20g high

[PDM]

got a 20g high given to me. Was used for a rodent tank I cleaned it up and been holding water for a day. Any ideas or comments?

 

[depthC]

Well obviously set it up to house some more fish. Possibly plant it with live plants...

- depthC

 

[PDM]

well thank you depthc. It has a mirrored background how much will that affect the fish?

 

[1979camaro]

you can always change the background...how tall is a 20 high? remember the taller the tank the more light you need for plants...as for fish, i would look through the profiles...find some you like the looks of and see if they are compatable...remember too, many fish eat/uproot plants so if you are going to go that route you need to take that into consideration

 

[depthC]

What do you exactly mean? Is the background actually a mirror? If so then a background would be impossible to see so you would have to make your own such as a rock wall, or just let tall plants fill in the back. But as far as if the mirror will affect your fish, it wont. In my tanks i can see their reflection off the glass or acrylic and they dont seem to mind. When i first put in my betta to the 10g tank it flared at its own reflection for maybe 20 minutes and now he must know its himself and doesnt even pay attention. So obviously your fish will get used to it.

- depthC

 

[1979camaro]

well...if it was taped on to the back i thought maybe it could be removed...i guess thats true if its actually a mirror, never considered that

 

[PDM]

Like they took an regular tank and painted the back piece of glass with the same stuff that's on a mirror.

 

[depthC]

Try scraping it all off, if it comes off clean then just paint the background black.

- depthC

 

[angel51431]

I'd keep the mirror, it makes the tank appear bigger, and looks pretty cool. Plus, scraping glass isn't always a good idea, it can scratch the surface. And what if it doesn't all come off?

 

[depthC]

Well yeah if you use a little common sense and if it doesnt come off clean discontinue scraping it off. And there is a way to scrape glass with out scratching it. Take a razor and hold it at a 45D angle or less and push against the glass. If it doesnt come off clean them stop and i guess just leave it, or make a rock wall, moss wall, tall plants, or any other form as a background in the tank.

- depthC

 

[dgodwin]

I agree with angel.. leave the background as is. Some people do this because it makes the tank look bigger. I would be more worried about any poisons from the rodent contaminating the fish. I would go slowly with this one.

 

[PDM]

If I use the fishless cycle will I be able to tell if the rodent remains will do any damage?

 

[depthC]

I wouldnt be worried about that. Now that youve cleaned it, the only possible thing would be the hamsters pee stained into the silicone and that would be a source of ammonia. So just go on with it as new im sure it will be find and no problems.

- depthC

 

[sinasster]

if it hold water, than put a filter on it.