Alright everyone, I'm hoping for a little constructive criticism or just plane old thoughts on this. I have been toying with this idea of a false bottom alternative for a while now. I know false bottoms aren't necessary but I think they are nice in a means to keep the substrate more natural being more moist from the bottom up. But gravel makes the tank so darn heavy. I have a 20gal with this set up and it weighs a ton. Just scored a free 30 gal tank and wanted to use it for my AFS but dreaded the thought of gravel in that pig!!

So I spent less than $10 at a hardware store for a bunch of 1/2 inch pvc pipes, joints and end caps from a local hardware stores plumbing department. Best thing is this stuff is meant for water, also you want it distribute water so you don't have to worry about the joints with any sealant or tape.

Empty tank (30 Gallon)


I played around with the length of the short pieces to fit it all in the 30. I cut them to 2 1/2 inches and saved the remainder of the pipe. The longer pieces came at that length and off had I don't recall what they were. I had an extra on to use for the piece sticking up but ended up using the left over from the short pieces.

PVC Pieces and the only tool I needed - regular ol' saw. I would have gone power if I was not doing this in my kitchen



Pieces fit together



Inside the tank


Top view inside the tank


Sorry I have not set the tank up yet there are a few things to do yet. I intend on drilling small holes at the very bottom of all these pipes, They have to be small enough so when you pour water in the top it will run through the whole series of pipes and pour out the holes in the bottom fairly evenly.

I also need to mention that I would put about 1-2 inches of substrate down first set the pipes up and the add the rest of the substrate and furniture.

The piece that sticks up out of the substrate in the corner can be covered by plants or my preference is a large in diameter piece of bamboo I found for my 20 gal set up. I can just slide that over the bottle and the tank stays looking natural rather than see whatever bottle or whatever you use to pour the water down to the bottom of the tank.

I was trying this method not only for the weight of the tank, but I have read too many times that scorps will burrow down and dig up the gravel, they will also get stuck under screen or anything that may be used to separate the substrate and gravel. I figure if they burrow down under or into this stuff they will probably like to use it aid in the strength of their burrows and be at no risk at all. (other than say extra wet substrate )

I'll get some pictures of it up after I set up. Unless there are some things that I missed on here that would be very bad, so feedback please

Can't forget to mention I thought of getting another end cap for the top of the of the piece sticking out of the substrate just in case anything gets up their, it won't fall in and get trapped in your plumbing

Seems like a good idea. May I suggest two things? 1) pack down the substrate fairly tight up to where it is level with the pipes, and 2) drill the holes very small and at least on the bottom of the pipes (i.e., not just on the tops).

Doing that should make capillary action the dominant force removing water from the pipe, which should in turn keep your substrate moist without it becoming a soupy mess.

That is a great idea, very innovative.

But I'd like to direct your attention to this stuff: http://www.blackjungleterrariumsupply.com/Terra-Lite-12-Cubic-Foot_p_634.html

It's used in vivariums for basically the same use. It's very light and doesn't give your tank the same weight as gravel does.

Thanks guys

Canth: how much of that stuff do you get for 23 bucks? I'd be willing to give it a try but will see how this works first as it was only like 8 and change to buy the pvc from home depot and 10 minutes to piece together, save the drilling of course

Mr. Mordax: I was planning on packing the substrate up to the pvc, but I was a little curious about what you mentioned with the holes. I had to actually look up capillary action as I was thinking of it in a medical sense. I'm not quite sure how that will relate with the holes. I was planning on drilling the holes very small all along the very bottom of the pvc. Basically in a straight line at the bottom most portion of curve of the pipe.

Are you saying I may need to drill some on the top as well to help it to drain properly?

Thank you both for the quick feed back, I had been toying with this idea for a couple of months now and just finally broke down and dropped the cash for the experiment

I've never purchased it from Black Jungle or anywhere else but a friend uses it. The website says half a cubic foot, but maybe you can find better deals. I just linked you there so you could learn what it does. Check out some herp shows near you and see if they have that stuff available

I'll definitely look around as I'd be interested in setting up a little 5 gallon just as an experiment to see how well it does work. I'm always looking around for different things. Just that money's tight at the moment. Student loans are coming due, Christmas is up and I'm currently scavenging 19 10 gal or greater tanks for a bunch of T's coming of age That's how I scored the 30. Also keeping my eyes open for 40 gal breeders to move my Hottentotta Trilineatus into and hopefully (a little further out) some Babycurus Jacksoni too. I just want some huge set ups for my communals and my T's need 10's minimum.

Keep the ideas rolling though

That's a good idea iitomodachi1. Though I believe the false bottom serves two functions. 1) water distribution at the bottom of the tank and the subsequent stabilization of soil moisture and ambient humidity. 2) a drain field in the event of over watering. You might consider employing your irrigation system in combination with the lightweight material Canth mentioned. That way you'd be getting the best of both worlds, so to speak. Although I suppose over watering is easy enough to avoid by simply not putting too much water in the tank. lol.

Let us know how it turns out.

On second thought... Having a gravel(or comparable material) bottom would eliminate the need for an incricate piping system as the air gaps between the gravel would allow gravity to evenly distribute the water across the bottom of the tank and the capillary action that Mr. Mordax mentioned will only work if the piping is surrounded in packed soil. So, I guess it's an "either/or" type situation afterall. Oh well......

Still, I'm anxious to hear how your system works out. It sounds like a practical alternative.

Thanks Bro, Yeah, it is still easy to over water with gravel. I set up my tank with the real false bottom and just had to go to get it right and then I ended up misting once a week or whatever.

I will set this tank up slowly over the next couple of weeks and as you may have saw my pictures my AFS's are still way to small to move into this tank, so I will have a lot of time to get the moisture right. I'll start by adding a bit of water until it is up and running and then try to figure out a safe volume to just dump in and the frequency to do that. By the time I move any inhabitants in I will know that it will take for example, 1.5 water bottles 1x a week to maintain the proper moisture and humidity levels. And if I over water it will only be by freak chance and not too much, just enough to not add water for a little longer

I will post more details and further pics as I move along on this Definitely don't stop thinking or commenting in the meantime, that is actually how I came up with the idea!! Well that and moving my 20 gallon tank with a gravel false bottom set up 2 times! Didn't want to do that anymore

I meant holes in at least the bottom so you wouldn't have standing water in the pipe with nowhere for it to go; holes in the bottom only should work fine (unless you seal off the opening of your supply tube).

Capillary action will just draw the water out of the holes and into the soil. If the soil is packed, then it will only be small amounts of water that come out, supplying moisture for humidity (as water evaporates, the tank becomes humid and there's less liquid water in the soil, so equilibrium favors more liquid being drawn out to replace what evaporates).

If the soil were loose, it would just drain via gravity and you'd have a soupy tank.

Cool, we're on the same page. that was exactly what I was planning! Thanks for the explanation I'd assume this would be a beneficial tid bit for most keeping a tropical species.

I didn't have all the reasoning behind my plan but the plan was on track at least

Very innovative! Thanks for posting it up Bro

I used pvc pipes to make my false bottom.. I posted pics but I just cut the pvc into short pieces to replace the rocks and my 40 gallon breeder is not any heavier then a tank with out the false bottom it may even be a little lighter... nice idea as everyone says keep us updated.. I haven't needed to add water to my tank but once in the last 3 months.. it's been very nice but I also have a glass top with the plastic rear piece which I punched holes in....

Awesome Bro, and I'll definitely keep everyone posted. It will be couple more months before the tank is actually populated but I should have watering down to a science by then. I will also be creating a lid for the 30 gal tank out of plexi glass and with drilled holes in it so it should help keep the moisture in it better

ya the plex will help lots I wish you the best of luck getting the balance down so you don't have to water t much... my emp tank stays perfect...temp and humidity...