My aunt asked me to make a tank for her, but she wants a sky theme tank. This is because my brother ( actually cousin but loved him as a brother, he passed away) loved the sky. I am still decidicing if to stick with a 300gal tank or go all way to 500gal. (I will probably go with the 500gal.) What would you recommend as stocking for this tank, maybe decorations too?
Sky Theme Fish Tank Stocking?
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A sky themed tank sounds interesting but also hard with all the options.
Do you want the deep clear blue of a warm summers day without a cloud in sight?, therefore perhaps all blue coloured fish. Or even mostly blue coloured fish with perhaps a couple of white fish to represent clouds (kissing gouramis spring to mind for this job).
Do you want a storm rolling in so some darker more energetic fish that are always zooming about like lightening? Something like barbs or danios spring to mind for this task.
Or a picture perfect sunset with pinks, purples, oranges and yellows all awash across the sky.
Or even a rainbow? Which could also have schools of fish that are the colour of the rainbow.
Once you know what type of sky you want, then you need to track down the colours or fish habits that reflect the desired sky. And then the frustrating part of working out what will be available, compatible and that you like the look of.
Normally I always go for natural looking tanks with timbers and live plants, but for a sky themed tank I don't think you could go to wrong with sneaking a TARDIS into the tank. Nothing screams sky, space, new places more than the good Dr Who's TARDIS.
Best of luck and keep us posted on your progress.
Do you want the deep clear blue of a warm summers day without a cloud in sight?, therefore perhaps all blue coloured fish. Or even mostly blue coloured fish with perhaps a couple of white fish to represent clouds (kissing gouramis spring to mind for this job).
Do you want a storm rolling in so some darker more energetic fish that are always zooming about like lightening? Something like barbs or danios spring to mind for this task.
Or a picture perfect sunset with pinks, purples, oranges and yellows all awash across the sky.
Or even a rainbow? Which could also have schools of fish that are the colour of the rainbow.
Once you know what type of sky you want, then you need to track down the colours or fish habits that reflect the desired sky. And then the frustrating part of working out what will be available, compatible and that you like the look of.
Normally I always go for natural looking tanks with timbers and live plants, but for a sky themed tank I don't think you could go to wrong with sneaking a TARDIS into the tank. Nothing screams sky, space, new places more than the good Dr Who's TARDIS.
Best of luck and keep us posted on your progress.
When I think of clouds... White Cloud Mountain Minnows and how they stick to the top of the tank (and yea they CAN live in warm water)! Or really any schooling tetra/rasbora/danio and how they school tightly like billows of clouds. When I think of the sky, the blues, pinks, and oranges, I think of gouramis and how peaceful and graceful they are. When I think of the pitch black, starry night sky. I think of Discus and Angelfish and how their always a dream to look at!
Hope this has helped!
500 gallons gives you SO many options!!
Hope this has helped!
500 gallons gives you SO many options!!
If you go for no large fish that would eat them (I know, it's hard on a tank that size) I would add a large group of rummynoses. They shoal very tightly together and in a sky themed tank they could represent a flock of birds.
A group of discus might remind of hot air balloons , especially of you get several different strains, with different colours.
A well scaped bottom will give the impression that a herd of corys might be cows "down there".
I know it doesn't sound like much for a tank that size, but consider the sky is very much empty, and the theme won't hold if you stock it as you'd normally stock a tank.
Also an understocked tank like this will be much easier on the maintenance.
A group of discus might remind of hot air balloons , especially of you get several different strains, with different colours.
A well scaped bottom will give the impression that a herd of corys might be cows "down there".
I know it doesn't sound like much for a tank that size, but consider the sky is very much empty, and the theme won't hold if you stock it as you'd normally stock a tank.
Also an understocked tank like this will be much easier on the maintenance.
Baccus this idea of the sky would be well a blue sky with clouds, my brother liked to watch the clouds, he always loved them. and thank you for the other people giving ideas too and I will psot my progress. a sky full of clouds...
I would add a blue background to the tank and then stock it with big, slow moving, white fish to look like clouds. I'm a cichlid fan so I would go for a mated pair of vieja argentea.
I would avoid a densely planted, natural looking tank as it won't give off a sky theme and I would instead give a very simplistic aquascape. Perhaps a few rocks and a big sunken plane ornament?
If you decide to go with the vieja, I wouldn't put anything else with them as it may lead to aggression which will ruin the tranquil feel of the tank.
Good luck with the tank and sorry for your loss
I would avoid a densely planted, natural looking tank as it won't give off a sky theme and I would instead give a very simplistic aquascape. Perhaps a few rocks and a big sunken plane ornament?
If you decide to go with the vieja, I wouldn't put anything else with them as it may lead to aggression which will ruin the tranquil feel of the tank.
Good luck with the tank and sorry for your loss
Well ive been looking at fish, there are so many that can fit into the theme. A lot more than i thought. but ive been looking at all the options that everyone has been writing and thanks a lot!!! I will go buy the tank today and a....forgot name......a stand os it called?(sorry i forget how to say some stuff in english) so later on today i can tell you if i did go for the 500 gal tank.
Blondielovesfish
Kia Ora
A nice school of angels could represent the clouds.
A big school of pearl danios would also look nice.
I look forward to hearing how you get on
A big school of pearl danios would also look nice.
I look forward to hearing how you get on
Rainbowfish with a scape something like this?
Plus 5000. Then you could get a proven pair of angels, one for The Doctor and one for a companion. Unless you want to go for a heart breaker and have just The Doctor lost forever in his loneliness...Baccus said:
However, if OP is not nearly as enthusiastic about Dr. Who as some of us, then I would suggest a group of albino corydoras for the bottom, perhaps a mid level school of smaller white fish, an angel fish to represent your brother, and something yellow as the sun.
I had no idea what that was till you mention Dr. Who. I have never seen the show actually, I don't watch television. Eagles how do you do that kind of tree thing on the tank? I want to do that for the tank but I have no idea how. Can discus fish be by themselves or do they have to be in groups (never had this fish but I can learn!!) Because I was thining of getting a single one to represent the Sun. I have seen other fish that I like for clouds and maybe to represent the blue of the sky. I'll put the names later. oo and I did get the 500 gallon tank!
ncguppy830
Male
wow you got a 500 gal discus are good in groups and can be paired with angelfish if your looking for that
The tree in the picture supplied by Eaglesaquarium , is made with some interesting timber and then tie or glue on either willow, peacock or flame moss. You need to keep trimming such a "tree" to keep the desired effect.
For a sun in your tank, unfortunately all the fish I can think of that like being solitary are predatory (which restricts other fish selections for the tank), and other fish are more group orinated so not really a "sole" sun in the sky. However you could use something like a group of lemon tetra to represent the sun whenever they happen to be together.
Or you could use a solitary yellow male fighter as long as the other fish in the tank wont bully him or nip at his flowing fins.
For a sun in your tank, unfortunately all the fish I can think of that like being solitary are predatory (which restricts other fish selections for the tank), and other fish are more group orinated so not really a "sole" sun in the sky. However you could use something like a group of lemon tetra to represent the sun whenever they happen to be together.
Or you could use a solitary yellow male fighter as long as the other fish in the tank wont bully him or nip at his flowing fins.
Or you could get a pair of discus and have a binary solar system like Tatooine.
I mentioned the ideas for getting the tree effect in PM, but for the benefit of others:
Manzanita wood (readily available online in the US, not sure about other parts of the world) makes a great tree structure - mainly because it is a from a very branchy tree.
Moss, as Baccus pointed out, would be the leaves.
And the carpeting plants are most likely dwarf hairgrass.
I believe that set-up would require high light, CO2, and dosing of ferts... but done right (especially in a 500 gallon tank), it could truly be spectacular looking. I hope to see a photo journal of this when the time comes.
I mentioned the ideas for getting the tree effect in PM, but for the benefit of others:
Manzanita wood (readily available online in the US, not sure about other parts of the world) makes a great tree structure - mainly because it is a from a very branchy tree.
Moss, as Baccus pointed out, would be the leaves.
And the carpeting plants are most likely dwarf hairgrass.
I believe that set-up would require high light, CO2, and dosing of ferts... but done right (especially in a 500 gallon tank), it could truly be spectacular looking. I hope to see a photo journal of this when the time comes.
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