Paint the back of tank

Hello all

I'm thinking to change to background from black to light blue as some of discus are peppering. Can I paint the background while discus are in tank. I will cover the top with a sheet. Will they be ok?. What kind of paint you guys recommend as I have oil based painted at background. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Bottom colors will have more influence on peppering than the sides will, and black will make them pepper more than blue. I would be cautious painting a full tank, especially if using an oil based paint. The air pump can suck in airborne toxins even if using a low VOC latex.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jeep

Bottom colors will have more influence on peppering than the sides will, and black will make them pepper more than blue. I would be cautious painting a full tank, especially if using an oil based paint. The air pump can suck in airborne toxins even if using a low VOC latex.

---

So the best action would be just paint the bottom light color?

Thanks

I paint all my tank bottoms with Stone Creations. The dark gray gives the tank a light sandy bottom look. The sides are blue but I did play around with a new tank and painted the sides black and put a rocky background on the back. All the discus in that tank were SS and Turq and they all darkened and showed mood bars for months. I do have some PB's in that tank now but they are pepperless. I'd guess if they did have pepper genetics that this tank would promote it more.Attachment 132086Attachment 132087

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jeep

I paint all my tank bottoms with Stone Creations. The dark gray gives the tank a light sandy bottom look. The sides are blue but I did play around with a new tank and painted the sides black and put a rocky background on the back. All the discus in that tank were SS and Turq and they all darkened and showed mood bars for months. I do have some PB's in that tank now but they are pepperless. I'd guess if they did have pepper genetics that this tank would promote it more.Attachment 132086Attachment 132087

---

Thanks for reply. What I'm trying to achieve is to show them their light colors not the dark ones. Even though I have only one mercury discus which is peppering otherwise it's a beautiful discus. So I'm just thinking maybe changing the back color from black to light blue and paint the bottom too could help her to show more natural colors. Is it safe to paint back panel and bottom while the fishes are in?. I am only worried about it even though I will cover it and stop the filter for few hours.

I wouldn't recommend painting a tank with fish inside. Brush or roll on latex paint maybe but not a spray on from a can. Paint odor can last for several days and I would be worried about toxins making their way into the tank. However, I did paint my fish room while the tanks were full. This was a low VOC latex wall paint and the tanks were covered in plastic so maybe I'm being overly cautious...

About five years ago, I painted all sides, except the front, of my discus tanks light blue. It's a great color to show off the fish, but the poop really jumps out with a light blue bottom. If I could do it all over again, I would go with Stone Creations. But that'll be a different life...

I would not paint tanks with fish in them. Install blue backgrounds instead.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Willie

About five years ago, I painted all sides, except the front, of my discus tanks light blue. It's a great color to show off the fish, but the poop really jumps out with a light blue bottom. If I could do it all over again, I would go with Stone Creations. But that'll be a different life...

I would not paint tanks with fish in them. Install blue backgrounds instead.

---

Thanks for all the advice. I think I will go with blue background since I don't want to take any chances all my discus are from golden state discus and all are showpiece

Thanks everyone for help