fish jumping out of tank

[mjpinsky]

Never in my 25 years of SW keeping have I had a fish jump out of my tank.....until today.
I wanted 1 more fish for my tank and bought a blue head wrasse. (Nice looking fish and will [probably] be my last one until something dies of old age). After some thinking, I went to Home Depot and bought a plastic ceiling fixture grill (BW bin15 $16). cut it to size and cut out areas for wires and asst'd filter connections with a cutting edge plier. Not only was it virtually invisable when you look straight on at the tank,but it gave me a platform to put my LED lights on, AND it will prevent my fish from escaping the tank again.
It took a couple of hours to do all the measuring and cuts but it was not a difficult DIY fix.
Just thought I'd tell you if you hadn't thought of this before. Have a great reefing day!
p.s.: in case you were interested, I have a "custom" tank I bought at a LSF which fits in my family room unit, which is an odd size -- 36x24x24" it has a great field of view.

[Antics]

Any pictures? Sounds like a fun little project! These days I'm looking at the commercial lids that keep getting fancier and even more expensive.

[SantaMonica]

That material is good, yes.

My fav though is black 1cm bird netting on a stiff frame. You can't set things on it, but you also can't see it, and you can still look at it sideways and not (really) see it.

[yakfishin]

I have gone sometime without a top to my aquarium, but I am now looking to change from a semi-reef to a FOWLR. I would like to get an eel which would obviously need a top. I am curious, when you use a netting, how do make it so you can still have access into the tank? Glass tops have front hinged portion that which allows you to feed or gain some access into the tank for cleaning and stuff. When you use netting, how are you still able to access the tank?

[billdogg]

Do you mean what is commonly referred to as "eggcrate"? I have found that my fish see the 1/2" square openings more as targets to aim for than they do deterrents to keep them in the tank. Although I used it for years myself, I have since switched out to 1/4" clear mesh form BRS and aluminum window screen frame from HD/Lowes. The tops are very light weight, easy to make (you'll need a hacksaw or other way to cut the frame to length) and last pretty much forever. They also prevent everybody from trying to carpet surf.

Keep in mind, also, that eggcrate is a light diffuser so you will lose at least some of the intensity from your lights. It will also get brittle with age and will break easily then.

[billdogg]

Originally Posted by yakfishin

I have gone sometime without a top to my aquarium, but I am now looking to change from a semi-reef to a FOWLR. I would like to get an eel which would obviously need a top. I am curious, when you use a netting, how do make it so you can still have access into the tank? Glass tops have front hinged portion that which allows you to feed or gain some access into the tank for cleaning and stuff. When you use netting, how are you still able to access the tank?

See my post above. I made the screen tops for my 120 in two sections for each side. A very narrow section in back with just enough slits in the netting to allow cords to pass through. This piece pretty much stays in place all the time. The front, larger, section fills the remaining space and can easily be lifted out of the way for maintenance.

These aren't the greatest pictures but you get the idea:

[yakfishin]

I see what you did. Very nice job.

[SantaMonica]

Eels interestingly only need a wide rim. They don't jump... they push up the sides of the glass. If they hit the rim then the stop.

[billdogg]

Originally Posted by SantaMonica

Eels interestingly only need a wide rim. They don't jump... they push up the sides of the glass. If they hit the rim then the stop.

Um, No.

IME, and I kept a Gymnothorax Undulatus named Hannibal for 25 years, they require not only a very tight fitting cover, but one that is weighted down so that they cannot push it out of the way. Smaller eels will require less mass on top, but if they can, they will eventually escape. Hannibal did 3 times in the 25 years he was with me. The first time it was just eggcrate. He was ~18 inches at the time, and he did it right in front of me so no harm, no fowl. I put a softball sized piece of coral decoration on each corner and that kept him for awhile. The second time, it happened at night. I found him the next morning next to the tank, dry to the touch. I thought for sure he was a goner but when I touched him his jaws opened so I put him back into the tank and went to work. Came home to a 30" eel with a horrible bacterial infection and a bad attitude. I fed him chunks of ocean fish fillets stuffed with antibacterial/anti fungal meds for a couple weeks and it cleared up just fine. I also increased the number and weight of the rocks on top of the eggcrate. Fast forward another 5 years or so and he made it out one last time. He was nearly 4' long by then so I wasn't terrible surprised. He was only a little dry this time and went back in the tank without issue, unless you consider a angry 4' eel trying to eat you an issue. I graduated to a completely enclosed canopy that then did the trick for his remaining years.

Eels are escape artists. They will find a way. It's what they do. Plan for it and you should be just fine.

hth!

[tmnails]

Can confirm, fish CAN make it through egg crate light diffuser. It's rare, but if had a wrasse and a goby get through it.

I ended up going with a bird netting on 1x1 wood frame as suggested already. Basically a lay in screen

[albano]

+1 on egg crate not working with smaller fish (especially wrasses that appear to be bigger than the openings)... better to go with 1/4” netting, and
+1 on eels requiring a weighted, full screen top.