72-gallon partially planted bowfront aquarium
 

I've set up my first orchid tank! I have wanted to do this for a long time, since I live in the frosty upper Midwest, and it's finally come to fruition.

My 72-gallon bowfront aquarium is used from Craig's List, my stand is home-made, and the aquarium lids are custom-cut plexiglass.

The light is a waterproof HLG Saber with a 90-watt power supply. It's suspended inside the tank using Gray Bunny GB-6852 heavy-duty suction cups meant for bird feeders.

My driftwood was beach-picked on the East Coast, left outside in the rain, and then submerged & soaked to remove salt residue. The bottom is hydroton to help keep the humidity more consistent.

I have a MistKing starter system set up, using distilled water since our well water is crazy hard, and am still finessing how often it needs to spray in addition to balancing the airflow to keep the humidity sufficiently high. I also still need to work out a fertilization schedule.

So far I have the following species growing:

• brassavola nodosa
• dendrobium 'Fire Wings'
• dendrochilum glumaceum
• dockrillia wasselii
• epidendrum centropetalum ‘red’ x self
• epidendrum radicans
• ludisia discolor ‘alba’
• ludochilus poly
• ludochilus ‘Sea Turtle’
• macodes petola
• masdevallia 'memoria Aaron Jackson'
• phalaenopsis mini (unknown)
• rhyncholaeliocattleya Hsinying Scarlet ‘Ching Hua’
• vanilla planifolia

Also, a few assorted neoregelia bromeliads.

All in all this has been a fun project and I'm looking forward to getting it a bit more settled! I'll post back some more photos after a few months.

Love it. Can not wait to see how it develops


How did you choose the plants?

Thanks! I am super excited. My goal is to have it well-stabilized and controlled by my local winter orchid show so I can add a few more on my wishlist, like some bulbophyllums and neofinetia falcata. :biggrin:

I had a few of the plants already - the Rlc, dendrobium, epidendrum radicans, the mini phal, and vanilla - and I’ve been wanting to increase my jewel orchid collection. I trekked to Orchids by Hausermann in Chicago to pick out several others specifically for the project (what a treat; that place is huge and they have so much that’s not on their website!!).

I need to work on microzones for the plants that like to dry in between watering. Some may come back out if I can’t meet their requirements.

I’m also not getting as much of a temperature difference between day and night as I’d hoped. Our house is 10-12 degrees different but I’m only getting 4-6 degrees in the tank. I hope with added fan cycles for night (and maybe a heat cable for day) I could get closer.

It is definitely a work in progress still!

So fun.

With the hydroton base you will have the medium seeming to wick the water around to equilibrium

Maybe switch one half to lava rock and perhaps add a “false lake” or area with no medium to promote the distinction between areas. Always wet but airy, slightly wet to dry, standing water....

Good to know! So far I haven’t gotten a good equilibrium with humidity and that might help. Also, a fan on a hygrometer sensor.

I figured that a water feature might come with v2 of the tank, once I have the rest figured out, but maybe it’ll happen sooner...

If you read Rays comparison of the wicking qualities of the various media it is very helpful.

I like it a lot. I do know of a bow front on Craigslist here...

Thanks! The bow front style looks great in a more formal living space. I wanted it integrated into my sitting room so that I could enjoy it every day. And the light is especially nice to sit by in the winter!

FWIW, I have had fairly good results using a reptile fogger, as opposed to a mister. In my enclosed system, it keeps the humidity at around 70%. I have 2 small fans running 24/7. Then I just spray once or twice with a hand sprayer.

I’m sure that’s useful to someone! I had that same question when I was planning the tank, and ultimately decided a misting system would be best if I wanted to have a lot of mounts and leave the tank unattended for several days while I travel for work. There isn’t a lot of info out there comparing foggers vs misters.