You can always get a small bag of lighter gravel, spread it thin in a contained area, and see what looks best in your tank. That way you won't be out much, and it won't be a pain when you decide to remove it. :grinyes:
Does aquarium gravel color effect fish pigment IYO?
- Thread starter dempsey6
- Start date
I would try white sand with a generous sprinkling of black gravel at the top. All those fish would rather root in sand than gravel...so for rooting fish, I always use regular white/beige sand. Here's an article about sand from Cichlid Forum:
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/sand.php
If you definitely for sure don't want sand, I think your black gravel will be ok. Personally I just don't like the black background and black substrate look...it's done so often, I'm sort of sick of seeing it. I know I'm in the minority here
Don't get me wrong, it looks great in a heavily planted tank. But in a cichlid tank where you're going to have no live plants (probably) then sand with a sprinkling of gravel looks better in my opinion. This is kind of what I mean:
http://img.youtube.com/vi/7JjRLqTxGQs/0.jpg
Problem with the sand is I plan on having 4 aquaclears HOB so the sand will mess up the filters I think.
Plus i dont even know if the canister filters can handle sand too.
I've had sand and HOBs on multiple occasions. Just make sure to wash it out well to get rid of the lighter particles.
I don't know, never had a problem with it myself...but I have heard this too, don't keep sand with rooting fish and magnetic driven impellers. If you're worried about it, a prefilter will keep the impellers safe but you will need to clean them fairly often otherwise flow will be restricted too much.
I think the fishs' colors are a lot more vibrant while over darker substrates. But I personally am a sucker for natural substrates, like the brown, tan and white colored gravels, like this http://www.walmart.com/ip/Aqua-Culture-Aztec-Bronze-Aquarium-Gravel-5-lb/10324392
I think it gives the fish the most natural look. But sometimes, i'll switch it out for some black.
I think it gives the fish the most natural look. But sometimes, i'll switch it out for some black.
