The ULTIMATE Fire-Bellied Toad Paludarium | 17 MONTHS LATER

[@SerpaDesign]

How's it look? 17 months later and it's still going strong! Let me know what you think about the current setup and what you would do moving forward. Part of me wants to redo it and part of me doesn't. I don't want to redo because the animals like it, but I want to redo because I know I could make something that looks betters and functions better for the animals.

[@stirhaven1981]

Hey serpa, what are your plans for the 350 gallon? have any ideas? i'd personally like to see something involving a crayfish colony, they are super fun to watch and they can exist in numbers in such a big tank

[@evilgenius97]

It sounds perfect nothing besides trimmings

[@SerpaDesign]

Yeah I had it planned months before I even got the tank. You're going to have to wait till then though! 😉

[@juneebennett22]

@@SerpaDesign I was wondering, how many babies have grown up from this tank? Any footage of pollywogs? I enjoyed seeing them develop in small ponds near my home in Southern California as a child. Sadly, those ponds are all long gone due to construction.

[@KassandraQuiseng]

Could changing up the tank be considered as enrichment? Like giving them a new place to explore? When I kept hamsters I always made sure to change the setup/layout every few months so they had new things to see or do.

[@kiernanscanlon8965]

I say redo it! It's a great build, but I think I would like to see what you do with your multi waterfall and pooling area idea. Plus, I would like to see a little more variety in plant texture imo. A lot of the plants you have in there have a similar growth type (tall, thin stems). I would love to see some compact growth mixed in!

[@SerpaDesign]

Agreed!

[@Gardenfurnitur]

Kiernan Scanlon nice 👍

[@sophietakach5683]

Seconded. I don’t know that you need multiple seperate waterfalls, but I would love to see what you could do with a winding flow with pooling areas. Plus I think Kiernan is right about the plants, they look too uniform now they have grown in and it would be great to see some of the depth you create in your other builds brought to this setup. (Also first time commenting - found your channel the other day and it’s brilliant!)

[@MDestron2282]

I was going to suggest the exact same thing. It looks like all the animals are loving it but it could use some tinkering.

[@willstruck2975]

I have watched the setup so many times

[@huskysings9536]

Wills Tanks me too haha even before I was subscribed

[@anujchandkapoor]

After subscribing to your channel, whenever I go out with my wife I always like to spot various types of moss. I have finally emptied my candle grass jar in which I intend to make my very first native terrarium. Thanks for inspiring me. Keep up the great work.

[@maverickstclare3756]

I'm sure other people have suggested it, but how about live-streaming a tank every now and then so we can just enjoy it in real time (and no editing required :) or sound) EDIT: of course it doesn't even need to be live, just long enough to seem like it :)

[@wearycannibal3879]

Brilliant!

[@mouringaway]

+

[@kendrag.4062]

that would be awesome!

[@JohnLange]

How do you guys have time to watch something like that in live time?!?

[@maverickstclare3756]

@@JohnLange you could ask Tanner: how do you get time to look at the things inside your tanks

[@ciaravanderwoning9950]

Love how it’s grown in! This tank is what inspired me to make a paladarium of my own and I used your waterfall idea, for my fire bellied newt. So glad I did, I love it and how it’s developed over time. It’s something I never thought I’d be able to create and now I can’t wait to make more setups like it in the future. I’d love to see you make another setup for them with the wading areas, so that I can learn from it too for my future builds 😆

[@emilynightingale7758]

i just made my first terrarium today after bingeing your videos for the last couple of days, this channel is extremely cool and I'm really glad i found it. Thanks.

[@oneofmetwo]

I'm building my list of supplies. I want to do this so badly after watching this channel.

[@naturezone1212]

0:07 hey thats the driftwood you showed us like 3 years ago!

[@SerpaDesign]

Good eye!

[@TheosAmarto]

This tank setup is what brought ne to your channel. I watched it and fell in love with your stuff. You are extremely talented

[@ghostdragonzw5241]

LOVED THE TANK....I'm a big Newt /Sal...fire-bellied toad guy...and Actually i keep them all in the same tank...and they do so well together....Working on a bigger tank and using your Vids to help...So thanks for the great channel...and your a hell of a artist with this....love watching your channel..

[@LastMinuteLaura]

This is such a good video! I love the little candid tangent you go off on at the end, it was a great way to close the video! Also all of your shots are beautiful and your builds are so fun to watch and learn! :) Thank you for making this!

[@jbensen1]

I love the update, it looks beautiful. I've used (stolen) a lot of ideas from you Tanner in making my terrariums and paludarium. Thanks! When I make my backgrounds with expanding foam I place pieces of cork bark, net pots, wood, coco fiber, whatever, then cover it with lots of sand before the foam crusts over. It comes out very much like a rocky cliff. No carving!!

[@ant4106]

You’re an artist man. Artist are never 100% pleased with the outcome. This is crazy dope 👌🏾

[@tommie827]

So true!

[@nephrobles9790]

I've been away from your channel for a few months and I am so glad to see that you're now being sponsored because you should definitely be getting paid for the awesome setups and the great content in your videos. Love your work!

[@LearningCurveAcres]

Love your setup. I say, if it isn't broke, don't fix it. Give it time. The frogs and fish will tell you when things need to be changed. Take care my friend - Marcie

[@bananafloat27]

It took me a few years to work up to it but your fire bellied toad videos inspired me to get my own fb toads, which were the first amphibian I fell in love with as a kid...I still can't believe that a creature so beautiful, funny, and peaceful exists!! Anyway now I have two of my own in a lil 10gal and they're sooooooo cute...going to upgrade them asap!!

[@WhoTheHellIsHarvy]

This is one of my absolute favourite set ups (must have watched that original video about 10 times!) and awesome to see the white clouds and toads living with each other. Breeding is always a sign of a healthy eco system!Thanks for the update it's much appreciated to take the time and effort to show us all this stuff :)

[@artificialecosystems5874]

Hey man, if you’ve got riccia fluitans, plant it in and around the waterfall. It would look so good! Thanks for pumping out vids!

[@aa1ex]

The plant growth is massive! 🌱🌿 The anubias growing emersed looks great! The bottom tank looks great too, simple but clean! Would love an update for that too *wink* haha! Awesome as always! ❤️

[@Gardenfurnitur]

Alexandra Bautista cool 😎

[@Alicia.Marie.13]

I look forward to your content regardless of what you do. I say do what makes you happy! I'd love to see the vision you have for a new palidarium!

[@pollywogapocalypse7432]

i say always listen to your creativity. you are like a mad man building these things. even if you make the perfect scape don't feel bad if you take it down to help perfect your abilities. even if the new isn't as popular as the old, our creativity is what's most impressive in the end

[@mehie]

Tanner! Keep it as is. I loved your build guide and utilized it in making my own paludarium in a 10g. I'm planning on using the same method in a 60 gallon tank I picked up. Your work is very inspiring, love to see the updates. Keep it up.

[@allysammy7715]

I think some pops of red in this setup would make it feel more complete! Thanks Tanner for the amazing videos!

[@barbkrienke8400]

I love it!! It’s great to know that maintenance isn’t too bad on those. I know if you redo this setup it will be spectacular, so I’m going to vote to rescape when you find the time. I really love the idea of more waterfalls and pools. I only have aquariums right now, but one of these days I’m going to try a paludarium thanks to your videos!!

[@cheviot2988]

just finished my first Terrarium thanks to this channel !!

[@toadpope2522]

It’s looking awesome! I think you’ve refined your craft a lot in the last 12 months especially. I think it would be awesome to see what techniques you would employ to redo this amazing paludarium! I say go for it!

[@whadayameanyaranouttagabbagool]

YESSSS!!!! I was just rewatching (for the fifth time) your original fire-belly toad video. Love these updates & would love to see more animal-related bioactive vivarium builds.

[@carrotcactus283]

This might be a bit late, but I was skeptical about how the slate stone waterfall would turn out (because you didn't put any chips near it so it looked a bit too bright in comparison), but I think now that stuff has grown on it, it looks so much better (and that's the only thing I didn't like as much about it)! Great job Tanner :)

[@derekstewart4215]

Awesome working on my second paludarium in a 10 gallon tank thanks to this very tank of yours

[@Dunkelelf3]

yeah i would love seeing you redo this.. you brought up many ideas i also had for a paludarium once i moved appartments.. but i pretty much planned out the layout somewhat in my head and i also wanted it to have a waterfall into a stream with a pooling area and another stream into the main aquatic area with the fish.. ofc the paludarium would be way larger than the tank you have here.. but i wanted it to be home for some toads, maybe some water loving reptiles as well and the aquatic part to be large enough for a nice variety of fish and maybe also some shrimps and the land parts i wanted to be big enough for a nice jungle of different plants..

[@leneecasteel2005]

Hi Tanner! I am always excited to see a new video from you, and today was no disappointment. I love both your builds and your updates on established tanks. I have noticed that, IMO, your new builds inspire people more than updates do. As for me, I would really prefer to see you put new ideas and learned knowledge into a new setup! I really like that you're primarily considering it for improving conditions for your toads. And I would love to see something like a cave behind a taller waterfall with a soaking pool at the base. How cool would that be? I would also like to see some different textures in the plants, too. I saw purple in the initial build video, but none in the update. What happened there? Anyway, you will do what you will do, and you never disappoint me. So, don't stop now! God Bless Tanner, and Peace to you and yours!

[@Tajirogu]

I think a redo will be an amazing thing. You already do a fantastic job and with new knowledge i think it will enhance your toads home and make it even better for the fish!

[@SerpaDesign]

My thoughts exactly!

[@lorishellenberger5002]

Looks great!! Now you've got me thinking about another waterfall in my fire belly tank! My only suggestion would be to take out some of the leggy plants and add some with color.

[@WoTheGreat]

Idk why you’ve given me a new respect for the word Botanicals lmao

[@ryujedong]

Looks great, but quick question, how's the electric bill? I'd love to have so many animals but I'm limited because of the costs of lighting, heating and any additional requirements. Got any tips?

[@zackrose6019]

You just have to add up the wattage. I have a similar sized house and animal stocking and our bill is just under $200 usd. But it might cost way more or way less depending on location.

[@nulle8935]

Running 3 tanks only costed me an extra 4 dollars

[@chaoticature]

It’s a good question and in my experience, I spend way more time staring at my tank and a tonne less time playing video games/ watching motor racing. Evens out.

[@roefane2258]

Matty B lol, I love that honesty. My husband and I found the same thing to be true when we had a simple fish tank with carnival goldfish and our kids.

[@withelisa]

LED lights will save you a ton

[@greatawakening4773]

Epic update video, my eyes were trying to capture so much. I will definitely be watching this update video a couple of times. Thanks Tanner

[@jrock0829]

What’s up Tanner, awesome videos! you’ve give me a lot of inspiration for a few vivariums I have planned, but I’d love to see some more arid/desert builds, maybe demonstrating how to properly have a clean up crew in an environment that doesn’t require so much moisture, or something along those lines. Keep up the great vids!

[@davidf2244]

This toad is so blessed.

[@xfatalxflawx]

Finally! Been waiting for this one

[@mariawarda4385]

Me too👍

[@ShaneGrimComicGuy]

I love this build and the fish are an amazing touch. I would love to see you get a White's Tree Frog (Litoria caerulea) and build an enclosure for it. Good job and great video!

[@bms0441]

I love it as is, but wouldn't mind seeing some additional waterfalls in the future! The stands are gorgeous and inspiring me to make my own. 😀♥️

[@jmaccolo]

Hi Tanner, is love to see a feeding video, specifically what kind of foods and why you chose a particular kind of insect, etc.

[@jiminsealbeach4536]

I love the idea of multiple waterfalls complete with pooling areas, and a complete ecosystem above and below the waterline. But wouldn’t that look great in your new 350? I’m setting up my first aquarium. It’s a 10 gallon and my plan is to make it a plant nursery and neocardinia farm in anticipation of a large aquarium later. I can’t really afford any more right now. I’m planning on it being low light and room temperature. What you said about including shadowy areas to make it look more natural makes sense. You are and George Farmer are my inspirations for aquascape design. And MD fish tanks has convinced me that I can do it on the cheap and is cheering me on.

[@SerpaDesign]

Nah I have different plans for the 350. I think the 40 breeder is still an ideal size for this type of setup. Glad to hear that your dipping into aquariums! It can be daunting at first. It's a very rewarding hobby long-term though.

[@JustDoinFlorida]

I would love to see a version 2.0 of this paludarium but in a 75 gallon instead so you could have a large water area along with the land area

[@thehornwortofhornwort9832]

Love the white clouds. Really nice setup!

[@SerpaDesign]

I agree! One of my favorite fish for sure.

[@lavender-hearts]

I'd love to see you redo this setup with the features you talked about, especially the pooling areas for the toads. Additional color and texture among the plants would be great, too - the living plants are all looking really same-y and while the animals can be happy with that, it'd be nice for the humans who view that paludarium to see some added colors and textures. And while you said that it doesn't need to be brightly lit, I think having additional 'clear spaces' among the plant life would add some naturalistic variety in lighting. If some of those clear spaces are around the pooling areas and waterfalls, they come with the added benefit of seeing your toads enjoying those water features. If you redo it, I'd almost be tempted to say make it in a bigger tank. Give the toads about the same amount of land space, but more water space for the fish. I do like the idea of making your filters run on the outside so you have more space inside the tank, too.

[@blade_2317]

This has to be my favorite project that you have done I’d like to see more projects like this/more pauldariums with a land and water feature

[@user-vn7ce5ig1z]

2:26 - I see what you did there. 😀

[@SerpaDesign]

Lol! It did look that way...

[@blaholtzen]

It's a great set up no doubt, but it would definitely be cool to see how you'd improve it too. It's always really interesting to follow along with your reasoning and problem solving, and I think even more so when there are as many factors involved as there are with this one

[@FmellyFish]

You are one of the coolest human beings on the face of this Earth my friend.

[@wiqklxz8785]

Oh wow it is lovely now that it is all grown in I still remember watching this and it was beautiful but now it Looks like a actual jungle inside a tank I can’t wait to see what you do with that new enclosure hope it comes soon! Good job Serpa!

[@ESwift-Arts]

Something like this is my dream setup… it’s so magical and peaceful and captures an amazing mini ecosystem. I’d love to add a small building type structure to give mine the feeling of a space once occupied by humans taken over by nature too

[@aquanews9633]

Wonderful fishroom, beautiful fishtanks ! I like this room!

[@Mtthyman]

I love your setups! They keep inspiring me to make mine better and your a fountain of knowledge!! Thanks for all that you do. Have a great day.

[@linkpwns13]

Great update!! I would love to see an update on your isopods :D

[@BrettShev]

It looks good man. I built my own copying what you did with a few changes to my set up on layout and the fact that I had a tank with the left side glass cracked. I added a canister filter and lava rocks under the land area to try and promote beneficial bacteria to grow to keep the water clean that being said it has a brown tint to it but I kinda like it. Watching these grow in is the best part of the entire process. I posted a few pics on my Instagram and tagged you in that post, if you have time take a look and tell me what you think. Keep up the good work and peace lol.

[@aurora_dawn123]

Wow, it looks amazing! I hope your fire-bellies breed successfully.

[@BenBrunelleLifts]

Great looking setup! Nice job!

[@Gardenfurnitur]

Congratulations in my opinion this is your most beautiful and best project for creating a paludary definitely like it👍

[@emmitstewart1921]

If you had room, I'd say since this setup is so successful, leave it as is and make another one to carry out your plans for improvement. One thing, though. Those plants look pretty badly etiolated. You might want to swap them out for something more shade tolerant. Then see how you like it with more compact planting.

[@wendyhenschel.]

Would love to see a bigger set up incorporating the two like you are talking about. More room for fish and waterfalls with some thicker denser plant areas to look more tropical

[@deansaints8769]

Nice update on the paludarium. Hope you could give us an update on the aqua plants jar ecosphere. Thanks and more power!

[@Gardenfurnitur]

You make a beautiful video👍. Tell me paludariums require serious care?

[@arnoldhy7867]

Is it practical to put land snails in one of these builds? I’ve only seen you use snails in water builds

[@evilgenius97]

Snails take over on land and smear the glass with slime. they are botton feeders they eat the slimy biomaterials in water they dont obstruct the veiw as much

[@SerpaDesign]

They tend to go after the plants more so than anything else. While the aquatic snails feed primarily on biofilms and other debris as apposed to the plants.

[@arnoldhy7867]

SerpaDesign thanks! How do you deal with waste from the animals like geckos or frogs that end up in leaves?

[@bobs5596]

@@SerpaDesign would be nice to see a dedicated snail and slug tank. slugs get enormous and have always fascinated me, with their eyes on long extensions.

[@ifyouwoooshmeyouhavesmallp7603]

@@bobs5596 there would not be a lot to see because the snails and slugs Will smear their slime al over the glass and Will eat all Plants in the tank

[@homemedia4325]

I watch but also miss content... I am guessing you still have to feed the animals? ...and how, what with ...and when? ...beautiful work as usual - respect from South Australia

[@mmoogl3547]

This is something I also wonder. Is this a self-sustainable ecosystem requiring only a bit of maintenance?

[@Collection_of_unseen_nature]

i love it! I also love when your do remakes of your enclosures =) Sending you 40 hugs from southern Sweden 🤩

[@sharpton2008]

I'm starting my 55 gallon Paludarium build this weekend and I'm going to follow your design, but it'll have 2 waterfalls.

[@michellepage5519]

WOW! Super-Bio active. Nice job 👏

[@brandonsaquariumsandterrar8985]

Honestly, i think if it aint broken, dont fix it. I think it looks perfect the way it is. If there is a tank that need updated. It is the gargoyle gecko tank

[@mnelson10000]

Very nice!! I understand what you're saying about the low light, but the plants really look like they're begging for more... they're very spindly and pale. I wonder if you would still get the shady look with more light simply from the foliage being denser and healthier?

[@andone01red]

Lookin good, glad to see the toads are doing well too

[@saranidutta4122]

Hey Tanner do an update on Houdini.

[@aidansturdivan9789]

Great vid! My favorite setup. Keep up with the large paludariums.

[@yvonneg7580]

Replace tall plants in front w/ ground cover or at least shorter plants tht will display the tanks incredible design! 👏 Also add plants of diff colors to gv depth!

[@peperando8733]

I really love this one, I don't think it needs to be redone, but you should do as you wish

[@jonisolis9645]

I vote to redo it and that is because I would like to see your news ideas on how to keep improving a setup like this.

[@mskouds]

add shrimp to the tank and eco would be complete, also i bet if you dropped moss of some floating plants the neons would breed, they are super easy. leaf and stem ratio of the stem plant tells that theres very little light... more light more lush, lower

[@danachambers8882]

U r the man I'm learning another from u keep it coming

[@KassandraQuiseng]

If it was mine I think I’d cut back the fittonia a bit more. I really love small compact fittonias so when they start to crawl around and get tall I’m not so into it anymore. I feel that way even with the purple waffle plant (I forget the full name). I keep both as regular houseplants and always chop them down when I feel they’ve gone too far. I think if you wanna re do it you should go for it. I think you could make something even better this time around (like your bio orb rescape). That being said I do like the scape as is.

[@nyanya9986]

I like short fittonias too! I wish I could actually keep them alive. I have one tall leggy stem left on an originally bushy plant 😢💀

[@Czechmate99]

If you redo that, I think multiple waterfalls would be a good idea. Also, I would have one of the waterfalls start higher, and flow into a pool (mini pond) which then waterfalls into the bottom reservoir with all those botanicals and fish. I think the frogs would love that.

[@bundlezlandis7820]

Looked forward to this video. Keep it up man

[@the4fibs832]

"but I tend to do what I want to do" hahaha that's why we love you tanner!

[@mariawarda4385]

Love always the way you care about your babies, is amazing!!!

[@jacobmaclachlanjacob4800]

I would say make a new one, I like the multi fall idea. Love your videos, you do great work!

[@kidslovemusic]

Great!! True inspiration, you never stop, always getting better and better :) We were in the forest today, trying to capture different nature setups on our camera, and taking little bits and pieces which we are going to use in our terrarium later :) In Poland it's forbidden to take any moss, live plants and forest soil from any forest or national park, we are only allowed to take sticks, barks, and other items like acorns or stones. Fortunately, we live close to the forest, with a large garden with plenty of moss and little plants :)

[@JurgenBoes]

so glad we dont have any chlorine in our water here in the netherlands , it makes it so much more easy

[@diversegardener392]

It's awesome and wonderful I could look at it all day!

[@aleigh578]

You dont realize how long you've been watching Tanner until you get a 17 month update video. Man I've been here for a long time 🤣

[@PaulAnguiano]

How and what do you feed them? It seems like the constant nutrient additions would build up more.

[@MattKeepsFish]

Question: do they eat fish? Thinking of putting mine with a betta and corydoras

[@jacobkolberg6861]

Man. This tank is so epic.

[@chrisalan5610]

I like the FBT set-up as is, but the multiple waterfalls and pooling areas would be cool. Sounds like a mini version of the Emerald Pools in Zion

[@TheReedZissou]

Are you ever able to replace the filter cartridges or do you not need to in this setup?

[@set_blocks]

A quick question: Do you have to mist the Paludarium?

[@brycephillips6069]

Are you concerned about anaerobic conditions under the box bases?

[@JAMEYX]

I just watched the fire belly toad paludarium a few days ago. This is perfect haha.

[@TheSwiftCreek2]

I like it as it is. That said, the nature of a youtube channel requires content so I expect it will be remade even better once you get to it.

[@chelseyheiser2467]

I would love to know if you suggest any places for someone just getting into the vivarium hobby to buy their plants from. In Wisconsin. Local places don’t have much right now. Love watching your videos for ideas and instruction.

[@KeeperOfKeys22]

Question. Do you feed the toads? Or do they eat the clean up crew?

[@mattsmith3420]

Is Great Stuff Pond & Stone the only safe foam for water based setups? Or are there any other good recommendations?