Help Painting!?!

[seesquared]

so i have a 90ish gallon glass tank with dark grey plastic on the bottom of the tank as well as the top and center brace. i bought the tank used and it is pretty fadded from the years. i was wondering if you guys have any imput regarding if it is safe to paint the plastic sections while it is full of livestock and corals, or am i going to risk the health of the tank. i should have painted it when i 1st got it but was in a hurry to see it all set up so i skipped that step and now i regret it. here are a few pictures of what i would like to paint. should i just tape it off with painters tape and a bunch of paper? or should i not risk it? also what kind of paint would you guys suggest using. spray or rollers or type of black paint. you guys know this stuff way better than i do, so any imput at all would be awesome. thanks guys!

-Connor-

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b381/seesquared/tank1.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b381/seesquared/tank2.jpg

[seesquared]

no help huh? no suggestions? you guys gotta know a type of paint that would be safe to use? someone help?!?!

[sandiegan]

If you're talking about just painting the plastic trim, then you can use almost any type of paint. I would stay away from using spraypaint, since there's a good likelyhood that some spray would end up in the tank.

Tape off the glass near the trim so you don't get it on the glass (not a big deal if you do, razor blade should take it right off). Look for a low VOC paint (less fumes). Just about anything will do though. Use a small brush, patience and light coats and avoid going too close to the inner ledge of the trim. You do NOT want any paint dripping in the tank. Might help to have a small fan pointed in your general direction as well so the fumes don't linger, and open some windows and doors.

[467echo]

I would really be scared to paint the top part. The bottom could be done easily with any kind of gloss black paint I would think, enamel? The top if done at all would have to be soooooo carefully done. Maybe sponge painting it with something covering the water just in case of a small splatter.:confused:

[seesquared]

thanks for the response, i was thinking i could try and tape off with a bunch of newspaper or something, seems almost too sketchy. i will try and paint the bottom with some black enamel and see how that goes then maybe attempt the top. i know if i paint the bottom i will want to match soo...i dunno.. any other opinions before i dive in

[johnc]

If you haven't gotten around to fixing this yet, you can always use black trim tape from an automotive store.