aquascaping

johnanddawn · Oct 2, 2009

hi all, just trying to start a conversation about tank presentation

my favorite forum is always the member's tank threads

today i was paging through some threads and noticed in several tanks two of what i think are the worst distractors from a really nice display. to each their own of course, but these two things just ruin a display tank imo

1) frags and corals cluttering up the tank either on frag racks or even worse laying in the sandbed packed in like produce at the grocery store

2) not cleaning the glass - specifically coralline on the back glass. i use to be the worst offender of this one, but now it drives me crazy

is it just me or what do you think

jerryc · Oct 2, 2009

Will i total thank your right about cleaning the glass. But the most of us just have one tank so having frag racks is a almost necessity.

Leishman · Oct 2, 2009

I'm guilty of both. I keep saying I will clean it up but never do.

Paul_N · Oct 2, 2009

Ditto, guilty of both. I don't mind the coralline on the back glass though. As far as cluttered I agree with Jerryc. It's going to happen unless you have a frag tank or constantly upgrade to a bigger tank. You keep seeing some other piece you want in your tank if you have the room or not.

xmjxflipx · Oct 2, 2009

yup i have about 7 frag racks in my tank on the side............but hey its ok........its what giving me money to buy more corals lol.......i usually grow em out till they are overgrown on the disk then i try to find a flat piece of live rock and glue em on and watch em grow more.........

Sikryd · Oct 2, 2009

I call my display the "frag junkyard" right now.

It take a little work and time to build a display tank. Not just with picking the corals, but figuring out what lighting/flow gets the best colors out of each piece.
Now that I have figured that out, I have to sell ~ 50 more pieces to get to where I want to be as far as being able to epoxy them on the rocks and let them grow.

To me, its like underwater gardening. It takes a lot of time and effort to get the tank to where you would like it to end up. The process sucks, and isn't as visually pleasing, but in the end the payoff is huge if you do your homework and spend the extra 6 months figuring out exactly what pieces, colors, textures, and growth patterns you like and where they should go in relation to each other.

On the other hand, I have seen some AMAZING tanks where guys have gotten a new piece, epoxied it down and called it a day.

It'll get there......One day......one day......lol

ahayes13 · Oct 2, 2009

i do agree. however, i understand why people have frag racks and disks on the sandbed. i dont have a frag rack in my display and as soon as i pick up a new piece i put it into place and am done. but most of that may be because i still have lots of room for corals.
maybe once i end up with too many pieces i will have to add a frag tank to my system.
i think cleaning the glass when you take pics is a must! i however am a semi-offender of the coraline on the back glass but its only in places where i cant reach it to remove it.

Wy Renegade · Oct 2, 2009

Guilty of both also. Like others, I agree that frags packed into frag racks and sandbed may be a necessity. I've got my ideal frag/DT system designed, but don't have the money to put it together yet. Maybe someday. As for the coralline, I have to disagree with you. I clean coralline off my tank, but never off the sides or back wall - my tank is built into a three sided display, so only the front is visible - why bother cleaning the coralline off? Personally I prefer the purplish background, looks more natural IMO than black paint.

johnanddawn · Oct 3, 2009

in a recent "coral" magazine C. Delbeck also comments on these and he adds a few more notably visable pumps and plumbing

i personally don't find this that distracting though. this is one of those things where the health of the system must prevail and we all know the importance of flow, and maintenance of equipment

but that being said in my new design i made it a point to hide the powerheads as well. my system uses a gyre type flow pattern in my tank that allows the pumps to be somewhat hidden

i thought about doing a closed loop but decided against it, but think well done closed loops are cool

but with all the vortecs in use out there these days though, i think pumps are generally going to be visable

anyone care to share a way to incorporate pumps better into the scenery

ahayes13 · Oct 3, 2009

wow, wish i could answer this one. i still have koralias. and wish i could hide them more... but havent figured out a way to do it.

ReeferRob · Oct 3, 2009

I agree there is nothing attractive about a bright white square or plug. I try my best to avoid frags in the DT. But while I wait for my frag tank to be ready I am forced to keep one rack. So I am guilty. But that rack rocks!

I also agree that seeing a bunch of PVC and loc line and HOB's is very distracting for me. It is hard to avoid visually seeing power heads, but at least the VorTech's are tight against the glass not protruding too much. And no wire. I hate wires.