help me make my tank pop

[DeeGee]

looking good

 

[dxdx]

looking a lot better!

the vinyl turned out nice. maybe try adding a couple more sandy areas so the rocks don't cover quite as much? personal preference on that one, but I think a more equal mix of rocky/sandy bottom would be good.

 

[PDRed302]

looks 100% better

 

[BellycrawlerJaws]

Definitely looking a lot better, I'm not huge on the look of using the rocks as your mainstay of your substrate personally. I'd use the rocks as accents in one area, going from larger rocks to smaller pebbles then just the sand in a fade pattern.

But it looks SO much better than it did before (nice DW btw)

 

[jopheso]

thanks for all the comments guys. I agree on reducing the number of rocks. It will end up being about a 70/30 rocks to sand mix when I'm done. It will definitely be sand around the DW in particular. I like the idea of the wood disappearing into the sand.

Thanks for the comment on the DW Belly. I found 2 of those pieces at the same place I got the rocks. That is local cypress out of the atchafalya basin. The other piece I got from ebay. The cypress looks really cool as it kind of mimics a miniature version of the full grown tree.

 

[thepotz]

Here's a pic of my daughters' cichlid tank (meaning plantless) I just used large rocks found around my neighborhood. and a piece of driftwood from the river. a couple small fake plants, and It gives it some interest. I would look at maybe a color match to the interior of your home. add maybe some black to give your tank contrast from the all-white look.

 

[jopheso]

Thought I would throw out a quick update. I got my cheap LED in from beamswork and I like it. It isnt a dramatic improvement over the fluorescent, but it does make the colors pop more along with better contrast. One of my driftwood is finally water logged. The 2 pieces of cypress still try to jump out of the tank so once those are water logged I will be able to make final placements. I also added a few stocks of lucky bamboo. the leaves are sticking out of the back of the tank, it might be cool to see those growing up the wall. Zimmerman and Trayvon seem to love the bamboo. I am sure they will tear it down at some point. We will see how lucky it is