New 6 foot tank

[LOLY]

Hi guys
i am purchasing a new six foot tank soon for my cichlids which are in a 4 foot currently. i donot want to build a roof on it. i have seen alot of tanks that have a suspended light above the tank with no roof. but i have mostly seen this in saltwater tanks. it looks very nice and modern. will this work for cichlids.
i also wanted to put strips of perspex flush on the top of the tank to prevent splashing.
any comments or advice. and also what type of lighting will will be needed

thanks
loly

[Singularity]

one thing you want with an open top tank, is a tank that is euro braced, google euro bracing or just visit masa for some more info...

[SalmonAfrica]

Hi there

Well I can help you on the point of the roof and lighting - it can be done. However, you need to keep a few things in consideration. Firstly, without a hood you will get a lot of water lost due to evaporation. Any water that evaporates may have to be regularly replaced with new water, which can be a hassle. Secondly, you run the risk of losing fish to jumping. Finally, please just ensure that you'll be placing the tank far away from airborne pollutants - that includes the kitchen, smoking areas or areas that are regularly sprayed with aerosols.

Sorry for all the negatives, but they are all very important when following up with this decision!

As far as the lighting goes, it depends on whether you plan on having live plants or not, which IMO isn't too likely in a cichlid tank. Besides plant eating habits in some, digging behaviour is also detrimental to the plants. I think in this case, you just need enough lighting to make viewing the fish easy/pleasurable.

Regards

[Singularity]

Here is a pic of an euro braced tank, bracing around the edges with no center brace.

11501

[GG13]

Maybe a good idea is to build a perspex lid...
That way you get the lidless effect without all the "negatives" listed above.

[spock rider]

or you can make your own glass sliders, if there is a ledge on the inside of the tank. I have done this on a 5foot and it looks great

[LOLY]

Thanks guys. the tank will be in my lounge so no pollutants. No plants just rocks driftwood and fish. I will have to put something to cover ,my fish splash alot when they eat.
The light I like looks like a silver fitting with flourocent lights. I really dnt know much about lights. I just saw pics on the net. can you buy the whole light set up or it needs to be made up? Also when you switch them off there is led globes that give a soft light effect.
thanks

[LOLY]

Hi rock spider can you get me a picture of that 5 foot
thanks

[Singularity]

Sorry but the point of an open top tank is that it is open, no sliders, hoods or whatever...

Topping up a couple of litres a week isnt an issue, and if you do weekly water changes the evaporation shouldnt even bother you that much (even tanks with hoods have evaporation believe it or not).


The whole point of an open top is to keep it clean, modern and un cluttered by sliders and what have you, if you do that the look will be totally ruined IMO

[SalmonAfrica]

I've run a large tank with no hood and sliders, and the primary reason we did this was to stop the archerfish from jumping out. However, the tank was fairly tall, and so long as the top of the tank is above eye level, the sliders don't ruin the image too much.

[Singularity]

The problem i have with sliders is that after a month or two they are virtually opaque due to mineral deposits, this in turn have a negative affect on your lighting

[spock rider]

1150411504

[spock rider]

11505

I agree that sliders turn white after a while and a blade is the ONLY way of removal

[SalmonAfrica]

That is true, I used to give them a thorough clean every 2 to 3 months.