Great shot, the orchid in question is typically refered to Brassia, the spider orchid. Good luck

OK folks, I've been hauled back over! Time has been short, so I haven't been spending much playtime online & I've limited the forums I check out. I hope to be back more this winter. I'm putting in an album with some shots of the tank's water-feature. I copied the "finished product" picture after it had been re-sized for posting, and it's pretty grainy, but you can get the idea. Yes, the foam was styrofoam. I got some good-sized chunks of the foam packed around some furniture we got for DD. It makes a light-weight base so even with the the concrete covering, it stays a manageable weight. It does give and flex, though, so it needs to be handled carefully & the concrete needs to be thick enough so it won't crack over the flexible form. I guess I mis-spoke/typed, as I used actual concrete rather than straight cement. I got a bag of Ready-Crete or some such thing (I often use it for this and that around the house and garden, so I think I had some in the garage.) The stuff with sand (rather than gravel) is easier to work with. Unfortunately, I've had to tear down the terrarium temporarily. It was in harm's way with our remodeling (the ceiling over it came down, and the wall next to it came out.) It's too heavy to move when it's full...in fact, it's a heck of a job to move empty! I'll re-plant when we're done with the house, and I'll post a picture then. I hope that answers the questions! I'll check back to see whether I left anything out. Thanks for your interest. Here is a link that might be useful: album w/3 pics, waterfall in progress & done

Hi Patrick888: I know nothing about the growing of Gesneriads. You mentioned adding a glass lid to the top of your enclosure. Would the glass top be used as a light support ? What type of light do Gesneriads require (e.g, high, medium, low)? Do Gesneriads require humidty? Problems associated with lack of air movement, stale air, and high humidity, could come into play with some species of plants (even with a glass lid that is not tight fitting). As to lighting, are you looking for something that is cosmetically pleasing to the eye, or something that will just get the job done? 17"w x 13" tall is indeed a unique size. Might be hard to acquire a fixture to fit that footprint if placing directly on top of your enclosure. One t5ho fixture that might be a possibilty: an 18" Sunblaster Nano Tech t5ho. If you were considering a longer standard size t5 or t8 fixture (e.g., 2 ft), you could probably suspend it over the top easily with some creativity. For an inexpensive 'fix' that may not be the most eye-appealing, you could get a couple of clamp-on "dome" aluminum light fixtures (Lowe's carries them) and use 'daylight' compact fluorescent screw-in bulbs as an option. As suggested by the above poster, aquarium lighting is another possibility. Examples might include something like the Finnex LED fixtures (FugeRay 16" or 20" - Ray2 18" - and I believe the mounts are adjustable), although they are a bit pricier than the Utilitec LED tape (which I don't think would produce enough light for your application, even though the depth is only 13"). You could always hang an inexpensive pendant over the top (with your idea of using an LED spotlight) and design it so you can adjust the hanging height. Looks like you have a wooden base (?) under the glass... you could fabricate some type of hanger (e.i., conduit) off the side, or off the back of your base to suspend a light fixture. Looks like you are going to have a very nice display/set-up when finished! This post was edited by o2tiller on Tue, Oct 15, 13 at 16:25

OK Newbie, I figured it out: Exterior wall, staring at garage = 250". First, I'd advise swapping the garage door swing so it swings into the garage, not the dining room. These are base cabs and appliances only. Uppers are easy. 13"wall, 60" Patio doors (5' sliding or French swing OUT), 18" wall, 12" deep hutch, 36" fridge, 9" pull-out (foils), 24" D/W, 30" sink base, 12" cab, 36" wall to basement / back door. 13+60+18+12+36+9+24+30+12+36 = 250. Dining Room = 91" wide next to fridge / dish hutch along it. This narrow portion is only for approx. 36" from back wall (depth of fridge). You will have two sinks, so I put a 30" sink instead, so you have 33" counter between fridge and sink with foil storage next to fridge. 24" is too small if one person is at the sink and another person at the fridge. There is a 13" counter on end of sink. This leaves 36" to the basement doorway, but you now have a better back door in the dining room, so this old doorway won't be used much. Also, the pantry will now end one foot shorter. Note you will have to shift the old sink window over towards the basement a bit if you want the sink centered. -- Range wall / peninsula, starting at corner, doorway to LR closed in. Corner to peninsula overhang edge = 147". This leaves 103" for the dining room AFTER the 15" peninsula with seating. Starting in corner: 36" corner cabinet with Super Susan, 6" pull-out for spices and oils, 30" range, 24" drawer cab, 36" angled corner sink base creating peninsula, 18" cab forming peninsula end. 36+6+30+24+36+15"overhang = 147 -- Peninsula: 36" angled sinkbase, 18" end cab. An angled sink base can hold a larger sink and it is MUCH more comfortable than being in an inside corner. With a 36" deep fridge the aisle between the peninsula end and the fridge is 39". TRY to get a shallower fridge! French Door fridges are NOT made for small kitchens! I'd go with a side-by-side. Still, I think this is the best place for the fridge because people will not bother you when they get a drink. -- Back wall pantry: Starting at corner - the same 36" corner base cab from range wall = 36" along wall with 24" deep counter. Then two 24" wide, 12" deep floor-to-ceiling pantries. In the corner above the Super Susan cab I'd put a 36" high inside corner cab (with two doors or bi-fold doors) mounted at the ceiling. Either a 36"x36 or a 24"w with a 12" to butt the pantries. Below it I'd put a 24" high, 36" long wall cab sitting on the counter facing towards the range as a shallow appliance garage. This will make the pantry appear to cross over the counter and wrap onto the other wall of uppers. If you get the two-door corner upper you can make the door facing towards the dining room glass and the other door wood. Then the cab below and the wall pantries above the counter-line can be glass too, and the ones below the counter-line wood. That would look good and keep the room airy. This gives you 30" of counterspace from the range to the corner and 24"-30" of counterspace between the sink and range. Much more than your current layouts. Also, the drawer base cabs you have now are too small for pots and pans. 15" drawer bases only have 12" drawers, and 15" of counter next to the stove is just not functional. -- The "hutch" next to the fridge should be a 36" high wall cab with a counter above it and a 42" glass wall cab mounted at the ceiling. Mount them to a plywood panel behind and create a backsplash between them. This can be used for dishes. The peninsula can be used as a buffet. Just be sure to use a 39" deep one-level peninsula counter, not a raised bar. This will increase your prep space immensely. -- This layout has the same width dining room as your current layout but includes the 15" deep seating in the kitchen area. I really think you will benefit greatly with the 39" deep peninsula. Plus all the extra prep space around the stove (and extra storage in the Super Susan). The back end near the new patio doors is narrower because of the fridge / hutch, but if you get a narrow dining table with leaves you can leave it smaller most of the time and extend it out through the wide opening into the living room when you have lots of guests. But most of the time a table with 4 chairs and 3 stools at the peninsula will be enough. Now that I think about it, I'd probably use a 15" cab as the peninsula end (not 18") and extend the counter with a 3" lip over it - more foot clearance.