Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Howdy, ya'll -

I've acquired a 150 gallon aquarium with a busted side. We can't affored to replace the 1/2 inch glass, so we're thinking of going with a mirror mounted to hardboard. Also, the hubby and I have become fascinated with Darts and would like to create a habitat for them.

Would the Darts freak out seeing themselves in a 6' mirror? It's not a done deal yet, so we're open to suggestions, as long as the expense isn't too great.

thanks in advance -
gg

take a scraper or something similar and scrape off the reflect backing on the mirror glass.
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2.2.6 D. azureus
1.2.24 D. ventrimaculatus 'yellow'
1.1 D. tinctorius 'cobalt' (one subadult)
0.0.3 D. tinctorius 'patricia'
1.1 D. auratus 'blue'
0.2 P. aurotaenia

I've actually been experimenting with mirrored backgrounds lately on a 20 gallon high and a 10 gallon. The 20 gallon houses a pair of cobalt tincs, while the ten gallon has a pair of bri bri pumilio. I attached the mirrors approximately 2 months ago, and have noticed no ill effects to this point. With pumilio being so territorial, I have kept a close eye on their behavior just to assure myself the background isn't causing unneeded stress. Both the pumilio pair and tinctorius pair have produced clutches in the past week, which seems to support my assumption that the mirrors are harmless.
There are a few things that I really enjoy about having mirrored backgrounds. For one, they are extremely easy to attach. Secondly, they are very affordable (I paid $12 for the 20 gallon's, $10 for the 10 gallon's). But probably my favorite thing about having them is that the mirrors give a great impression of depth to my vivariums. It's a very nice effect that I believe I might use on more of my enclosures in the future.
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Randy
Lawrence, Kansas
1.1 Azureus
1.1 Cobalt
1.1 Fantasticus
2.2 Bastimentos Pumilio
2.5 Bri Bri Pumilio
0.0.3 Mysteriosus

I am so glad to hear that! It's been my husband's assertion that the 'depth' thing will be so cool. But, since neither of us want to cause stress or harm to the Darts, we wanted to get advice/opinions from folks who are way more knowledgeable on this subject.

Since we're completely rebuilding this tank, we're toying with the idea of adding expandable foam to one or both corners against the mirror. I can see a tropical grotto in my head by doing this and adding wood, rocks, plants and moss. We haven't come up with the water feature(s) yet - still looking for inspiration. Any ideas?

thanks for the post!

why not replace it with a piece of plywood coated in epoxy? you could use polyester resin which is about $9 a gallon two coats would seal it very well and if you make it into a dart tank you could just cover it with fern or coco pannels.