw this cabinet. All in all I think it was a good option and looks great with a paludarium inside of it. What do you think? Let me know and have a great weekend SerpaSquad!

[@a4blackjaguar965]

Thats really cool I would put that in my office also btw are you feeling better from the tick bite thing?

[@slamrock17]

A walk in paladarium is in your future.

[@AzraelThanatos]

You know, with your greenhouse comment and having a ground level access in your new house, you could build a larger one as an attached structure you could walk out of and into.

[@wikrekkers1128]

Btw thank you for also using liters, it gives a better perspective.❤

[@melindastanners]

Brilliant, I love the concept! It looks beautiful.

[@Ganymede_.]

It’s crazy how well you can make these, especially builds like this where it’s not made for an aquarium or terrarium.

[@Mossywall]

I love how this turned out! My fav common fish has to be short fin bettas, they’re just so graceful and I love how they don’t get weighed down by their own fins!

[@doesnotexist6524]

They're also a lot healthier than the long fin varieties, and generally are less temperamental.

[@sharkloving_aquarist]

I love bettas!!! I have 7. Most are "rescues" because I KNOW you shouldn't buy them from chain pet stores but I see them doing bad and magically they end up with me. One I had bought from the store thinking it was a female (back before I knew to look for an egg spot), really it was a plakat male. One of the most beautiful fish I've owned. He was a blue rim × blue marble. His name was Mara. Unfortunately he passed away due to dropsy after my mom overfed him while I was on a trip. Since then I bought another plakat from a BREEDER and it's a female! She has a blue body and a white head, her name is Ama Nin. I have to say plakats are probably also my fave but I'm also a sucker for crowntails because they look spikey. Used to have a shorter finned female but she was a mix of a crowntail and halfmoon. But as you can expect from a betta from a chain pet store, she died from hole in the head (of which I got her with but thought it was an ammonia burn before it was too late). I've got 1 veil, 1 rose, 3 crowns, and 2 plakats. It's an obsession

[@Nitidus]

Short fin Bettas, as in, "normal Bettas." Since the natural form is (obviously) short-finned, everything else is what should get a special designation. To remind people of how bad breeding practices are, especially in the Betta space.

[@spicynugget1012]

Soo beautifully created!!!!!

[@joceslayback9045]

I find it hard to believe that you would need a ‘conversation piece’ with all the beautiful tanks you have. ❤

[@simonlewis189]

Love this! Though I miss the days when you would show the names of each plant species... I really appreciated that as someone who's learning and not familiar with all of them :)

[@rechelieu]

Only you can make it look so easy. Wow, IKEA enters fish hobby. I would never imagine...🙂

[@jeagerkej3171]

Honestly one of the most stunning build you have done in a while, this guy just don't miss

[@BigShrimpin416]

This is the best modification I’ve seen done on this cabinet! Most people make them into terrariums and grow cabinets for plants. I love how you made a paludarium out of it!

[@stampinturtles]

At the beginning of the video I was literally asking myself how you could turn a cabinet into a tank. I was thinking that opening the door would allow water to rush out! I absolutely love how it looks that way yet you made a tank for the bottom. You are a master at paladariums! Thank you for taking time to show us how to create things like this. Oh and I hope you are feeling better. Lyme disease is no joke. Praying that you have no complications from it. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

[@ChristianPeper]

trick I was taught by a handy man when smoothing silicone: get a small bowl with water 2-3 oz is enough, squirt in a decent dose of detergent that you use for doing dishes. clean & dry your chosen finger, dab in the smal bowl and _then_ smooth the silicone like you normally do. the detergent helps create ultra smooth curves that just your finger can't. After each run, clean finger and repeat

[@rafaelnunez1615]

Loving the Ikea builds.

[@AlexIsModded]

For me, my favorite common fish is the koi/galaxy variety of betta fish. I just like how colorful they are, and the way their colors change as they reach full maturity. My male koi, Kingsley, was a little over 1.5 inches when I bought him, and he had a redish-pink head, white body, and blue fins. Now, his head is a combo of dark red and peach blotches, the lower half of his body is peach, his upper body is speckles of black, dark red, blue and white, and his fins are blue, black and white. He's doubled in size, too.

[@blackburned]

Sunburst platies and neon tetras are my favorite common freshwater fish. Beautifully done as always, Tanner 😊

[@YourLocalInquisator]

Hi, not normally early but you’ve recently inspired me to start building terrariums and stuff like it and my life’s just became happier, hopefully you fully recovered from the tick bite! Edit: Could you make a video going over how often you feed things in the animal room and what preparing it is like?

[@christinabrown7308]

I absolutely adore balloon belly mollies!

[@fletchoid]

You make these creations look so easy. My favorite easy "common" fish is the White Cloud Mountain Minnow. They are great for my seasonal outdoor ponds, and don't require a heater when I bring them inside for the winter. Once established, they are quite hardy, and I love the funny little dances the males do.

[@whimsicalgarbage]

This is incredible!! I love how you originally wanted it to be a terrarium but eventually caved and was just like "welllllll might as well.." lmao. It turned out so cool! Will be neat to see how it holds up over time and how easy maintenance is for you. As for common fish... I absolutely adore guppies and mollies. They come in such a wide variety of colors and have cool fin shapes and patterns, they're easy to care for, and get along with just about any community fish. I'll probably never not have them, they're just so cute lol.

[@TranceGrrrl613]

I just got guppies for the first time (I'm a goldfish and betta--separate--girl) and I'm in LOVE!!! They're SO cute and tiny!!

[@malicious-fisheeves]

hey tanner! I just started my first ever planted tank. I've been watching for a few yrs now and always dreamed of having a planted tank because you make such cool projects. You create such gorgeous tanks, there's such creativity and a careful eye too. I'm letting the plants get established before adding any fish in, but even without any critters i've spent so much time just staring at it and smiling. Thank you so much for introducing me to the wonder of aquarium building.

[@goosenotmaverick1156]

Welcome to the hobby. Such natural beauty can be achieved with live plants, and it was a game changer for me and my aquarium experience.

[@GoodLifeAquatics]

Turned out great. I love how you break the process down step by step and speak in terms regular people can understand. It’s a very inspiring piece! Beautiful!

[@Sup3rBadAss]

I personally love white cloud tetras, they breed easily and they have very pretty colors. Another cool build, always makes me want to set up another tank!

[@t_s4500]

Finally a new video I haven’t even watched it yet and I already know it’s going to be great. Edit it was great!

[@Trishakins0890]

I almost want to say this is my favorite that you’ve ever made!! Well done! Can’t wait to see it mature and fill in! ❤❤❤

[@1v3x9]

My day is better now that there’s a serpa upload

[@morganw.4711]

This would be amazing for a canopy-dwelling reptile!

[@zeeby_]

i love your vids so much, your voice is very calming and you go over everything you are doing and why you are doing it which i love. you inspired me to create my own 10 gallon paludarium which currently has some pothos on the wood with it's roots growing into the water and some rhizomnium punctatum that i found growing in a constant puddle along my school. you showed me that i can make something beautiful out of things that i find and it doesn't have to be expensive. you also introduced me to the world of paludariums and scaping outside of aqua scaping.

[@Ragadollite]

Babe wake up new serpa design !!!

[@mpk6664]

This would be amazing for some starry night reed frogs 😮

[@SamMau]

This one has to be my favourite by far ❤❤

[@kropka8259]

I've made one of the wider ones (FABRIKÖR) for my crested gecko. The best thing is that you can use the shelves as they are, one for bottom and the other to create substrate barrier. FABRIKÖR also has glass on top that can be removed from underneath and replaced with a mesh! I am sporadically placing the glass on top to keep humidity up. Its perfect for that kind of diy!

[@DanielMcGeee]

I have a knight anole and I was thinking something like this would be perfect for him! Care to share some pictures or ideas, tips and tricks?

[@kropka8259]

@@DanielMcGeee ofc! The shelves are made out of tempered glass so they cannot be cut/drilled through but they are a perfect size as they are to create substrate barrier/watertight bottom. The metal side beams are curved but wide enough to implement ventilation. I drilled 19mm holes and put round stainless steel air vents. 4 on each beam, have no issues with condensation but still keep the humidity. It doesnt take away from the look, i would argue it adds to it. There is a space in the back to implement cable holes too. You can buy cable tie covers that will help keep insects inside. It's a perfect and easy way to build your own thing, with minimal structual interventions.

[@toiletwater2036]

One of the best builds i've ever seen. Really well done!

[@dustyrusty75]

What a stunning and creative re-imagining of an IKEA piece! I love zebra danios, though I feel that 10 gallons is on the small side for an active and fast swimming schooling fish. Great work!

[@Pollenoverponds]

Love the way this one turned out.

[@tracynickels164]

And the Happy little fish!!!

[@MrGodlyPro]

This is the first SerpaDesign build that didn't wow me.

[@lorrainepurple]

You are a genius. Love everything you create.

[@Megan-nt7dm]

That would be such a cool set up for some tropical frogs!

[@WickensWickedReptiles]

You're a wizard dude!

[@DisposableCrocodile]

Another banger of a paludarium Tanner!

[@ninasuculentasymas]

Crazy but so beautiful!!! I like neon tetras. Enjoy!!!

[@bradlyknox4307]

I just got into hydroponics recently and I have to say your work has inspired me to create living systems like this. Thank you for your content!

[@halfbakedbananabread]

Everytime I've seen these om ikea I've thought about doing this! So happy you did!

[@magichatty]

I swear, if ever a pair of dirty socks could be made into a fish tank, you'd be the one to do it! ! You have such a creative eye for making art! I love watching you create. Thank you!

[@jaranth]

Wow! This one blows me away! The bilateral structures and sky-like center are wonderful!

[@erinklepp2514]

This will be perfect for my hermit crabs! Thank you .

[@kahnfamily9467]

Tanner, its amazing how you can transform a piece of IKEA furniture into a stunning and lively display. I love what you do and keep doing what youre doing!

[@janinebean4276]

it's absolutely gorgeous! the negative space is so striking!

[@robertcasey9777]

My favorite common fish is the green Cory Catfish!! Tons of personality and they stick together in a tank like a family!!

[@lavender-hearts]

I think my absolute favorite common fish is the neon tetra. They're full of energy and so colorful and fun to watch

[@chrisl1873]

A Sunday release! A surprise to be sure but a welcome one

[@oranjeehobbies]

just finished the video. thats so cool. I have one of those ikea greenhouses and i might actually put something in it... hehe

[@TomoyoTatar]

Yup...thats the one I always imagined 😊❤️ -- I want to make a terrarium for a leopard gecko one day. I don't know if khuli loaches are common, but they are my favorite!!

[@wailmerpail]

My favorite common fish is sparkling gouramis, they make look dull at first but if you look at them at certain angles, the sparkling colours really come through

[@gem9535]

I love sparkling gourami! Underrated fish.

[@ambrialee4197]

I'm using the same cabinet to put together a White's tree frog terrium. This is beautiful ❤

[@andycline7416]

I’m thinking about doing something similar how are you doing it?

[@pj7733]

@Andy Cline I'm just starting to design it. I'll be using the foam board as the base. I'm thinking about doing all the sides but having cutouts on the sides that show the glass in places. I had one of the shelves in front, but it was too tall and didn't want to cut the glass, so I have a piece of plexiglass in front. I'm actually making two cabinets. I ended up with 5 white's tree frogs, and 6 are smaller than the other two, so I can not put them all together. I'll be using the ikea rudsta cabinet for the 2 larger ones.

[@calnative4904]

Right now my favorite common fish would be the colorful Dwarf Gourami, several to choose from. Another nice build.

[@liamhgd581]

Think I'll be doing this for my shrimp and snails for a nice display in my living room. Thanks for the inspiration man !!!!

[@Ayeloroz]

You are so talented. I’m in awe.

[@SirFrogIII]

This guy is a genius that's all that needs to be said

[@Like4Hurricane2]

a habitat like that would be great for thumbnail dart frogs; they love verticality

[@livestrongforever]

watching someone like you excelling in your craft is very entertaining and satisfying

[@MrTmbg]

Absolutely stunning! Love the negative space!

[@stevenstucko7039]

Hey Tanner, thanks again for a great upload. The best ten minutes of my day so far....

[@Bweerts]

That's by far, the coolest ikea hack I've ever seen! It's amazing!

[@wuv2quilt]

WOW. BEAUTIFUL!

[@vernonjones4399]

A tropical one with frogs and other things would be amazing! Possibly a little hard to manage though I guess

[@MrHillbilly]

I have been wanting to do one of these for a while. I have an old 1970s dish holder that’s all glass and stands tall. This video really inspired me to make it happen. Thank you!

[@margan59]

Love the build. My favorite common fish is the neon.

[@kathavry]

I live for fancy goldfish! They're definitely my favourite common fish! They're silly, yet personabable personalities draw me in ! ❤❤

[@AleeshaSattva]

FINALLY you did an IKEA cabinet. I knew it would be ah-mazing when you created one!!!

[@d.e.2338]

That's funny. I had this thing standing around for years and wanted to get rid of it because I thought it just takes up space. Never ever had I thought building a paludarium out of it. Amazing work!

[@azimalif266]

Looks like a dissection of a fissure. Nice.

[@madelinehealey6674]

Your filming and editing skills have gotten so good! I love the quality of these newer videos

[@Boney0ne]

This room is absolutely gorgeous, and the paludarium is the perfect choice!! It looks amazing!

[@jari.tokimeki]

I love a beta with vibrant shrimp and snails! 🐟🦐🐌 This is a cool design - like an upcycle!

[@hannakierstead289]

I have been waiting for your take on the greenhouse cabinets for YEARS! I LOVE IT SO MUCH!

[@jefflittell7743]

Celestial Pearls would look good in such a setup

[@gelanghaarteweile3048]

"Whats better than a Paludarium?" That question is easy! Two Paludaria! :D

[@leafystreet]

This one is really sick. Great stuff

[@rafameza4186]

Absolutely beautiful

[@meescha2798]

Love you took an everyday item and turned it into something not it's intended purpose, creativity at work! My favorite common fish is a fantail goldfish, swoosh of the tail flows in the water.

[@WowCoolHorse]

White cloud mountain minnows are my favorite "common" fish, zebras used to be mine but once I got some white clouds they quickly became my favorites

[@casimons92]

Would love an office tour!

[@cerisekappes580]

Such a gorgeous conversion!!! 😊

[@Sjuuls3Design]

"Very nice! I loved seeing the update on it, especially how the cabinet holds up and if there is any rust."

[@scottdaniels3033]

My Guy Tanner takes the mundane and gives us living art ❤

[@aubryellaotero1064]

Leopard longfin danios have to be my favorite common fish, they’re just stunning!

[@Kaalokalawaia]

My favorite common fish is guppies and neon tetras. I love this idea.

[@bettyannbest]

You constantly amaze me! Thanks for sharing Tanner.

[@stephenw.6588]

Exact glass configuration I have prepared for my two Milsbro tall cabinet paludariums. Wonderful you’ve done a great video about this build for others to follow. Looks amazing!!

[@BookWorm0302]

This is just amazing. Great job 👏

[@WTX.Lamkin]

I like how you put a skinny, tall case next to the staircase. It just fits well there. Looks awesome too!

[@angelarobertson7004]

You’re so creative! I love guppies!!!

[@infernofriends]

Thats amazing! So beautiful. I love corydora the best.

[@Gokeys]

Ive always loved neon tetras

[@LunovaLabs]

I like how open it feels.

[@nancycornett9949]

Beautiful! Thank you.

[@christianstonecipher1547]

Great build. And personally I guppies to be some of the most interesting common fish that you can get, the sheer breadth of colors and looks you can find makes them fascinating to me. And the fact that they are nice community fish is just the icing on the cake.

[@shilabostick7655]

I can't wait to make my own. You explain everything so simple, I have no hesitate to start mine.

[@ShadedWisp]

I'm so glad your back and doing better! ❤❤❤ I look forward to each week for a new vid and have gotten into making terrariums myself in jars and am planing to upscale the aquarium I have right now and make it more natural. I've been trying to find a place to buy aquatic plants but have been having a hard time as the only place that really sells some in my area is PetSmart and they don't have a good selection at all, and no floating plants sadly... Glad your back and I am grateful for the creativity that you are able to help people see and do their own things!!

[@lucpar23]

Amazing. Looks awesome. You also make all this look so easy. I'd be making a massive mess out of it, and I'm an experienced fish handler and breeder. I'm also an experienced gardener. Mixing the two, though, is not my strong suit. You do it so seamlessly. Zebra Danios are awesome. They are constantly on the move and aren't scared of much.