How do you like your aquarium set up Gaudy, Natural or Bare?

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redtailfool

Dovii
MFK Member
Feb 17, 2005
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My setups are bare, minimalist.. the only decor i would use are a couple
of slate, some rocks and driftwood. I like to keep the bottom bare so maintenance is easier.. no buildup of poop! plus i like the focus to be on the fish and not the tank..

Just a matter of personal preference. No wrong or right here.. so what is yours???
 
Natural-to-Gaudy. I deplore bare tanks, they are just so BORING. Yeah the fish really do stand out, cuz there's literally nothing else to look at! And the fish has no territory to claim and defend, nowhere to run and feel secure if frightened, no chance to avoid bright light sources if it so pleases...

I like to give myself the impression that the fish are living in something that is at least slightly akin to their natural environment; there's plenty of hiding spots and caves and cover for them to hide in when they lose battles or get freaked by going-ons outside the tank. Watching fish behavior is at least half the fun in keeping fish, and you don't get that in a bare tank.
 
Thats why i put in "toys" for my fish to play around in even though i keep
bare bottom tanks. a small dw there, a few slate stones here... keeps the rays happy.
 
i like both. ive had bare bottom, sand bottom, pink gravel bottom, and natural pebble bottom like i have now. Sand ruined my filter. pink gravel just sucks girlfriend at times idea. creekpebbles are cool but it hard to vacume them up. my 65 gal ive allways bassicaly kept it with large stones i have enuf to do ccaves continusly from front left corner around the back to the front right corner if i want to or i can do duble caves. on top each other
 
bare tanks are good for when you have large fish. for instance my tsn is pushing the 18 inch mark. when ever i put large rocks in or make a cave he lands up running into it and hurting him self. hes blind in one eye . and almost went blind in other eye from raming into ****. so they do have there purpose. also some fish like rays have tender bellys and can easly get damage from ruf surfaces.
 
Yeah i like the way sand looks but i hate it when its time to service the filters...
theres sand EVERYWHERE.. not to mention it will ruin your impellers and other filter parts...
 
when i tried the sand i had three brand new magnum filters. 1 mag 35 with biowheels, 1 reg mag 350 and a mag 220 it ruiend the houseing and impellers on all three filters noisest dam thing u ever hear and im worried gonna start leaking on me from the grooves in the plastic houseing
 
the only tank i use sand w/ is my reef but i have every thing a planted tank, show tanks and my feeder tank is bare so u can count that i guess.
 
I've only had natural tanks... Bare tanks aren't very often seen over here, and most people either set up natural or gaudy tanks...


Just my 2c!
 
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