Glass or Acrylic

[areze]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12940069#post12940069 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Doahh
Really... Sand won't scratch glass?
That's a bunch of Bologna!

if its is calcium carbonate... should you have a grain of somehing else in there that gets stuck, most aquarium substrates should be extremely pure, any budget alternative is almost sure to have a fair amount of harmless but harder impurities that can scratch.

as for the calcium carbonate, its not really debatable, its fact like diamond being harder than sapphire.

now, I dont know where low iron glass vs calcium carbonate falls...

 

[Slakker]

I have an acrylic nano and I really don't like it very much.

That said, my experience has been that it doesn't scratch THAT easily. In fact, there have been a few times where I've purposely caught a little sand in my mag-float for a bit of extra scraping power against some particularly stubborn coralline.

Now, I have to be honest, the tank has tons of scratches, but I can honestly say that I have never once witnessed a new one develop directly as the cause of cleaning the glass...unless someone else is coming into my apartment and playing with the mag float.

 

[nyvp]

I have had both and when I went for my 560/g 120x36x30 there was no question it would be glass. Also the price and thickness of acrylic and glass makes a big dif. BTW i have seen MANY acrylic tanks that bust seams and have problems. Look in the forums there are horror stories on both sides of seams going bad.

 

[mcrist]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12944089#post12944089 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nyvp
BTW i have seen MANY acrylic tanks that bust seams and have problems. Look in the forums there are horror stories on both sides of seams going bad.

Those tanks are usually home built or done poorly at a low end tank manufacturer. If you get one from a quality manufacturer then they will not fail. I would be willing to bet that my current tank will outlive me but I know I will need to buff out some scratches in my lifetime.

 

[mcrist]

One reason I went with acrylic over glass was the weight. In my situation I wouldn’t have been able to have enough men to carry the tank into my house while still holding it. I couldn’t use a lift so it had to be carried in on manpower alone. I was also concerned about total weight of the setup since it is located on the first floor with an open basement underneath. I needed to heavily reinforce the floor and I wanted the tank to be as light as possible.

In a perfect world if my tank was on the basement on a concrete foundation and I could have used a lift I might have chosen glass over acrylic.

It’s a complicated question that you need to look at everything before you decide on glass or acrylic. Just don’t base it only on ‘acrylic scratches’.

 

[Doahh]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12939444#post12939444 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Gary Majchrzak
Hobby Experience: 2 years

This kinda ****es me off... Just because he has 2 years of experience it means his experiences are chopped liver?

 

[RParker]

There are a lot of things that can dictate whether you go with glass or acrylic. There isn't one tank that will work for everyone. Weight YOUR pros and cons and come to a decision. No one here can know all the factors involved in getting a tank into your house and the maintenance required for your situation.

I prefer glass myself but due to the tanks location and the effort it will take to get it there I will be going with acrylic for my new tank due to weight. There was no chance of getting an 800 lb glass tank down my stairs with the manpower I have available without hurting someone. The acrylic tank is half the weight.

Regards
Robb

 

[BigJay]

I have a 180 gallon glass tank with a 50 gallon acrylic sump.

Even though it's scratched to hell and back, the sump is still clearer than the glass display.

When my three youngest children grow up and leave home, I'm going to try a large acrylic tank. I expect it to be a disaster, but I'll try regardless.

 

[davocean]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12947348#post12947348 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Doahh
This kinda ****es me off... Just because he has 2 years of experience it means his experiences are chopped liver?

I don't see this as a smack, 2 seperate tanks in 2yrs is kinda like comparing a cheap car to an expensive car that have both only been driven 10,000 mi.
I agree w/ the comment it depends on application, it would have been near impossible man power wise/room wise to get glass in my place as well.
While I'm super anal about my acrylic, apparently my snails aren't.
My acrylic is 3mo old, and already has a couple scratches.
Can I buff them out? Yep.
I knew there would be some kind of compromise, there always is.

 

[Turbo$nail]

I like the look of an acrylic tank much better than a glass one. However I'm also cheap and have never wanted to pony up for one.

Glass definitely scratches too.... I have been super careful with my old 90G and still have scratched the front of the tank while scraping :mad2:

If you have the cash, go with acrylic and don't look back

 

[areze]

its funny because if you get into the larger sizes, its really the opposite. acrylic is the cheap alternative lol.

 

[Doahh]

The switch point is around 300 gallons...

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12947348#post12947348 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Doahh
This kinda ****es me off... Just because he has 2 years of experience it means his experiences are chopped liver?

my post was to point out his experience with keeping aquariums is about two years.

I've never had a glass or acrylic aquarium leak or burst. (Knock on wood). Some aquariums (that are still in use) are 15+ years old.

 

[reefkeeper135]

:eek2: :eek1: :eek2: :eek1: OK so I guess my next tank will be Glass....uhhhh Acrylic.....uhhhh Glass :eek2: :eek1: :mixed: :eek2:

my current tank is a 240 glass with a nice scratch top center, nothing I can do about it....but not sure I want to try acrylic knowing it will scratch....

 

[areze]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12953613#post12953613 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Doahh
The switch point is around 300 gallons...

might be a bit lower than that.

300g that I shopped, there were 2 tank makers in georgia for acrylic (MRC and another that you wouldnt know), ~1700$, reef ready drilled and good to go.

any glass maker I could find(AO, AGE) was (far) north of 3000$ reef ready, drilled, starphire/lowiron. save for glass cages at 1540$.

given that spread, Im fairly certain it would hold down to the 180g range or so.

 

[Turbo$nail]

Wow, I guess I never looked at anything much bigger than a 180. It was always more expensive for acrylic.

Good info on bigger tank pricing! Again, something to think about for the original poster.

 

[linz13]

i like glass tanks.. originally i had a 13 gallon acrylic, but when i went to put the rocks and stuff in i wasn't too careful and it scratched very easily. also, i went to clean it with a sponge to get the algae and stuff off the sides and it scratched... i recently just got a 55 gallon glass tank and i love it.. they seem to be much more scratch resistant, but they are tinted a bit. acrylics are clearer, but i really enjoy the glass aquarium better. glass is also cheaper than the acrylic too. you could save a few bucks that way. also, to clean the acrylic im pretty sure there are special wipes or sponges you have to get that say they are made for acrylic tanks. that way you wont scratch it.