Enhancing color visibility in dark water

[bettaMagenta]

I've got a couple tanks that I'd classify as dark water, with the African tank being the darkest of the two. Some colors just don't pop in that environment - reds, for instance, tend to get washed out. I used to be a big fan of using carbon in my tanks back in the day, 20 years ago, but nowadays I've moved away from that. None of my tanks are currently using carbon. I was wondering, if I were to add and rotate a decent amount of carbon through the darkest tank to lighten the color a bit, would the water still retain the benefits of being dark, just with better clarity? Or would I be better off installing a separate "viewing" light that I can turn on when I want to get a closer look at the fish? What's the best approach to bringing out some of the colors that get muted by the dark water?

[infold]

Honestly, I'm surprised it's that dark - what kind of stuff would you need to add to the water to lighten it up?

[bettaMagenta]

The African Tetras still pop with colors like greens and blues, but the red on my brichardi just doesn't show up right - it's more brownish than anything.

[barnicle]

So when you mention dark water, are we talking actual Blackwater with tannins, or is it more of a dark tint? Is the water itself clear or does it have a bit of murkiness to it? If it's the latter, I'd be curious to know if adding some floss to the filter would help polish it up a bit.

[bettaMagenta]

This tank's darkness is due to driftwood and almond leaves, and its 24 inches deep with about 2/3 of the surface covered in floating plants. I'm thinking out loud here... I used to have some LED spotlights in my old tank that highlighted points of interest, but I had to be careful not to leave them on for too long or algae would start growing like crazy in the lit areas. If I were to mount one in this tank, in a spot where I usually view, I could turn it on when I want to take pictures or get a better look, then turn it off when I'm done to prevent algae growth. The key would be controlling the reflection off the glass, which might be tricky. I had a similar setup in my other tank with an open top, and the light shone through just fine.

[graye]

It's a trade-off really. Dark water gives your tank some amazing colors, but it also takes away from others. I mean, you'll notice hues you wouldn't see in clear water, it's pretty cool. Just remember, regular water changes will dilute the tannins, so those colors will fade.

[bettaMagenta]

I'm considering scaling back on the almond leaves - they seem to be the main culprit behind the dark water. I had two decent-sized pieces of driftwood in the tank for a while, and it was fine, but adding a few almond leaves really took it to a whole new level of darkness. It's kind of amusing, actually, since I added even more leaves to two other tanks and they didn't get nearly as dark as this one.