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This is my 30g...rummynoses, kuhliis, gourami, RTBS and we'll be adding an angel this weekend.

The tank tends to be dark, I think because of the substrate and amount of wood. I used to have a foil background which looked good until we moved; I don't know if it's the room lighting, light from the windows, or what but that wasn't working so I removed it yesterday.

Any suggestions of a nice-looking background for this tank?

And please excuse the photos They were taken quickly this morning (no, the tank isn't slanted lol), the window blinds that came with the house are terrible and I couldn't do anything more about the reflection

I did one shot with flash just to give another idea of what the tank looks like.





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There is water at the bottom of the ocean

Brightening the tank begs for light colors, but if we go too light (white) the algae would just show up more, and we all know we have algae on the back of our tanks.

I was thinking something that might actually compliment the light algae growth and blend with the plants. You're right about not wanting black, it'd look way too dark. Dark blue is the next choice but I think that'd have the same problems. What about a light blue? When the algae develops on the glass you should get a nice aqua color?

A piece of light blue poster board should at least give an idea for color. Maybe pick a few others (a redish orange comes to mind too, dunno why) and just try them out one at a time .

^_^

Hi,
I would still go for a black despite the dark substrate. At least it will bring out the green of plants which now look a bit dull and diffused. My second choice would be a gradient blue that is dark blue at the bottom that progressively changes to a light blue on the way to the top.

-Mughal

I would go dark, whether it be black or dark blue. Light backgrounds always cause the tank to be too bright. And with the dark substrate, it will create an odd affect. I think you will lose all the rich colors of both the fish and the plants if you go too light.

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There is always a bigger fish...

I like a black background with black gravel. I think it give depth to the plants. Also i think it looks closer to nature in fresh water. It also will bring out the colors of the fish better. Just don't put one of the plant prints anything but those. How old is the bulb that would cause a loss of brilliance to the tank.

Djrichie
"So Long, and Thanks For All The Fish" Douglas Adams

I would go for a black or dark blue background & maybe add more plants, so they'll be a good contrast.


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Member of the Malta Aquarist Society - 1970.
http://www.maltaaquarist.com

"Also i think it looks closer to nature in fresh water."

Not always.
There are plenty of FW sites where the 'background' is anything from a slate gray, to a deep red, even a yellowish color. It depends where the FW is located.

Having too dark a BG on a tank does make the whole thing just look bleh. Especially if it's in a brighter room like it looks like this one is. Upgrading the lights to more wattages is a possibility but one must consider if wasting the electricity (and money) is worth it.

^_^

Just a thought..........

Maybe a background inside the tank would look nice?

Take a mos wall, or a wall with caves. What do you think?

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As for the outer background, i would say to use a tan? Or maybe a brown......That seems to look good on mine!

I came with another thought! Maybe you could use like a wall type look. The algae would make it look authenic and antique! Maybe its just me, but a cool thing to do might be to add an old parchment pattern with black ink writing in asian or something else........Like a chinese theme of aincent or medieval china.......

These are all thoughts!

><> ~=!Vote Today!=~ <><
-----> View My Dragons <-----

Hmm I was kinda thinking along those same lines.

Rock wall.

Adams large loungeroom tank hasn't got a background really, but the rocks that he's arranged for caves for the ciclids do go up quite high. We made a similar arrangement in my 20ish gallon. The slate goes up the back to make caves for the kribs. That tank has a mirrored back that looks...alright...I suppose...sure makes it difficult to count how many fish are in the tank!

I'm pretty sure the DIY 'rock' backgrounds generally require one to design it before placing it in the tank. But I wonder if one can be made by gluing rocks to....something for support...then sliding it into the back of the tank (*attempts to think before having coffee*).
I saw on better homes and gardens these fake rocks that are made to fit together easily and look like actual pavers. A bit uniform but something like that might work, especially with a bunch of java moss and fern attatched and growing out of it.

^_^

Old timer posted these sites for caves awhile back. http://www.duboisi.com/diy/BNdiygrotto/bn
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/diy_background_ii.php
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/diy_background_ii.php

There was another one were the guy was an artist and carved a background out of Styrofoam, and this one which I'm going to do here as soon as I find the mesh.
http://www.aquamoss.net/How%20to%20create%20a%20moss%20wall/How%20to%20create%20a%20moss%20wall.htm

Still would put the black on with the moss wall.

Djrichie
"So Long, and Thanks For All The Fish" Douglas Adams

I'd get a blue-ish or black background. Either that, something really colorful

10G- 6 Zebra Danios, 1 Upside Down Catfish
20G- 1 Goldfish
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