Color Changing Backgrounds?

Hello All - My name is Mike and I'm new to the fishkeeping pet family. I have a 38g tank (that is approx. 30" long X 21" tall with white LED lights for during the daytime and blue LED lights for night. Currently I do not have any background for the tank and do not like looking through the tank at the wall, so my question that I'm hoping you all will be able to help me with, is there a background on the market that when I switch the lights from white to blue, that the background will change (in some way) too? I have some plants that have certain colors that shine under the blue, but think it would be really neat if the background could do something like that too.

I have gone to PetSmart and PetCo, and both places have said they don't know of any kind of background that can do that. I've tried Amazon but it is very difficult to navigate through to something like what I want. In a really perfect world, there would be a background that is what it is under the white lights, but when the blue lights are turned on, there would be like a shipwreck or something that glows in the light? I would even like it if it is like some of the plants, where certain colors are pronounced under the blue light.

Sorry this was so long, I really hope there is help out there!
--Mike

 

I don’t think something like that exists. You cam always draw your own if you’d like. Using some sort of invisible ink that only shows with the blue lights.

I have a nice wall of algae as my background lol
but you should turn the lights off during the night, like us, fish need a day/night cycle.

 

I don’t think something like that exists. You cam always draw your own if you’d like. Using some sort of invisible ink that only shows with the blue lights.

I have a nice wall of algae as my background lol
but you should turn the lights off during the night, like us, fish need a day/night cycle.

Thanks for the response, bryangar, I should clarify, every night at 8ish I turn the blue lights on and then after a couple hours I turn the lights completely off for the rest of the night. The worker at Petco (of 10 years) said I should invent it and could become rich off it...

 

Never seen a background like that.

You could make a lot of money if you found out a way to do it though!

 

If its ultra violet blue lights your talking about I know of some chalk you can get (I've got it) that's invisible until you put the ultra violet light on it.

 

If its ultra violet blue lights your talking about I know of some chalk you can get (I've got it) that's invisible until you put the ultra violet light on it.

They call them black lights/ultra violet light

 

Hello All - My name is Mike and I'm new to the fishkeeping pet family. I have a 38g tank (that is approx. 30" long X 21" tall with white LED lights for during the daytime and blue LED lights for night. Currently I do not have any background for the tank and do not like looking through the tank at the wall, so my question that I'm hoping you all will be able to help me with, is there a background on the market that when I switch the lights from white to blue, that the background will change (in some way) too? I have some plants that have certain colors that shine under the blue, but think it would be really neat if the background could do something like that too.

I have gone to PetSmart and PetCo, and both places have said they don't know of any kind of background that can do that. I've tried Amazon but it is very difficult to navigate through to something like what I want. In a really perfect world, there would be a background that is what it is under the white lights, but when the blue lights are turned on, there would be like a shipwreck or something that glows in the light? I would even like it if it is like some of the plants, where certain colors are pronounced under the blue light.

Sorry this was so long, I really hope there is help out there!
--Mike

I would buy one!! That's a really cool idea. If you could figure out how to do this you would make a ton of money. Things like this need to be available.

 

They call them black lights/ultra violet light

I was really hoping to not have to rely on myself to draw something by hand. I know that the brand GloFish has something similar but only for “up to” a 10 gallon tank.

I would think that since there are posters out there that can look one way in light and then in another under a uv/black light, there would have to be something for aquariums!

I am going to hope someone has heard of them and knows where to find them, but in the meantime I may just use some extra time of mine to somehow create something either with chalk, or markers, or some kind of printable ink.

 

I was really hoping to not have to rely on myself to draw something by hand. I know that the brand GloFish has something similar but only for “up to” a 10 gallon tank.

I would think that since there are posters out there that can look one way in light and then in another under a uv/black light, there would have to be something for aquariums!

I am going to hope someone has heard of them and knows where to find them, but in the meantime I may just use some extra time of mine to somehow create something either with chalk, or markers, or some kind of printable ink.

A tank background pic is nothing but a water proof/resistant (laminated) poster... So if you got a cool poster like you're talking about and laminated it, it should work.

To get the exact dimensions of your tank, you might have to buy/print a poster that's a little larger and trim it down a bit. I always thought it'd be cool to buy one of those fuzzy coloring posters for children and color it in with neon colors (paint maybe?).

Hope this give you ideas, good luck!
(P.s. we LOVE pictures, send us some or your tank and when you're done with your background!!!)

 

A tank background pic is nothing but a water proof/resistant (laminated) poster... So if you got a cool poster like you're talking about and laminated it, it should work.

To get the exact dimensions of your tank, you might have to buy/print a poster that's a little larger and trim it down a bit. I always thought it'd be cool to buy one of those fuzzy coloring posters for children and color it in with neon colors (paint maybe?).

Hope this give you ideas, good luck!
(P.s. we LOVE pictures, send us some or your tank and when you're done with your background!!!)

Those are really good ideas! Maybe I will try looking for a poster first, and the special coloring pages would be good too, I would just have to get a big one to fit my tank! For now, I ended up just getting a cheap, mostly blue one from the pet store, and am ordering some special invisible ink markers and will try them out on the cheap background to see how it works. If it does... then I’m in trouble because I’ll really try and get my ideas to be able to get printed at like a staples or printing store.

How exciting! Haha... I’ll gladly share pictures once I have my markers and invisible ink...

 

Hello All - My name is Mike and I'm new to the fishkeeping pet family. I have a 38g tank (that is approx. 30" long X 21" tall with white LED lights for during the daytime and blue LED lights for night. Currently I do not have any background for the tank and do not like looking through the tank at the wall, so my question that I'm hoping you all will be able to help me with, is there a background on the market that when I switch the lights from white to blue, that the background will change (in some way) too? I have some plants that have certain colors that shine under the blue, but think it would be really neat if the background could do something like that too.

I have gone to PetSmart and PetCo, and both places have said they don't know of any kind of background that can do that. I've tried Amazon but it is very difficult to navigate through to something like what I want. In a really perfect world, there would be a background that is what it is under the white lights, but when the blue lights are turned on, there would be like a shipwreck or something that glows in the light? I would even like it if it is like some of the plants, where certain colors are pronounced under the blue light.

Sorry this was so long, I really hope there is help out there!
--Mike

Update: the markers I bought don’t work under the blue lights. I guess they were black light, and when I searched “blue light” they still came up. Gonna keep trying though...

 

Maybe a glow acrylic paint. I use them for rock painting and they are invisible until you turn out the lights. Might work with blue light since it's a glow paint. You would have to make sure to laminate as the paint will rub off if wet. Walmart has the paint less than 2 bucks

 

Maybe a glow acrylic paint. I use them for rock painting and they are invisible until you turn out the lights. Might work with blue light since it's a glow paint. You would have to make sure to laminate as the paint will rub off if wet. Walmart has the paint less than 2 bucks

Thanks Nashpack, I thought about glow paint, do you know if they come in colors that go on invisible, so they could only be seen when the blue lights come on?

 

This might work......you could buy a roll of frosted glass film like this...........it's still semI see through but makes the background look like frosted glass...then if you positioned a color changing light to shine on it from behind the tank the background would light up with whatever color is shining on it. In my mind this seems like it would work. Just an idea for ya......good luck!

 

so basically this but with the frosted glass background....not sure if that's what you're after or not.

 

Thanks Nashpack, I thought about glow paint, do you know if they come in colors that go on invisible, so they could only be seen when the blue lights come on?

We have green, pink and blue. I can probably dig them up any try on a piece of paper. Might not get to it till tomorrow. Gotta getmy monkeys (kids) children and asleep

 

This might work......you could buy a roll of frosted glass film like this...........it's still semI see through but makes the background look like frosted glass...then if you positioned a color changing light to shine on it from behind the tank the background would light up with whatever color is shining on it. In my mind this seems like it would work. Just an idea for ya......good luck!

Thanks Toeknee. I am more looking toward a background picture of some kind that looks one way under the regular white LED lights, that changes or is accentuated when I flip the switch to the blue LED lights.

 

We have green, pink and blue. I can probably dig them up any try on a piece of paper. Might not get to it till tomorrow. Gotta getmy monkeys (kids) children and asleep

That would be great! Let me know how it goes!