Background, substrate and my chilli

[Chaitika]

My young Chilli is currently in a 6 foot 125 with tan substrate and a black background.

I"m guessing the background can remain black as the aro will show better against black or does it really matter?

Same with the substrate. Will a darker substrate show off the chilli better?

Does any of this matter with a young aro?

I will eventually be getting NAN lights, but that won't be for some time yet....

 

[Hao]

i think the black enviorment makes the red show more

 

[Chaitika]

Is it worth the hassle of swapping out the sand?

 

[Hao]

i think it is too me not sure about you

 

[classic-chassis]

I had black and brown pebbles with a black background for my RTG, it was too dark. I thought it would show the gold colour up more but it didn't work out. I now have a golden brown gravel, black background and a splash of green, the tank looks better.
I would have thought you're going to use a red tube along with whites, IMO this will highlight the red in your fish opposed to the substrate colour.

 

[Hao]

ask koji about this lol hes an expert

 

[swede]

dark substrate with a dark background with 10k lighting = awesome coloring on any fish

 

[classic-chassis]

If the bottom is dark as well it also equals boring tank. I can understand the argument about the fish being the most important thing "on show" but i like to look at nice set ups as well as stunning fish. Just my thoughts. If you look at the tank Chaitika posts it look a good balance, dark with minimal substrate and a bit of green. It's the way to go IMO.

 

[Kenta]

A classic SR tank sports a blue background, but any dark color will work fine...

And personally im not a fan of tanning... let the fish develop its color naturally and with age. Thats part of keeping SRs.
Patience and TLC reward you, dont feel like you have to have a small SR with crazy colors, it will come

 

[Chaitika]

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

Kenta, I hear your concerns about tanning. If and when I do, it will be after he's 18" in length. If this fish turns colours like I hope, I won't worry about tanning.



classic-chassis, I will never have a tank that is simply a fish in a bare tank. I do like a splash of green. I am also looking into tiles for the tank bottom.