# HUGE Background and Waterfall How To Guide...(pic heavy!)



## briiiziii (Nov 4, 2011)

I thought that I would post up a little how to/tutorial-ish on making a pretty extreme and complex waterfall and background.
After a failed attempt last night of making an aztec ruins background (it looked like a shakespearean set! :lol I decided to scratch that, did heaps more research and went shopping this morning.
I bought:
- Water pump $25?
- Polystyrene foam (clark rubber)$30 --- I know you can get it for free but all i got was chunky stuff and I really needed flat sheets so I bit the bullet!
- Liquid nails x 3 $20
- Two buddha statues $40
- Loads of fake plants $30
- Pondtite $19.95
- Mortar Mix 9kg $15.99

All this is for my Reptile One glass enclosure (60L x 60D x 90H)

LET'S START!

- First off, I lined the back wall of the enclosure with a sheet of foam
- Drew around the clips at the top where the mesh lid fits so i dont go over!
- Put my buddhas in the corners and drew where they were going to sit
- Drew where I wanted my waterfall to come from



I left that for another day and started straight away on my waterfall!

I followed the tutorial by Lizard Landscapes, but altered it a little so that I had more of a trickle waterfall and I think I made it a little easier to dismantle and get the water pump out ( I also have a different water pump, mine has a tube that bring the water to the spout, not just one big unit)
Here is the vid if your interested: How to make a waterfall (rainforest theme) - YouTube

*I'm actually not going to go into major detail with the pool of the waterfall and the base that holds it because its almost the exact procedure as the Lizard Landscapes video... I'll just point out what I did differently, or what I found to work better!

- Because I needed my buddhas to fit in at the sides, I didnt take the base as wide around the sides as the LL (lizard landscapes) video, I just kind of tapered them down at the sides instead, as you can see!




- I then started building the back of the waterfall, to go against the background flat, hide the wires and tubing and get a little bit of hight!
- I checked to make sure the pump fit and the tube came out the way i wanted it and i made a little rock coming off the left hand side to cover up the pump (underneath and the right hand side arent covered so waterline can still get through)
- This wall is attached to the base, not the actual pool




- I then made an "L" shape with two sheets of foam (roughly measured to size) for the "lid" to the waterfall that would act as the actuall "trickle area" for the water to run down. This just sits on top of the pool piece, flat - dont glue it down to the base or the pool!
- I then started making the trickle area by laying one angled sheet of foam over the top of the other.



- I then built more deatail onto the waterfall and used a broken pen (its all i could find that was the right size) and indented some little grooves for the water to follow just to be safe - make sure the water can't trickle out the sides of the waterfall.




I then added these two lengths of foam just to disguise the "joint" where the back wall of the waterfall and the waterfall piece itself would 'join'.




- I also tore out a little piece in the back of my pool piece and indented the back of the waterfall piece so that the tube could go down/up, but silly me, this wasnt really necessary as you can see in the pic above there is about a 2cm gap anyway!


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## NaughtyByNature (Nov 4, 2011)

It will be great to see the finished product


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## briiiziii (Nov 4, 2011)

- I then added a small "shelf on the top of the back wall (attached to the base) to disguise any visible tube when the waterfall is on and just finish of the look




- I added more rocks and detail everywhere and tried to disguise any joint lines without getting too close so that when the grout is applied, everything will still fit together!
- Now I wait for them to dry and tomorrow I'll start the background piece!





Any tips/suggestions/feedback would be awesome too


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## BigWillieStyles (Nov 5, 2011)

Looks great. I actually quite liked the Shakespear background  What is going into the tank?

I have a waterfall background in my Frog tank but used peatmoss on silicon over the polystyrene and expanda foam with live plants. Works a treat. In my opinion, its good to have access to your waterpump incase it decides to fail or get blocked. I used one of those cheap china pumps from ebay with a filter which does a reasonably good job at cleaning the tank but does get blocked from time to time. You could also get a little in-line filter to stock crap going into the pump.

How about making some little cavities to place some nice realistic silk plants in. You know like, little plants growing out from the crevices and cracks.


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## mudgudgeon (Nov 5, 2011)

One thing I found with my enclosure is that any cavities between parts of the background or enclosure give insects great hiding spots. I found I had colonies of wood roaches hiding in tiny cracks and crickets would vanish too, but I would hear them chirping at night.


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## BigWillieStyles (Nov 5, 2011)

mudgudgeon said:


> One thing I found with my enclosure is that any cavities between parts of the background or enclosure give insects great hiding spots. I found I had colonies of wood roaches hiding in tiny cracks and crickets would vanish too, but I would hear them chirping at night.



Haha...me too! I now take my frogs out to feed them frogs in a seperate container.


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## briiiziii (Nov 5, 2011)

My Green Tree Python is going in here!
I might put some little crevaces in the background wall! That's a great idea thanks!
Luckily I don't have to deal with roaches or crickets! And I don't think frozen thawed rats will be hiding anywhere with Sherbet's appetite!
In regards to the water pump, I am able to easily disasemble the 3 pieces. I can leave the base in the enclosure and all I have to do is take of the top piece (waterfall) and i can pull my pump right out 

I'm not sure whether to do broken bricks or a more natural rock look for the wall behind...probably rocks!
I've got some fake moss from a model shop which im going to use, as well as some peat moss I think, but I want the texture to be as clean as I can for cleaning! That's why I've put as much deatail with rocks etc as I can, so that painting and dry brushing techniques can do most of the work for me.

Any suggestions on silicone to use?





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Today I'm doing the background wall of the enclosure.
If there's one thing I know when doing a massive project like this its to check how everything fits ALL THE TIME!

- I put the waterfall, background piece, and buddha's in the enclosure to see how I liked the look of it, and to check that everything fitted.
- I needed to tear away a little bit around the sides of the base of the waterfall, just to be safe.
- Decided that I wanted the buddha's up a little higher as if they were almost watching the waterfall, so I got started in making some pillars.



- I put a lip around the pillars to make them look a bit more textured and detailed.





- After these were made I checked once again that they would fit and that if I attached them to the back wall, then I could get the back wall into the enclosure with ease


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## J-A-X (Nov 5, 2011)

Gorgeous statues , where did you find them ? 
As for the silicone, as it's going to be subject to high humidity I'd suggest either an aquarium or bathroom sealer. 

I'll be watching the progress on this, just make sure you let each coat of grout/ render dry completely before the next layer goes on, otherwise youll wind up with trapped moisture which could cause crumbling down the track. Leave it a to dry for a day or two in the warmer weather, longer than that if it's cold, I've waited a week and a half. In the middle of winter


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## briiiziii (Nov 5, 2011)

Jaxrtfm said:


> Gorgeous statues , where did you find them ?
> As for the silicone, as it's going to be subject to high humidity I'd suggest either an aquarium or bathroom sealer.
> 
> I'll be watching the progress on this, just make sure you let each coat of grout/ render dry completely before the next layer goes on, otherwise youll wind up with trapped moisture which could cause crumbling down the track. Leave it a to dry for a day or two in the warmer weather, longer than that if it's cold, I've waited a week and a half. In the middle of winter



I found them at Stafford City Shopping Centre in Bargain City! I was so happy when I saw them, especially how there were only two left and they both lent in to the middle etc! I was very lucky! 
They had a really nice massive buddha head also which i was tempted to get for my jungle.

My plan is...
I've got pondtite (4 layers) for everything that won't be soaking in water all the time, but everything else I'll use aquarium grade silicone in 2 layers.
Does that sound ok?


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## J-A-X (Nov 5, 2011)

Pondtite is designed to be underwater so I don't understand why you're thinking of using silicone, I thought maybe you were thinking of joining parts of the waterfall with it


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## mudgudgeon (Nov 5, 2011)

If pondtite is designed to be permanently immersed in water, I would suggest using it or similar. People seem to be having good results with it. I would also look for a water proofing additive to mix with grout our render for your pond and water fall so you aren't relying on a sealer over the top (pondtite may be suitable for this?? not certain)
Two problems with silicone to consider, most things won't bond to it, so it is hard to grout over, or paint etc, be careful if using it to stick things together, exposed silicone can muck up the finish. Also if you use it to coat the surface, grime and dirt will stick to it over time, it will end up looking scungey (look at silicone in your shower)


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## briiiziii (Nov 5, 2011)

Ahhhhh ok thanks heaps everyone for your input!
I'm going to use PVA glue in my grout mixture... I did a rock wall for my beardie a while back and really liked how that worked, it was nice to paint on too!
As for sealing the project to be waterproof etc, I'm just going to use Pondtite, but heaps of layers of it! maybe 4-5?
I won't need silicone after all, for some reason I just thought I did!


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Day Two Down, another god knows how many to go!!!

- started to lay down rocks onto the background, I wanted to create kinda like a bit of a basking shelf, just cause i could!






- I tested it to see if the basking shelf would stop the wall from going into the enclosure but all is good!
- I put everything in there to see where I wanted more rocky deatail and drew on where I thought was best with a highlighter (only thing i could find)




- Finally all the foam work is done! Once again I tested to see how everything would fit, and arranged some plants just randomly to get a rough idea of what the finished product will look like!






Tomorrow I'll start grouting!


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## ingie (Nov 5, 2011)

That looks fantastic! Glad I could be of some kind of assistance  Are there going to be horizontal perches/branches in the tank?


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## briiiziii (Nov 5, 2011)

Yeah! Thanks so much  I've been slaving away at it for 2 days now!
Before I bought any 'tap' or anything like that I went home and tested out the pump...
It came with tube already and the water flow was perfect so I didnt need to get anything else!

I'm going to put 3 horizontal bamboo perches in there also! I'll attach them with the back part of a door stopper attached to the glass with silicone so I can easily remove them


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## ingie (Nov 5, 2011)

Looks like a real work of art! Can't wait to see the finished product


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## briiiziii (Nov 5, 2011)

I know I'm pretttttty proud of it! 
Theres so much detail! Pics dont even do it any justice!
I hope I nail the grount and painting part especially!
The paint is whats going to really make it pop!

Hehe thanks for all your help once again!


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## BigWillieStyles (Nov 5, 2011)

Looks great, you have come a long way in just a day. How about some Exo terra vines for perching on? Or make your own vines. Some smaller vines drapped over the edges of the waterfall and the buddas might look good.


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## briiiziii (Nov 6, 2011)

I've got some vines that I'll be putting everywhere, trust me! Thick and thin ones too.
I practically worked heads down tails up non-stop for the past two days! 
What bugs me is that this is so far about 12 hours?
And I still need to do so many layers of grout, SO MUCH PAINTING!!! and lots of pondtite!

This is going to take a while!...


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## J-A-X (Nov 6, 2011)

LOL, the pondtite is the easy bit, use thin layers and it dries really quick, just remember to paint each layer at right angles to the last, lay the background on its back to make sure it fills all the little nooks and crannies


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## briiiziii (Nov 6, 2011)

Jaxrtfm said:


> LOL, the pondtite is the easy bit, use thin layers and it dries really quick, just remember to paint each layer at right angles to the last, lay the background on its back to make sure it fills all the little nooks and crannies



Ahhhh I hadn't thought of painting at right angles each layer!
How many layers would you deem safe for a GTP constantly wet/humid setup?
And how long does the pondtite usually take to dry?


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## J-A-X (Nov 6, 2011)

Double check on the tub but from memory it's 4 - 5 layers and I'll check the tub shortly and let you know


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## briiiziii (Nov 6, 2011)

Do you think its safe to start grouting now over the liquid nails?
Its been about 45 hours?


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## ericrs (Nov 6, 2011)

that should be fine. liquid nails is normally 24 hour set time so thats playing it safe well and truely. 
it will continue to harden regardless to if its covered up or not. it does not require air to dry.


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## briiiziii (Nov 6, 2011)

Ahhhhhh ok thats great thanks! I was just worried if it needed to air dry but all is good! Hopefully I'll have a grouted waterfall and background by the end of today!

I was thinking 3 coats of grout does that seem ok? I just dont want to put to much on that I loose detail!


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## mudgudgeon (Nov 6, 2011)

Looking good, you seem to be very thorough with planning and checking it for fit :lol: it should pay off though, it's looking great.

very inspirational, it makes me want to get stuck into making another enclosure, I know what I want to do, just got to collect some more materials


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## briiiziii (Nov 6, 2011)

If anyone needs any styrofoam, I'm not going to be using the spare stuff i have! Theres enough to make probably 2 backgrounds! Theres a bit of sheeting too!



mudgudgeon said:


> Looking good, you seem to be very thorough with planning and checking it for fit :lol: it should pay off though, it's looking great.
> 
> very inspirational, it makes me want to get stuck into making another enclosure, I know what I want to do, just got to collect some more materials



thank-you! i didnt want to make any mistakes and then have to tear it apart or start again so i was pretty thorough the whole way through


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## starr9 (Dec 1, 2011)

Any pics of the finished product please?!?!?!?! Looks amazing!!!! Im going to start with a hide and work my way up to something like this!!! Thank you for all the info!! it has helped me a lot!!!


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## briiiziii (Dec 1, 2011)

I've done 2 layers of grout and all the chunky areas are looking really good and sturdy but all the flat areas still feel a bit flimsy, as if you could easily push the grout and styrofoam inwards if you bumped it!  haha so a couple more layers on those areas i think!
I can imagine that this project is going to take me forever to finish! As I not only need to finish the grouting process but once the grout has been finished on the waterfall i need to pondtite it and test it with water to check for the waterline, make sure it has no leaks and to draw in a rough guide as to where the waterline will sit so that i can paint it too look like the water is a beautiful blue colour 

I also want to put a couple of small fish in the pond of my waterfall.
What does everyone think about this?
I want them to be really nice and bright if possible but only about 3-5 cm in length, and of course fresh water.
Let me know if you have any suggestions!


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## thomasssss (Dec 1, 2011)

you should be able to get a blue coloured pondtite that gives it that really good blue shine in the water cant wait to see the finished product


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## viciousred (Dec 1, 2011)

Mollies  or mini mollies or guppies all fine in warm or cold water and come in awesome colours


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## Just_Plain_Nuts (Dec 3, 2011)

any new pics??? How is it going?


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## mudgudgeon (Dec 4, 2011)

viciousred said:


> Mollies  or mini mollies or guppies all fine in warm or cold water and come in awesome colours



X2 both would be fine in cold water, guppies can be very colourful.


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## kr0nick (Dec 5, 2011)

briiiziii said:


> I've done 2 layers of grout and all the chunky areas are looking really good and sturdy but all the flat areas still feel a bit flimsy, as if you could easily push the grout and styrofoam inwards if you bumped it!  haha so a couple more layers on those areas i think!
> I can imagine that this project is going to take me forever to finish! As I not only need to finish the grouting process but once the grout has been finished on the waterfall i need to pondtite it and test it with water to check for the waterline, make sure it has no leaks and to draw in a rough guide as to where the waterline will sit so that i can paint it too look like the water is a beautiful blue colour
> 
> I also want to put a couple of small fish in the pond of my waterfall.
> ...


Hey another thing you could use is acrylic render, alot tougher then grout but you get that shine off of it.


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## briiiziii (Dec 5, 2011)

Sorry haha, I meant acrylic render. I thought it would be tough but its still a bit soft on the flat areas. Which kind of annoys me because the flat areas are flat for a reason haha and I want them to stay that way!

Does anyone know if pondite has any kind of hard finish to it. Is it strong/ durable/ not squishable haha
if that makes sense!

I think I might get some guppies for the pond. The brightest guppies there are


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## J-A-X (Dec 5, 2011)

Pondtite is a sealer not a strengthener, the only way to get strength is to add more layers, I'd say 4 minimum. Each layer should be a thicker consistency than the last. The good thing with the render Is that you can keep it flat if you choose, apparently adding one or two drops to the final layer will allow you to screed it flat- lay the tank/ background on the floor so you are working horizontally, use something the width of the area and work it 'jiggle' it left and right a little bit as you pull it slowly towards you- we've all seen converters do it but I'm not sure I've explained it too well 
I'm not sure were the other poster gets the ideas that acrylic render dries to a shine- its never happened to me, 

So have you got any progress pics?


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## kr0nick (Dec 5, 2011)

you could also add a glue that dries fairly hard i used pva on mine, It made a difference but not as much as i would have liked
v


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## J-A-X (Dec 5, 2011)

Glue won't set as hard as the render, it's normally only added to help each layer bond to the previous layer, maybe that's what gave you the shine on your render? I use less glue as the layers progress


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## briiiziii (Dec 5, 2011)

OK great 
I thought that pondite wouldn't strengthen it at all but I guess i was just hoping it would haha!
It has 3 coats of acrylic render on it now. The bulky parts are really quite rendered up and very strong but as I said, the flat areas are still fairly "push-in-able"!
I think it's a shame that I have to do another couple layers on the flat bits, as I will be loosing a bit of detail. But I'm hoping to mix a super thick batch of render to create texture on the flat bits. If that makes sense - similar to what Lizard Landscapes often does.
I understand what your saying about jiggling the background Jaxrtfm, but as my background is full 3D and the flat part that I'm most concerned about being VERY flat would be the back of the background that would sit against the glass.
I think I'll just a mix a couple of thick layers and literally, render that area.
I've already added PVA to each layer, roughly the same in each layer too, about 1 partPVA to 2 parts water, and then the render powder.






These photos are of the FIRST LAYER of render...
I'll upload photos of what they look like now with 3 layers maybe tomorrow!


Here are pics of the piece with 3 layers.


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