# Help With A Blind Cave Fish Set-Up?



## iheartmypitbull (Aug 25, 2010)

So I'm considering setting up a tank to display Blind Cave Fish, Astyanax fasciatus mexicanus, and want some advice. I want to set it up to look like they're actually in a cave with stalactites and stalagmites and all that. I've seen where people make their own backgrounds out of foam and cement and I'm thinking that is a good method for making my rocks also. Does this sound do-able?

I'm unsure also whether it matters what kind of foam or cement is used. Do I need to worry about the cement leaching anything out into the water and harming my fish?

Here's a picture of kinda what I was thinking it would look like. The blue beams are LED lights (either blue or white), with small airstones below, and black sand and the back and sides of the tank painted black.









(and yes, the pink blobs represent the fish :-D)

Thank you so much, I'm really looking forward to this project. 

-Katie


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## CaliforniaFishkeeper (Jun 29, 2010)

iheartmypitbull said:


> So I'm considering setting up a tank to display Blind Cave Fish, Astyanax fasciatus mexicanus, and want some advice. I want to set it up to look like they're actually in a cave with stalactites and stalagmites and all that. I've seen where people make their own backgrounds out of foam and cement and I'm thinking that is a good method for making my rocks also. Does this sound do-able?
> 
> I'm unsure also whether it matters what kind of foam or cement is used. Do I need to worry about the cement leaching anything out into the water and harming my fish?
> 
> ...


No picture?


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## kitten_penang (Mar 26, 2008)

http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/diy-aquarium/diy-rock-wall-background-19898/ heres what you need


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## iheartmypitbull (Aug 25, 2010)

Okay so according to that (and other DIY backgrounds I've seen) the people silicone the foam in first and then cover it with the cement. Is that the way I want to go with this? I'm not sure whether I should put a glass lid on the tank and attach the stalactites to it or attach them to a crossbar or two and just lay them across the top of the tank. Either way, should I attach them and then cover them with the cement? Or cover them first and then attach them where I want them? I'm kinda worried that if I try to cement the ones on the bottom of the tank after attaching them I'll just get cement all over the sides of the tank (which I don't want to do). So should I maybe attach them to some egg crate or something and just set that in the bottom of the tank and then fill it with sand?

Also, what do you think as far as a background goes? Would it look better if I did the same sort of thing for the background or just make it solid black?

Hopefully this tank will go in my parents' SCUBA shop, so I want it to look GREAT!


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## CaliforniaFishkeeper (Jun 29, 2010)

iheartmypitbull said:


> Okay so according to that (and other DIY backgrounds I've seen) the people silicone the foam in first and then cover it with the cement. Is that the way I want to go with this? I'm not sure whether I should put a glass lid on the tank and attach the stalactites to it or attach them to a crossbar or two and just lay them across the top of the tank. Either way, should I attach them and then cover them with the cement? Or cover them first and then attach them where I want them? I'm kinda worried that if I try to cement the ones on the bottom of the tank after attaching them I'll just get cement all over the sides of the tank (which I don't want to do). So should I maybe attach them to some egg crate or something and just set that in the bottom of the tank and then fill it with sand?
> 
> Also, what do you think as far as a background goes? Would it look better if I did the same sort of thing for the background or just make it solid black?
> 
> Hopefully this tank will go in my parents' SCUBA shop, so I want it to look GREAT!


I wouldn't attach anything to any aquarium equipment. Like you said, just cement it to something else and then cover with sand.  Aaannndd... I think black backround would look suhweet. They _are_ Blind Cave Fish after all. They should live in darkness as such.


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## kitten_penang (Mar 26, 2008)

but they are blind lol.if it was sunny yellow only we would know lol


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## iheartmypitbull (Aug 25, 2010)

Okay, slight kink in those plans.... my dad wants to put it in an area (almost like a room divider) where people will be able to see both the front and the back of the tank, sooooo.....

How do I keep it dark and cave-ish looking if I can't just paint the back and sides of the tank??

If I can't come up with anything good I'll tell him to suck it up and pick a different spot or I'll make the tank for myself and say screw him (I don't really like tanks like that anyway, I feel like it stresses the fish out more)
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## kitten_penang (Mar 26, 2008)

tell him nicely the fish we are keeping need really dim lighting dad your gonna kill him with all those light then your going to hell for murder =S 

joking bout the murder part but the fish will die if it's too bright at it elevates it's stress level an it cannot cope.you'll have a macabre tank for display instead.


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## iheartmypitbull (Aug 25, 2010)

Okay, so my new question about it.... I want to have two or three LED lights in the tank as kind of a spotlight type thing, something that looks like this:











So the light set-ups Ive seen before are for like moon lighting and that sort of stuff and it's all diffused to go throughout the whole aquarium, but I don't want that. I've seen little one-bulb spot light sort of things for sale but they're kind of expensive, so I'm thinking I could probably just make my own. That part is pretty straight forward (the boyfriend knows how to do all that electrical stuff) but my question is about reflectors. I'm assuming to get it to make straight-ish beams down I'd need some conical reflectors behind them, and I read on here for DIY lighting to use vapor guard or that ducting tape, but would this even work? I mean, if I made little cone shaped reflectors out of ducting tape, would it actually make the LEDs look the way I want?


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## iheartmypitbull (Aug 25, 2010)

I've decided my dad gets guppies, I want to keep this tank for myself


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## CaliforniaFishkeeper (Jun 29, 2010)

Dude, since they don't need a regular light, just use pure moon lights... SUPER epic, omg. I want to do this setup now.


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## iheartmypitbull (Aug 25, 2010)

CaliforniaFishkeeper said:


> Dude, since they don't need a regular light, just use pure moon lights... SUPER epic, omg. I want to do this setup now.


 
If you do decide to do it, PLEASE take lots of pictures, since I'm gonna do it for myself, I have to wait to even start until after Christmas (I'm moving) but I want to see it before then.


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## kitten_penang (Mar 26, 2008)

=( no pics till after xmas..bummer !!! they cave thing looked so cool!!!! would have drool over the pics if the tank looked like the pic


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## iheartmypitbull (Aug 25, 2010)

I'm hoping it'll be awesome, although it might take a while to perfect it since this will be my first DIY project. I'm SOOOOOOO excited though!


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## kitten_penang (Mar 26, 2008)

hope your dad gets you the stuff you need for the project as a xmas present =)


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## iheartmypitbull (Aug 25, 2010)

*BRILLIANT!*

Why on earth didn't I think of that??

Kitten, I believe you just made my day :BIGgrin:


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## kitten_penang (Mar 26, 2008)

iheartmypitbull said:


> *BRILLIANT!*
> 
> Why on earth didn't I think of that??
> 
> Kitten, I believe you just made my day :BIGgrin:



 i get to see pic first if he does give you the stuff for xmas rite >.>


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## iheartmypitbull (Aug 25, 2010)

I wouldn't consider anyone else


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## kitten_penang (Mar 26, 2008)

^.^ guess i get a pic present.thanks ;-)


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## trukgirl (Jan 28, 2010)

Ooooh I can't wait till then to see this!! Cool!!


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## Tomsk (Mar 4, 2010)

Just a thought,using the polystyrene/cement style of decoration that people use on the back of the tank.Why not do the same at the front (or back & front if tank is viewed from both sides) but as an arch style affect,as if looking into/or being in a cave?.Build the decor so it will be an inch or so away from the tank glass (to allow the textured surface ) and make it into a arch shape (only about 2 inches wide for the first 2/3 of its height,to allow decent viewing of the tank) and then make it arch gently to meet (or near meet) near the top/center of the tank.
This is just a rambling thought,if you dont get what Im trying to describe I could try to draw a picture of the design.

Tomsk


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## iheartmypitbull (Aug 25, 2010)

Yeah, I'm not quite following you 100% but if you're saying what I think you're saying, I was already considering doing it.

Picture, pretty please?
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## kitten_penang (Mar 26, 2008)

lol cant wait till ol santa comes and drops a tank under the tree


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