Angs in a Tank

I am in the process of building an orchidarium to house mini Angs and Pleuros. I've always been intrigued by the Pleurothallid Alliance, but we just get way too hot to grow them outdoors here. I have a few already that are being housed in a temporary tank that I've already outgrown.

I plan to use a 10 gallon tank (too small I know but its all I can fit right now) flipped on its side using a vertical conversion kit designed for arboreal treefrogs or thumbnail darts. I'm doing a vert tank because everything in it will be mounted and that't how it will fit on my rack.

I'll put a layer of LECA on the bottom for some humidity control. I'm using a computer fan that I'll place in the center of the bottom (raised off the LECA) blowing up. The vert kit will also have a small area of mesh for gas exchange. I'm using an ultrasonic cool mist humidifier that I've placed two pieces of tubing into the output and siliconed the rest of the output closed. I plan to feed these tubes through the mesh on both sides of the tank.

My main question with this whole setup is how often should I spray the tank (if at all) and how often should the plants be taken out and actually watered thoroughly. I would assume a good watering (soaking) once a week, but I'd like to know people's experiences and what they do.

P.S. the title is for mrbreeze because I know he grows almost entirely in tanks and I'm growing similar species.

 

Thanks for the replies, Alexey and Calvin!

I knew there were others growing similar species in these tanks, but I knew Mr.B uses (at least at one time I know he did; not sure about now) the ultrasonic humidifiers similar to what I have and hand watered the plants. I don't have a misting system currently. I'd like to eventually get one, but it's hard enough to be a college student and afford orchids!

I really appreciate your experiences and pictures and would also like to hear from Jacob and others who grow this way.

 

Thanks a bunch Jacob! This explains alot, and I think I need to provide more information in order to get closer to the answer I'm searching for. This is my first attempt at growing in any kind of case, aside from easy tropicals in my dart frog tanks.

For my orchids outdoors in summer, I water every day in the morning or no later than 1ish. Everything I have is mounted or potted in LECA, and they all dry out by nighttime because it is so hot here. I'm adding this because this is my usual regimen. I know this will not work in the tank.

My lights are outside of the tank, and there is enough air between the tank and lights that I don't think it adds much heat or dries things out. I have the computer fan running 24/7 and I have an ultrasonic humidifier (basically a better version of the silver, round for generator designed for reptiles and amphibians) fogging while the lights are on. For the last 30 minutes or so of the lights being on and for about 30 minutes after, I vent the tank to make sure everything dries out before (or not long after) the lights go out and to create a temperature gradient between night and day.

With all this being said, I am also trying to grow a totally new family of orchids which is the whole point of designing this case. I know the Pleurothallids like to be constantly moist, but I'm not exactly sure of the practical meaning. The few I currently have are mounted on tree fern with just a tiny bit of spaghnum to get them established. Should I spray these to make sure the moss is damp every day, or is the humidifier enough and I should spray every 3 or so days? (I'm just throwing out a number)

I'm not as concerned about the Angs because I have grown these before and know their requirements. All of these are mounted on wood with a pad of coconut husk under the roots. The roots are allowed to choose whether to go into the husk or stay on top. All of the Angs either have active roots or are growing new leaves.

 

Most of my Angs in the tank have only a small pad of coco husk. When I grew them outside, they struggled being on a bare mount except for the Botanica plants which I left the coco husk on the mount. Because of this, I've added that to all the mounts outdoors and I have a small amount under the roots of the plants in the tank. I'll continue to watch them to make sure they stay happy though.

I do not currently have a light meter. I spoke to mrbreeze about lighting one time, and he said he uses T8 lights. That is what I have available currently as well. I'm not sure how much light the plants are getting, but I have bromeliads that require fairly high light in the tanks on either side of this one currently. These broms have a red tinge to the leaves, so I assumed my lower light orchids would receive enough light if I placed the a little further away... please correct me if I'm wrong. I can always raise the tank a bit to boost the light.

 

I'm adding pictures of the tank to show moisture levels. I used a pressurized sprayer and hand sprayed the tanks this morning around 10 A.M. and the humidifier has been running on and off all day. These pictures were taken at about 8:10 P.M. All of the plants seem to have dried out except for a small amount of water on the leaf of Aerangis somalensis. Again, this tank is only the temporary setup. I'm in the process of building something bigger.

 

I have finally built the permanent tank for my plants. I used a 20H tank and built my own vertical conversion since I haven't heard back from the company I was planning on getting one from.

It is made of two panes of glass (bottom and door) and a screen area at the top for ventilation and gas exchange. The tank has one computer fan funning 24/7 blowing air from the bottom to the top. I've also set up an ultrasonic humidifier with tubes running into the tank. The tank is under a pair of daylight T5 bulbs.

I still have to get a feel for how long the humidifier should run per day and if I'm going to need supplemental lighting. Any critiques or tips are appreciated. Thanks for looking!

 

Gilles, do you think it would do better if I put it as close to the screen vent as I can? It would still get some of the mist but would be farther from the source and closer to the dry air in the house.

 

Thanks Gilles and Egoista!

I'm adding a second and maybe a third fan to the tank and my somalensis will be in the direct flow of one of the fans.

Also, how often do you water your somalensis? Mine is mounted with a small pad of coconut husk under the plant. I would imagine with the fan blowing directly on it my plant should be dry in an hour or so.

 

Ok thank you! I have mine positioned directly in front of one of the fans I just put in the tank.