Any tips to make my tank look better.

[ArtistGardener]

In addition to swapping the gravel out with a more natural color, and adding some fish--sorry, snails just aren't lively enough for me!--here is my opinion: things don't generally look evenly spaced in nature. I would keep the original brown piece of driftwood (fake?) and get rid of the "log" one--too perfect. Put the brown one in place of the log but its the side, maybe propped up on the outside end with a medium-size rock and the other end partially buried in the gravel. Place the large fake plant behind it towards the back left corner. Move three of the hairgrass clumps so that they are clumped unevenly, but overlapping, on the right side of the rock and leave the fourth one where it is.

 

[ArtistGardener]

By the way, what do you feed those giant snails?

 

[fish jihad]

Find a local river or pond and gather up as much smooth rocks as you can carry. Then grab some driftwood too. Dump the blue gravel. Then stare at your pile of rocks and think " how would nature arrange these in a fast moving water environment. As someone mentioned things in a nature are never symetrical. A technique i tried was dumping small rocks and pebbles from the water line and letting current and gravity decide how they land. Nudge the rocks a little to fit your taste after they land.

 

[Pleco1415]

Find a local river or pond and gather up as much smooth rocks as you can carry. Then grab some driftwood too. Dump the blue gravel. Then stare at your pile of rocks and think " how would nature arrange these in a fast moving water environment. As someone mentioned things in a nature are never symetrical. A technique i tried was dumping small rocks and pebbles from the water line and letting current and gravity decide how they land. Nudge the rocks a little to fit your taste after they land.

Getting rocks from a local river or pond is a bad idea. They can carry bad bacterias that can make your livestock sick. Believe me I brought in some nice river rocks I found at my coat the and washed them off and they made my fish sick even though I washed them. Good idea but just warning you just in case you decide to do that.

 

[Pleco1415]

In addition to swapping the gravel out with a more natural color, and adding some fish--sorry, snails just aren't lively enough for me!--here is my opinion: things don't generally look evenly spaced in nature. I would keep the original brown piece of driftwood (fake?) and get rid of the "log" one--too perfect. Put the brown one in place of the log but its the side, maybe propped up on the outside end with a medium-size rock and the other end partially buried in the gravel. Place the large fake plant behind it towards the back left corner. Move three of the hairgrass clumps so that they are clumped unevenly, but overlapping, on the right side of the rock and leave the fourth one where it is.

I bought some really nice plants for the tank and decide to keep the gravel. All my other tanks look natural so I kind of felt like I should have one with the basic aquarium look. I have a rock in the tank right now but I am letting the drift wood soak so when I put it In it doesn't change the colour of the water.

 

[Pleco1415]

Just an update of the tank. I'm definitely keeping the little cave because my Pleco hides in it and he would probably die with out it.

 

[Pleco1415]

this is my other tank.

 

[Brookster123]

Didn't you have a leopard frog Pleco??

 

[Pleco1415]

Didn't you have a leopard frog Pleco??

Hey Brookster123 your were in my other thread " show off your catfish and pleco photos here". I have 4 tanks so you might have seen a couple different plecos. The one you probably saw was the vampire pleco. You know the one with the yellow spots. I recently upgraded some tanks so I'm remodelling. I also have a whip tale catfish, clown pleco, Raphael striped catfish, Raphael spotted catfish, 2 albino bushy nose plecos, 2 upside down catfish, emerald Cory catfish, bronze Cory catfish, and a common pleco. That about sums it up. I really like the bottom feeders for some reason I think everyone does.

 

[Brookster123]

Ok, I thought I remember pm'ing you about it when I got mine