Painting tank back

[ReefDawg]

Im about at the point where its time to paint the back of my 125g soon to be reef.
What is the best color?
What is the best paint?
TIA

[Larry M]

RD--I like a black paint, and in the past I have used a latex gloss. A tip someone gave me a few months ago is to cut a thin piece of plywood and paint it, then tape it to your glass if you don't like the idea of painting the glass itself.

Larry

[Mushroom Boy]

I faced a similar problem just recently. My reef has been setup for about 2 years and there was no way to paint it, but I wanted to darken the back. I read about using a "Hefty" bag cut to the size of the back of your tank. Well, I did it and I love it! I taped it on to my tank and stand using black electrical tape. The covering of coralline on the back glass masks the fact that it's actually a garbage bag. Personally, I like black better than blue. HTH.
Paul.

[Agu]

I used automotive window tint on one tank, it's similar to the smoked back of my oceanic. Get the darkest available. Properly applied it seals to the glass and prevents salt creep.

[ignatz]

I used spray paint. The cheapest I could find. I have removed this stuff before and it comes right off with a razor blade.

HTH
-ignatz

[hcs3]

i've used latex like larry says. needs about 3 good coats, but comes out looking sweet. will do it to each and every tank from now on.

HTH

henry

[Larry M]

Yea, correction on the latex paint. I used this the first time and was amazed at how many coats it took to cover. The next time I used and oil base paint and it covered in just two coats.


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Larry M

Visit Reef Central's Home Site at:
www.reefcentral.com (http://www.reefcentral.com)

[MLP]

Hi,

Personaly, I like the looks of black, that is the color I use. My other half likes the light blue she has seen in a certian LFS.

The color is pretty mu7ch personal preference. If you use the method of painting a thin piece of plywood, it makes it very very easy to change the color if you decie you don't like it, or like to change things periodically.

I personally paint the glass. I use oilbase paint. Two to three coats is sufficient, and it resists any water that gets on it quite well.

Good Luck

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Happy Reefing,
Michael
mlp@aquariacentral.com

Learn form the mistakes of others, Life is too short to learn them all for yourself!

[KW]

Hello,

I have not done it yet but, I will when I set up a new reef. I plan to apply a coat of blue paint with a sponge. Then I will apply a coat of black with a sponge, on top of the blue paint.

Like I said I have not tried this yet but, I think it may provide an interesting textured look. Maybe I have just seen too many of those videos at Lowe's http://216.79.36.30/ubb/wink.gif

ttyl,
KW

[TimS]

I did my main tank, 180, and a couple of Q-tanks in the past couple of months. I found that Behr, Exterior Flat House and Trim latex paint from Home Depot tinted black/black (8341)[No I don't keep such precise records - I am looking at the can]worked wonderfully.

Three coats would have worked, but I did four. Used a small cheap sponge roller that is used for painting trim. Wiped down the glass with rubbing alcohol first.

The only problem was with the small Q-tanks. It was mid-summer, hot and humid, and the paint tended to slid down the glass before the paint dried if the tank was left upright. I did the big tank without laying it on its side in normal weather with no problem.

TimS

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