Painting the bottom of a tank.

[shelbybmc]

I noticed most bare bottom tanks have that shiny look to it rather than see through below to the stand but the sides do no have that effect when looking through the glass. Im about to paint the back of my tank black and I wanted to do the bottom as well from the outside. Will it look black when full of water or will it just have that shiny look to it like normal. Probably a dumb question but I've never done it before.

 

[mralbin123]

Yes it will look just as black as the backside

 

[shelbybmc]

thank you!

Yes it will look just as black as the backside

 

[Oscar Mike]

I have a 55 with the bottom and back painted black, but I haven't filled it up yet to see how it looks lit up. The one issue with painting a glass tank from the outside is the trim around the bottom because you cant paint under it, so there's a clear strip about .5'' wide around the perimeter of the bottom panel and 1'' in the middle where the center brace is. It almost looks like 2 pieces of black slate from above (I actually felt the bottom to check when I purchased it lol) so it might look kinda cool but I'm not sure if it will still reflect light off the glass

 

[shelbybmc]

Hmm worth a shot tbh I think. It cant really hurt right. Im going bare bottom either way so it will still be a win. Fill her up and take one for the team here

I have a 55 with the bottom and back painted black, but I haven't filled it up yet to see how it looks lit up. The one issue with painting a glass tank from the outside is the trim around the bottom because you cant paint under it, so there's a clear strip about .5'' wide around the perimeter of the bottom panel and 1'' in the middle where the center brace is. It almost looks like 2 pieces of black slate from above (I actually felt the bottom to check when I purchased it lol) so it might look kinda cool but I'm not sure if it will still reflect light off the glass

 

[Owens]

When I painted an older tank bottom black, the light refracted it and it looked like a normal bare bottom tank.

I very well could have done something wrong though, I guess...

 

[strollo22]

I painted the back of my 125 black and although it cut down on the glare, you can still see reflections. Next time around, I will be painting the inside black as that is the only way to truly get rid of any reflections.

 

[shelbybmc]

Yeah right now I have black poster board behind it and that sucks! Im sure paint will still glare but not as bad as what I got now. lol. What would you use inside krylon phusion?

I painted the back of my 125 black and although it cut down on the glare, you can still see reflections. Next time around, I will be painting the inside black as that is the only way to truly get rid of any reflections.

 

[shelbybmc]

I doubt you did it wrong, The light is to blame here I think.

When I painted an older tank bottom black, the light refracted it and it looked like a normal bare bottom tank.

I very well could have done something wrong though, I guess...

 

[Oscar Mike]

I've been wanting to test a stand anyways so I'll fill it up and post some pics in about 30 mins. I doubt it will even be noticeable tho lol. Strollo is right, the best way to do this would be from the inside. No clear borders and no glare. It would scratch a lot easier but wouldn't be as visible as scratches on the back panel.