Background for the aquarium: types, selection and installation

Fish owners know how important it is to create a mesmerizing aquarium atmosphere. Therefore, among aquarists, special attention is paid to the background for the aquarium. What is it, what is its purpose, and what are the main points of the choice, let's figure it out.

The backdrop for an aquarium is an furnishing element with a practical and decorative function. By means of it, the back of the aquarium is decorated as a complement to traditional decorations (driftwood, rocks, stones, living plants), which is usually placed for the comfort of the fish. In addition, the background hides the communications (such as pipes and power cords) located behind the aquarium.

Without a background, the design of a home fish pond is considered incomplete. In addition to masking protruding equipment, this element forms the general perception of the organization of a living corner. At the same time, he himself is invisible and can create a spatial perspective. This is a kind of alternative to the paint, which was recently used to mask the back wall of the aquarium. In addition, the aquarium background distracts attention from the shortcomings of the interior design. It smoothes out imperfections, sets off plants, adding a special atmosphere to the design. With its help, comfort is created for the fish themselves, it is able to make their color expressive, and sometimes even create an imitation of the "interior" with a smooth flow of elements in a single picture.

All the variety of options offered to the attention of buyers can be divided into 2 groups: internal and external. Modifications of the external type are the most common, since they are cheaper and are characterized by a rich assortment.Each customer has the opportunity to choose an option, taking into account taste preferences, without cutting the budget. Products in this category are overgrown with algae over time.

Internal analogs are considered more natural due to their visual characteristics. However, once installed, they can negatively affect the composition of the internal fluid. These varieties are installed inside the aquarium before it is filled with water.

Besides, backgrounds are ready-made and homemade... In fact, all options can be divided into several types: volumetric models made of plastic, foam, cork and so-called films. In this case, the background does not have to be monochromatic at all. On sale there are modifications with the underwater world, imitation of stones on the seabed, views of resort towns and mountains.

Based on the type of drawing, the background for the aquarium can be typical and embossed, 3D format... Depending on the type of background canvas and the subject of the picture, it can be given a greater volume effect. This is done through the use of a variety of greens, the creation of different moves for the fish, as well as the use of lighting. In addition, the background is complemented by stones and broken bricks.

A ready-made background with the necessary landscape is purchased in specialized stores. Polyurethane volumetric models are able to reproduce any texture, up to wood and stone. These embossed sheets give the aquarium a special flavor. Despite the fact that they cost more than film, they are bought more often. This is due to the presentability that quality panels bring to the aquarium decoration. However, these panels are more difficult to clean. The disadvantage of embossed products is a decrease in the internal volume of the aquarium. In addition, unlike the film, it is here that the installation will determine whether a small fish gets into the gap between the panel and the wall.

The film used for decoration may vary in thickness. This is a budget option for the background, which, despite the mass of colors and themes, is inferior to the panels. The main disadvantage of this type is that the film is very difficult to remove if the owner of the house wants to re-arrange the aquarium design. You need to glue the film tightly, avoiding the formation of air bubbles.

Today, color solutions are different when choosing a background. However, experts recommend choosing only a few shades of the color palette.

This background is considered one of the best and natural for the fish themselves. Color is the most common color and allows aquarists to focus on aquascaping and aquarium inhabitants as much as possible. Black has the ability to give expressiveness to greenery and color of fish, their color becomes brighter.

The black background is quite tricky - it creates the visual illusion of dissolving the back wall. This affects the depth: when looking at it, it seems that the aquarium is much deeper than it really is.

This shade creates the effect of being on a sea beach. It is not only chosen for aquariums with freshwater ecosystems: it is also suitable for marine ones. However, this color also has disadvantages of perception. If you choose the wrong color saturation, combining blue and green colors, the expressiveness of the inner world will be blurred.

Looking into such an aquarium creates a feeling of serenity and peace of mind. The aquamarine effect creates the illusion of medium depths. These tones can distract attention from the rich greenery in the aquarium.

These tones, with the proper degree of saturation, have the ability to convey the atmosphere of the sea depths. The ocean depth effect with this background feels natural, and the fish looks perfect on it. These modifications are intended primarily for marine aquariums. However, dark tones can also give the right atmosphere to the rocky surroundings. Experts recommend using these colors in marine installations. Moreover, in the aquarium landscape there should be dark gray stones imitating rocks.

These tones allow you to recreate the atmosphere of river design with river water, sometimes unclear. The background color is used for aquariums where you want to emphasize the rarity of plantings. As a rule, with such a design, the number of “furnishings” is dosed, be it stones, plants or elements in a group related to the background color. Greenery looks especially expressive on a brown background.

Such a background is considered the most difficult; only aquascape professionals choose it. With it, the aquarium looks spacious, and the fish look like they are floating in the air. Wherein a glow effect is created, fish and aquarium landscape look bright and expressive... This is a solution for fish of simple species, since not all of them like white, which tends to unnecessarily highlight the aquarium and its contents. In addition, the color of the stamps is white: any contamination of the background or its damage immediately catches the eye.

Despite the fact that these colors find their fans, it is still not worth choosing them for decorating aquariums. And the point here is not only in negative emotional perception and excessive aggression, which they bring both to household members and to the living creatures themselves living in the reservoir. These colors are unnatural and often cause stress on certain aquarium fish species.

The choice of this or that color, as well as the type of background for the aquarium, consists of a number of nuances. For example, one of them is the type of soil: it is important that it contrasts with the selected background, which is necessary for the correct aesthetic perception. Drawing plays an important role in the choice. If you want to choose a wallpaper, you should do it wisely. For example, a print in the background is appropriate in design only when there is a moderate amount of decorative components inside the reservoir.

If the choice is on film, it is better to choose the option with a more realistic image. When choosing an option painted with paint, you must take into account: painted glass will not look evenly. Somewhere the paint will lie in a dense layer, but somewhere with bald spots. Such a background will not look beautiful. In addition, in an attempt to save money on buying a ready-made version, the owner of the fish runs the risk of making the design toxic. This is an outdated solution, moreover, toxins can harm not only water, but also the inhabitants of the reservoir.

When choosing a solid background in the form of a finished plate, it is important to understand: it will significantly reduce the level of illumination of the reservoir. Plus, these options are more difficult to clean. When buying any background, you need to ensure that its dimensions coincide with the parameters of the aquarium. If it is a film, then its dimensions should be slightly smaller than the glass parameters, since it will be stretched during installation. However, the film itself must be bought with a margin in order to exclude the likelihood of buying a size smaller than the stated one.

When choosing a color, they rely on their own preferences and the type of fish. Not all of them like dark colors, so it is imperative to try to choose a solution that does not stress the little inhabitants of the aquarium. The color is also selected on the basis of the existing interior landscape: the interior decoration should not merge with the background color.

When choosing your option, you can build on the color scheme of the room in which the aquarium is located. For example, a live background will look great in rooms where only neutral colors are contrasts. Juicy greens will dilute the contrast of white and gray, white and black. Such design can become an expressive accent of the interior, giving it the necessary emotional coloring.

An aquamarine background will be appropriate in a room decorated in white, beige, sand colors. White is best used in contrast to dark colors. Bright reds or oranges will look better in a calm interior, where soft and muted colors reign. Blue should not be used in cold rooms where a related color dominates. With an excess of blue, the atmosphere becomes dull.

The fastening of the selected option depends on its type. For example, if it is a film, it can be glued both inside the aquarium and outside. For gluing inside, you have to use a special sealant. In no case should the sheet be fixed at the edges with adhesive tape without using glue. Very quickly, this kind of design will get sloppy. Water gets between the film and the glass, the adhesive tape will peel off.

Do not use sugar syrup, petroleum jelly or soap. These products will not replace the glue used to fix the aquarium background. When installing, it is necessary to take into account a number of nuances. For example, glass must be cleaned and dried before gluing.

The adhesive is applied to it not pointwise, but in a serpentine manner, after which it is distributed over the surface with a wide spatula. Next, they start gluing the background, apply it to the surface and level it. At the same time, special attention is paid to the edges, since the durability of the background and its aesthetic perception will depend on the quality of gluing the edges. When leveling, excess glue and air bubbles are removed from under the film.

Excess glue is removed with a regular soft sponge. The final stage of installation will be to fix the film over the gluing with tape. They do this from all sides, if desired, after some time, such a background can be changed to others.

An unusual solution would be to decorate the back wall of the aquarium with a living background, for which moss is used. In this case, it is necessary to use a metal or plastic mesh twice the size of the wall to be decorated. The suction cups and colorless fishing line will fix this background. Setting up such a background is not difficult: half of the mesh is evenly covered with a layer of moss, and then covered with the other half of the mesh.

Further the finished structure is attached to the glass surface using suction cups... This background is unusual and requires regular maintenance. Moss grows in the water, so it will have to be trimmed over time. However, a living wall as a background looks very beautiful and unusual, however, such a landscape will have to be complemented not with plants, but with something else. The disadvantage of a live background for an aquarium is the need to use special fertilizers for aquatic crops.

The advantages are also obvious: a live background can be created from different types of moss, as well as ground cover... You can even create such a background from nylon threads and a frame made of transparent material by inserting plants between the threads. As for the installation of a volumetric background, it is fixed by means of a special glue, which is usually included in the package. And also it is fixed by pressing it with a layer of soil or stones against the back wall.

For information on how to make a volumetric background in an aquarium with your own hands, see the next video.