How Do You Set Up Your Decorations?

[Teelie]

I'm going to be setting up a 55 gallon soon and with it comes the question of where to set up decorations. In the past, the largest tank I've had is a 30 and so I always had two options: On the sides or centered in the middle.

Now with the extra space, I have room to do more. So, how do you set up? Do you have empty space in the middle or the sides, or do you space them out making smaller spaces between decor?

Right now I have three tanks and one is pretty much three medium/large sized decorations lined up with only space on the front and back of the tank, another is with one large piece and one small piece with space around the smaller one and the last one is kind of randomly spaced out with decorations all over.

 

[kris-b-]

I don't have a set way just as long as it is good to look at and there are plenty of hiding places for the fish!

No matter what you do when you first set your tank up, you will more than likely move things around in the future!

 

[Ethos]

Since my 55G is an African cichlid tank, I just have a few large rocks and tunnels spaced around, although there's not alot of space on the gravel, because the dec.s are so big...

 

[cane76]

i have a slate rockery on the left side with a tunnel network underneath(pvc piping)and on the right side 3 large pieces of bogwood with 3 coconut caves amoungst them the middle is open

 

[illusion54]

I use two different ones for my two tanks.

First one: Sides and background with room with front/middle for fish.

Examples:

Second one: one side of tank and background filled. Space is front of the opposite side you planted.

Examples:

Images are from plantedtank.net

 

[cane76]

beautiful tanks i like the top one most

 

[Durbkat]

I only use fake plants and I mix it up alittle I put alot of the tall ones in the back some medium size ones in the middle and front mixed in with some small plants in the middle and front.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

You should decorate your tank to fit your fish's needs basically, for example if you have tetras they like big open spaces to shoal in but if you have fish like gouramis they like densely planted tanks alot, fish like plecs are often partly or totally nocturnal so they often need a cave or 2 to hide in- some fish will even eat your ornements, for wood eating plecs, stuff like bogwood and driftwood is essential to keep them healthy, on the other hand many cichlids out there would tear up plants if you put them in your tank etc...

I change my decor around every now and then, at current my situation isn't that desirable as far as stocking goes as i have 3 rather large plecs who every now and then get grumpy at feeding time(will split them up after christmas)- this has resulted in my setting up 4 large cave systems for them to hide in, separated by densely planted areas for the livebearers and corys while the front of the tank is completely open space for the tetras, danios and plecs to swim about in .

 

[Ben]

since i have relitvly small fish(tetras and dwarf cichlids) i have caves and pipes along the bottom, along with river rocks and have my java fern in the middle, which gives enough space and teritory for everyone. I agree with Tokis, i usually start out doing whats best for the fish and it usually turns out it's best for me

DD

 

[Bloo]

I think it very much depends on the fish you have.
With my pictus cat that likes to zoom around a lot, I try to keep open space free of too many obstructions as much as possible - though he has a large cave to hide in.
My two other tanks are also tailored to suit the fish. Very well planted.

 

[CFC]

It all depends on what im keeping in the tank.
My 3 largest tanks which are community set ups have the decor to the back and sides only to allow swimming room for the more active species and spread the fish evenly around the tank to avoid territory disputes. My smaller tanks which are species tanks tend to have the decor in a more centralised/clumped together fashion so as to draw the fish into the center of the tank rather than just one end leaving the rest of the tank empty.

 

[OohFeeshy]

Mine tend to have decoration to the left hand side and space else where.. But my 20g has wood in the middle so it will be plnted at the back and right side (filters on the left with strong current).

 

[Inchworm]

Since I have mostly cory cats and they need a lot of open space at the bottom, I have very few decorations in my tanks.

I like a little green, so in my bigger tanks I put an Amazon Sword plant at one side and put small rocks around the bottom of it. The corys like to gather under it. The rest of the bottom is open except for some more flat rocks near the other end and a few clusters of java fern scattered about.

No one would describe my tanks as being particularly pretty, but they do serve a good purpose arranged the way they are. They have plenty of open areas with sand for digging and when they want to get together and all swim across the open water, there are no obstructions to get in their way.

 

[clunkster]

as has already been said it depends what fish are in the tank

 

[BabySealClubber]

as has already been said it depends what fish are in the tank

I agree with this, but I do believe there are certain ways of setting up decor that just look more "appealing" than others. Takashi Amano's use of the Golden Section is a good example. I'm posting a quote from a discussion that I found very interesting:

The actual arrangement may appear loose and natural, but there are
actually a lot of rules about how the arrangements are made. Amano went
into some detail about his use of the golden section. Further, plants and
other objects are often arranged in isosceles triangles to provide a sense
of balance. Groups of 5 or 7 objects are generally sized and arranged in
very specific ratios.

I guess what I'm saying is we don't have to feel "restricted" by the types of species we have in our tanks. There are certain things we can do, a la Amano, to make our ordinary tanks appear extraordinary.