Top or no top?

[errdivideby0]

I was recently reading online that it is more beneficial to not have a class top on top of a tank as it can inhibit oxygen exchange and keeps a good percentage of light from penetrating into the tank. I have one question about that though. Where my tank is set up (and the only place that it can be) it is sitting near our bird cage. If there was not a top on my tank then there would be tons of feathers that would eventually make their way into it. On the back of my tank there is about a 4 inch opening that wires and such go through. Now should I go completely topless or is that opening sufficient?

[dropin]

why don't you try eggcrate . it will allow air and light in and block the feathers from getting in.

[errdivideby0]

I was thinkng that but the only eggcrate that I've seen has larger wholes and the feathers that I have to worry about are the smaller dow ones. Do they have eggcrate that has smaller wholes in It?

[ezy33]

IMO the space in the back is good to go, especially if you have a air pump and stone. Unless your tank has live plants or it's SW and has corals. FW fish need minimal room light. Most tank lights are for viewing. As for the feathers you could cover the eggcrate with fiberglass window screen.

[errdivideby0]

I guess I forgot to mention thatin my opening post. My tank is salt water and I'd like to have corals in it. It seems like I will be switching to eggcrate then. I'll go down to homedepot soon and try to find some.

Also eventually I would like to have an eel and I've heard that they can tend to be escape artists. Would they be to get through the egg crate or would it be okay if it was weighted down somehow?

[GhostKnife]

Do you have a sump? Glass tops are not really that big of a deal as long as you have surface ripples from return lines or power heads. I am going to have glass tops on mine as I dont want any jumpers to die while Im at work or something. The gas exchange on mine will happen in the sump area which is now ventilated.

[errdivideby0]

I don't have a sump but I do have a couple of powerheads and a protein skimmer. The more that i've been reading the more It seems that I'm goi g to need eggcrates for the light to get through for future corals.

[errdivideby0]

I got some eggcrate today to cover my aquarium. After having put it on the light seems to be just a little bit darker? Is this okay/normal?

[dropin]

if you look at the eggcrate, you will see that one side is thicker than the other side.place the thinner side pointed up towards your light and you will find that the light gets focused into the tank. this works with most type of lights except mh. mh gets too hot and will melt the plastic eggcrate.