To black background or not?

[Wynie]

My new tank has finally arrived and im not sure if I should blackout the back of my tank.

All my previous tanks were blacked out, but looking at it I also like the see through look.

Im afraid that if I dont do it, I might regret it later and then its to late to change.

What are the pros of blacking it out??

Edit: Ill start a build thread soon…

 

[saltwaterfish.com Verified Sponsor]

In my experience I always like to black out the tanks background, while it is cool having it be see through it loses the charm after a few months once the algae starts to set in. Then it feels more like an eyesore/extra chore to keep it clean. If you plan on having any coralline algae or corals grow along the back wall then it doesn't matter too much, I think having the black background makes it look a bit neater though.

 

[BryanM]

I would black it out since it is going up against a wall. If it were to be out in the open on all sides I would leave it alone.

 

[Fish Fan]

I would black it out, you'll regret not doing it later once the tank is running.

 

[exnisstech]

I would black it out if only to hide cables and such. I've always preferred black but have seen some nice blue backgrounds but I would have to scrape blue and I'm not a fan of scraping the back.

Fat fingers @Fish Fan not sure how the heck August populated but it is the month I was born lol

 

[sjfishguy]

Deep navy blue is the background I always use. Looks way better if you are running balanced lighting. If you like the real blue/neon coral kinda look, black is probably better. I would never just leave that wall showing

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I paint the backs of my tanks blue. Only one tank is not painted and I regret it. It makes the algae growing on the glass much more noticeable when your looking through a clear tank.

 

[KQuillan]

In my experience I always like to black out the tanks background, while it is cool having it be see through it loses the charm after a few months once the algae starts to set in. Then it feels more like an eyesore/extra chore to keep it clean. If you plan on having any coralline algae or corals grow along the back wall then it doesn't matter too much, I think having the black background makes it look a bit neater though.