Making a DIY IKEA Cabinet Living Wall Fish Paludarium

In this week's video I decided to transform an IKEA FABRIKÖR Cabinet into a paludarium complete with a living wall and some of my favorite fish. I wanted to do it in a way that was easy and reliable. Not only that, but I wanted it to look cool as well. Something that looks a little more unique than a standard aquarium or paludarium.

What do you think of the completed setup? Let me know in the comments!

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[SerpaDesign]

I’ve been wanting to do something like this for a while, but I had to come up with the right concept first. I went back and forth on various options, quit on the idea, and recently circled back when I saw this cabinet. All in all I think it was a good option and looks great with a paludarium inside of it. What do you think? Let me know and have a great weekend SerpaSquad!

[Ganymede_.]

It’s crazy how well you can make these, especially builds like this where it’s not made for an aquarium or terrarium.

[MystuffIshere]

I love how this turned out! My fav common fish has to be short fin bettas, they’re just so graceful and I love how they don’t get weighed down by their own fins!

[simonlewis]

Love this! Though I miss the days when you would show the names of each plant species... I really appreciated that as someone who's learning and not familiar with all of them :)

[jeagerkej]

Honestly one of the most stunning build you have done in a while, this guy just don't miss

[BigShrimpin]

This is the best modification I’ve seen done on this cabinet! Most people make them into terrariums and grow cabinets for plants. I love how you made a paludarium out of it!

[rechelieu]

Only you can make it look so easy. Wow, IKEA enters fish hobby. I would never imagine...🙂

[stampinturtles]

At the beginning of the video I was literally asking myself how you could turn a cabinet into a tank. I was thinking that opening the door would allow water to rush out! I absolutely love how it looks that way yet you made a tank for the bottom. You are a master at paladariums! Thank you for taking time to show us how to create things like this. Oh and I hope you are feeling better. Lyme disease is no joke. Praying that you have no complications from it. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

[malicious-fisheeves]

hey tanner! I just started my first ever planted tank. I've been watching for a few yrs now and always dreamed of having a planted tank because you make such cool projects. You create such gorgeous tanks, there's such creativity and a careful eye too.

I'm letting the plants get established before adding any fish in, but even without any critters i've spent so much time just staring at it and smiling. Thank you so much for introducing me to the wonder of aquarium building.

[joceslayback]

I find it hard to believe that you would need a ‘conversation piece’ with all the beautiful tanks you have. ❤

[GoodLifeAquatics]

Turned out great. I love how you break the process down step by step and speak in terms regular people can understand. It’s a very inspiring piece! Beautiful!

[kropka]

I've made one of the wider ones (FABRIKÖR) for my crested gecko. The best thing is that you can use the shelves as they are, one for bottom and the other to create substrate barrier. FABRIKÖR also has glass on top that can be removed from underneath and replaced with a mesh! I am sporadically placing the glass on top to keep humidity up. Its perfect for that kind of diy!

[ReadThisIfYourGy]

Hi, not normally early but you’ve recently inspired me to start building terrariums and stuff like it and my life’s just became happier, hopefully you fully recovered from the tick bite!

Edit: Could you make a video going over how often you feed things in the animal room and what preparing it is like?

[zeeby_]

i love your vids so much, your voice is very calming and you go over everything you are doing and why you are doing it which i love. you inspired me to create my own 10 gallon paludarium which currently has some pothos on the wood with it's roots growing into the water and some rhizomnium punctatum that i found growing in a constant puddle along my school. you showed me that i can make something beautiful out of things that i find and it doesn't have to be expensive. you also introduced me to the world of paludariums and scaping outside of aqua scaping.

[bradlyknox]

I just got into hydroponics recently and I have to say your work has inspired me to create living systems like this. Thank you for your content!

[MrHillbilly]

I have been wanting to do one of these for a while. I have an old 1970s dish holder that’s all glass and stands tall. This video really inspired me to make it happen. Thank you!

[AlexIsModded]

For me, my favorite common fish is the koi/galaxy variety of betta fish. I just like how colorful they are, and the way their colors change as they reach full maturity. My male koi, Kingsley, was a little over 1.5 inches when I bought him, and he had a redish-pink head, white body, and blue fins. Now, his head is a combo of dark red and peach blotches, the lower half of his body is peach, his upper body is speckles of black, dark red, blue and white, and his fins are blue, black and white. He's doubled in size, too.

[HighImNick]

I personally love white cloud tetras, they breed easily and they have very pretty colors. Another cool build, always makes me want to set up another tank!

[fletchoid]

You make these creations look so easy. My favorite easy "common" fish is the White Cloud Mountain Minnow. They are great for my seasonal outdoor ponds, and don't require a heater when I bring them inside for the winter. Once established, they are quite hardy, and I love the funny little dances the males do.

[jaranth]

Wow! This one blows me away! The bilateral structures and sky-like center are wonderful!