Paint Back Glass Black? Or Not?

[DTs]

Here's a pic of my tank. It's a week old and note the smoke colored back glass. My tank has blackwater due to the bottom layer of soil ("Fertiplant" and use of cable heater) which I hope will clear up in time.

Do you think I should paint the back black for contrast? Or perhaps I should put up a black background. I imagine over a short period of time, the back of the tank will be hardly visible due to the automated CO2 system and halide lighting.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-12/78069/Tank12-12-03.JPG

[Jeremy S]

I would put up a black plastic background and then if you don’t like you can just take it off. With painting it’s almost permanent. It would also be very hard to paint the tank since it’s already set up.

Btw how long did it take Inter-American to make the tank for you? Was it custom done?

[DTs]

I went to the grocery store and noticed a LFS next to it, so I bought the black background.

Yes, the tank is custom made from IA. Starphire on 3 sides. It took 2-1/2 weeks to get it. I thought that was really fast. It's not very fun dealing with Mitch and trying to figure out if he's telling the truth or not. Usually have to talk to one of the other works for that.

Your tank looks really nice. I'm still trying to find some petrified wood that matches the piece I have.

[125gJoe]

You can use a cooking oil spray (Pam) to make the background stick with no air pockets. Use a credit card, or similar to push out air pockets. It looks real nice when attached like this.

By the way, I like the look of your tank, but wonder about fish jumping out... The Metal Halide is nice too!

[DTs]

So, you use non-stick spray to make it stick? (har-har!!)

Yes, the fish definitely can jump out and I'm hoping it's tall enough (24") that the SAEs will stay put. I guess hatchet fish are out of the question for me.

I'm only going to put cardinals (or rummy tetras) and two or 3 altum angels. I don't think these guys are jumpers.

But, the tank is definitely staying topless, as that's the look I wanted. Apparently this look is somewhat common in Europe. I just love the clean look of the edges. And, it'll be nice for plants to be able to grow emmersed, and flower. It's only been set-up for a week, but my plants are growing like crazy due to the light and heavy CO2.

[aquatic-store]

Joe has the best idea it will make the black really stand out and look like it is painted

[CHINABOY1021]

i would paint it black. never regret it myself. wow, it made a huge difference, since i got a lot of light in the tank it lights up the white wall behind the tank and the black makes a huge difference. if you dont want to rip up the tank to paint it, you can go bristol board like me. works very nicely.

[plantbrain]

Quit thinking about it and use acrylic black latex hobby paint sold in little 4-8oz cans at Lowes or Home Depot.

Paint it on.

If you need to remove it later, it comes off easily with a credit card/fresh clean razor blade etc.

It's not permenant.

Also, unless you like the look of gravel, I'd slope the gravel back towards the rear of the tank.
Add more plants, like 3x what you now have in there.

Do 50% weekly water changes, maybe 2x a week for the first month or so.

Keep the CO2 up, 25-30ppm or so.
Dose the nutrients.

Add algae eaters.
Lots.

I bet you'll like the tank much better after painting it.


Regards,
Tom Barr

[Robert H]

What I have done is go to a fabric store and buy thick, heavy black cloth cut to the size of my tank. something like velvet or black naugahide. It has to be thick enough so that light will not shine thru it. Then I just use super glue to attach it to the out side of the glass. Works great. Easy to set up, and easy to remove.

[beviking]

Agree with plantbrain. One guy told me acrylic latex wouldn't stick well to glass. Almost a year now and no peeling or scratches. I even use the Mag Float scraper on one back corner that's prone to algae once in a while...no problem. It will come off easy if you want it to though.

[MJMiller]

I taped black construction paper on the back of mine. It looks good for 5 minutes of work... I put it up as a temporary thing just to see how it looked, but I never took it back down.

The only complaint is running the magnet algae scrubber over the paper can catch on the seams.

[plantbrain]

Just paint it.
Use Valspar brand Acrylic latex ultra enamel paint.

Most every good aquascaper that uses a black ground does this.

Takes minutes, last years, looks great, cost a few $.

I've done other method and this is the best method.

Regards,
Tom Barr

[beviking]

"Quit thinking about it and use acrylic black latex hobby paint..."

"Just paint it. Use Valspar brand Acrylic latex ultra enamel paint."

Are we to assume that the latter is more permanent than the former?:confused:

[plantbrain]

There are the same.

I have tried the other suggested methods here and from a lot of experience, I can say that the paint is _the_ best method.

If anyone doubts this, try it and see for yourself.
Amano, Jeff Senke, myself etc all do this.

Regards,
Tom Barr

[Jeremy S]

I would agree that paint does give you the best background but it would be hard to paint the tank since it is set up and very close to the wall. It is also more difficult to change then say a plastic background even though it can be done.

[KarlskidMarx]

Just so you know, it's totally possible for altum angels to jump outta your tank. Trust me on this one.

[DTs]

Karl - Hmmmm, hadn't thought about the obvious. Too late now as I've got 6 Altums on their way. Of course, I could always have a custom top made.

Jeremy - I actually painted the back black last night. My tank is in a corner so I have plenty of room to reach back. It was very easy. However, I discovered I need to use a roller instead of a brush, as the brush left streak marks on the back of the glass.

[plantbrain]

Wait till that coat dries, apply another.
The second should work.

Regards,
Tom Barr

[Macromatt]

I paint all my tank black, it doesn't matter if the paint has strokes visable on the back. Once it is solid after second coat usually, the inside has a nice smooth black finish. I think it is the cleanest & most non-obtrusive back around. I tried the oil on the back to hold the background, I never got ALL the air bubbles out, and it bugged me to death. I did the Black paper once, and I liked it, but then some water dripped down the back and ruined that, since i have painted te tanks I haven't had a single problem with them.

Matt

[DTs]

I must say that even with the bad first coat, my tank looks way better with the black background. The light tan colored glass made the tank look like it was holding blackwater. My plants and fish look much better too.

[Dapple2]

Floating plants really help with those jumpy fish, I'm kinda partially to salvinia in my killi tanks

[Aquarius0015]

What kind of paint would one use on acrylic tanks? I have one currently being shipped to me (an Eclipse System 12 specifically) and would like to get it pretty before I add fish.