Cover for open stands

[kjmillerfw]

Now that we've solved the tank/gal. conversion, here's another question.

This stand for the tank is not a solid base. It only supports around the edges of the tank; therefore, it's gonna look really distracting to be able to see straight through to the pumps, wires, etc.

Anybody have any good ideas of what I can put under the tank that might make it a bit more aesthetically pleasing?

TIA,
Kathy

[DarkDiscus]

I suggest you paint it white or a blue-white color. Do this for the bottom, back and possibly the sides of the tank. It brings out the color in the fish.

I have mine covered with a medium blue contact paper and it makes the fish dark. I always envy the way Al's fish look (he has his painted white) when I visit his place. When I have the chance - probably when we buy a house - I'll paint mine white as well.

John

[kjmillerfw]

Thanks John,

That sounds interesting...do you happen to have a picture of this tank?

[oodi]

Hi Kathy,

We use American Accents Stone Creations spray paint. It comes in a few colors, but the "sand" color is my favorite. It also does wonders at fading the peppering in any PB's. Here's a pic...

Judi
:)

[DarkDiscus]

I don't have any pics but I'm sure Al will when he reads this thread...

John

PS. I like Judy's spray paint too.

[korbi_doc]

;D ;D Kathy, I agree with Judi, that's what I've been using & just bought for my just acquired 55g (from Henry). I love the look, just can't raise the tank up myself, so waiting for some help, the 110g is really heavy, that'll take awhile, still haven't decided what to use on the back & sides, maybe another Am. Accent color, lol, Dottie ::) ::)

[oodi]

Dottie,

On our recent tanks, we've been painting the backs with the American Accents, too. Now we wish we had painted them all! :(

Judi
:)

[kjmillerfw]

I REALLY like that idea Judi and nice picture! :thumbsup:

Do you have to prep the glass first before painting it?

I bought some green glass paint and painted the bottom of my 10 gal hospital tank....YUCK! It looked horrible once I put water in it. I turned that thing upside down and scrapped every bit of it off.

This stone creations paint might be a good alternative for the people posting recently about not wanting to give up gravel.

Thanks everyone for the great ideas!

~K

[oodi]

Hi Kathy,

No prep, except for masking off where you don't want the paint to go (particularly the top, so it doesn't get inside the tank). It takes 2 or 3 coats to get good coverage, but it really does look like sand when it's done! I would really suggest painting the bottom and back (sides if you wish)... it is soooooooo much better than backgrounds. As I said before... our only regret, is that we didn't paint the backs of all our tanks.

We don't have a fishroom... just tanks in every room of the house. Therefore, aesthetics is more important to us... and the American Accents may be a bit more expensive than other types of paint, but you can't beat the look IMO!

Judi
:)

[jeep]

Remember to mask off real good and be careful of overspray. American Accents is not latex based, but maybe acrylic. Hard to remove when it cures.

Judy, you said you used "sand" color? I haven't seen that around, but on my screen your tank looks more like grey. Is that what you used?

I used the "pebble" on 2 of my tanks and my fish actually lose the reds, green and blues. I just painted another tank and used the "grey" color but I haven't set it up yet. I'm hoping for more color this time around. If I get it then I'll re-paint all my tanks.

Brian

[oodi]

Hi Brian,

I stated the "sand" color, as I couldn't remember the manufacturer's name for that color. Now that I think about it, we used the Sienna Stone on that tank, which only looks a bit darker than the Pebble, after the tank is filled with water.

Here is a link to the Rustoleum website, that lists the available colors. We've the Sienna Stone, Pebble and Green Marble.

http://www.rustoleum.com/product.asp?frm_product_id=16&SBL=1

Judi
:)

[korbi_doc]

;D ;D Judi, the sienna stone is the one I used on the bottoms. I would love to put this texture on the back & sides, but am a little afraid of the colors. The green marble is pretty, but wouldn't it be too dark on the tank back & sides?? The quartz, a little pink, I'm not crazy 'bout pink, & there is a bleached stone, kinda pale beige may work. Wish I could find the right one for the back before I set these tanks up. I missed out on the large tanks before I found these paints, & there's no way to get it done now, lol, Dottie ;D ;D

[oodi]

Hi Dottie,

We only have 2 tanks, with both the back and bottom painted with the Green Marble. One is my froggy tank, and the other has a couple of discus in it. We don't paint the sides, but maybe the pics might give you an idea how it would look. Here are the pics...

Judi
:)

[oodi]

2nd pic

[korbi_doc]

:bounce2: :bounce2: Well Judi, guess I have my work cut out for me. The 110g from Henry is painted black on the back, so I have to decide whether to scrape it off, repaint, or try the plasticized background siliconed on on the inside. I would use the green marble, does look nice on your tank. This will not be a showtank, so definitely BB for growouts, etc. The difficulty comes with such a heavy tank. glass must be an inch thick, weighs a ton, j/k, but it might as well be, cuz this old lady can't move it around without help. I am surprised that that color looks green on the back, but blue on the bottom, (had heard that from others). lol, Dottie ;D P.S. what do you think 'bout the bleached stone color for the back?????
Kathy, what have you decided to try? Let us know, we're all in the "what to do" stage!! lol

[oodi]

Hi Dottie,

I think the blue/green depends on the lighting, and maybe the depth of the tank??? The froggy tank doesn't show the blue, but it is a 10-gal with incandescent light bulb, where the other tank is a 30-gal with flourescent lighting. That, and maybe the fact that the light shines more directly on the bottom? I dunno... just guessing here, but the bottoms of any tank we've painted with that color do have a bit of a blue cast to them. The pebble color is great for PB's!!! We have one with both the back and bottom painted. We put a PB in there, that was so heavily peppered, she looked completely black on the top half of her body. Within just a few minutes... voila... peppering all gone. I wish I had before and after pics.

And you will definitely need some help with that 110... when we did our 135-gal tank, Tad called in his fire crew to carry it in the house!

Judi
:)

[kjmillerfw]

Well I decided to try the pebble on the bottom and the green on the back. It's out in the garage drying as I type this so I'll let you all know how it looks soon.

Thanks again everyone for all of your ideas!

Kathy