Mirrors around aquarium?

[CutthroatKid]

I'm thinking of putting mirrors on the sides and back of my tank for light reflection. Has anybody done this, heard of this, or have a good reason why it is a bad idea? I've searched around and can't seem to come up with anything...
Also, would it freak the fish out too much?

[Ninong]

I prefer simply painting the glass panes with black paint. I used appliance enamel only because that's what was on the shelf in a spray can at Wal-Mart or Home Depot or whereever I was at the time. It worked out well.

I ordered my starfire tank with a black mirrored back. I painted half of each side pane because my tank was halfway built-in. To tell you the truth, I prefered the black painted effect over the black mirrored back of the tank. It was just too mirror-y if you know what I mean.

A regular mirror placed up against the side of the tank will cause some fish to display aggressively at their own reflection. I wasn't all that thrilled with my black mirrored back so I know I wouldn't like a regular mirror at all.

It's up to you. I wouldn't do it.

[cdearing]

Here is an interesting article Jase by James Fatherree called Reef Aquarium Lighting: A Look At Backgrounds: To Paint Or Not To Paint.

Liquid Medium Marine Aquarist's Magazine

[CutthroatKid]

Ninong, I found your thread on the starfire and took that into consideration, but thought of it as more black than mirrored. I do appreciate that input though.

To the pretty blonde, I will read the article in the morning... I'm in no shape for reading. ;)

[CutthroatKid]

Alright, so I would think that with mirrors, no light would escape through that glass at all and would be reflected (possibly) 3 times? Or am I missing something? because mirrors wouldn't absorb any light, but only reflect it...

Ninong, just to clarify, It is your personal preference that mirror didn't look good, right? You didn't have any problems with it?

[kevinpo]

Hello,
Mirrors can cause some fish to hide and others to be stressed. Over time they can become habituated and ignore it but I would not do it. They also make taking pictures a challenge. A black background is best for picture taking.

Cheers,
Kevin

[Ninong]

Kevin just said it perfectly!

I found that the back of my tank was somewhat more reflective than I expected, even with the layer of smoke glass between the regular glass wall of the tank and the black indicoat mirror, which was the outermost layer. It was absolutely stunning when viewing the brand new, completely empty tank. It was a little overwhelming after the tank was set up.

I found that I actually preferred the rear sides of the tank that I had painted black with a cheapy can of spray enamel. I'm not recommending any particular type of black paint because maybe other choices are better than what I used. I just picked up the first thing available. I believe I was at Wal-Mart at the time.

So, for all of the reasons Kevin stated, I would think twice about using mirrors.

[CutthroatKid]

Well as much as I thought this was a good idea, you guys are the professionals, so I guess I'll leave it be. I'm just trying to get the most out of my lights. I do prefer my black background though over no background like James Fatherree suggests. Who wants to see all the cords and tubes? ;)

[Doodaa]

I'm just trying to get the most out of my lights.

Don't get so distraught! There are other options besides just sticking a mirror to your tank. All that's been said is that seeing their reflection may stress out the fish, but you could use angles so the fish can't see their reflections and still reflect the light back into the tank. It will take a lot more creativity, but I can see some benefit....all depends on how much work you want to put into your idea

[CutthroatKid]

Well if you have an idea how to do the angles, go ahead an say it. :P
I thought of using angles earlier, but couldn't figure out how to do it so they are beneficial.