Glass vs. Acrylic

[Howieytown]

Hi Folks,
So far I have only owned glass aquariums and I was wondering about going with a acrylic for the next one. Trouble is most of the older acrylic's I've seen all have hazing or cloudy spots to them.

They both seem great looking when they are new.....my glass tanks still look great except for a couple of small scratches that are my fault. I have heard about buffing out acrylic tanks problems but if they are on the inside after the tank is in operation what then?
pro's and con's.... any one's two cents please?

 

[Tbohinc]

Acrylic is a pain in the A$$ if you don't keep up on maint I get sent out of town for work now and then and come home to a Caroline nightmare other then that I like Acrylic for it's ability to modify it at will I want a new bulkhead just drill it no worries

 

[itZme]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11359110#post11359110 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Tbohinc
I want a new bulkhead just drill it no worries

LOL why can't you just poke a hole into your glass aquarium? I haven't had a problem doing that ... YET.

I personally could never own an acrylic tank. I have a hard enough time not scratching a glass tank. There is no way I would be draining a tank to buff it out and with starphire glass available the clarity advantage that acrylic has is no longer a factor. The acrylic WILL turn cloudy and haze with time. It may take years but sooner or later you will have difficulty seeing through it easily.
The biggest advantage I can see is the weight when moving a large acrylic tank vs. a large glass tank but I have moved a 180g, 140g and 210g tanks with just 1 other guy and it wasn't the end of the world. How often does one move a large tank where the weight would be a benefit to consider when investing large quantities of money into a reef tank?

My 2 cents

 

[acrohead500ppm]

+ acrylic insulates like a coffe mug and a chiller is a must if halides are being used for light

 

[Big E]

There is no way I would be draining a tank to buff it out

You don't have to drain the tank. I buffed out the whole front panel of my 180g with livestock in it & completely filled with water.

The acrylic WILL turn cloudy and haze with time.

This is totally false. I don't know where these comments come from. This has not been my experience. The quality of the acrylic used in today's tanks will keep their clarity well past your lifetime.

+ acrylic insulates like a coffe mug and a chiller is a must if halides are being used for light

I've never had to use a chiller.



Just wanted to clear up these misconceptions

 

[CleveYank]

glass there is no substitute...unless the acrylic tank is practically free.

 

[scottfarcuz]

After trying to scrape a few encrusted acrylic tanks clean recently I don't think I would ever own one.

 

[aninjaatemyshoe]

Acrylic is a pain in the butt for a display tank. Making scratches is far too easy, buffing out scratches is not easy. However, it is a superior material for sumps, refugiums, and frag tanks.

 

[crazyseany]

I've only had glass except one. even a large tank I would get glass. I don't like change to much though. I had a small acrylic and I scratched the heck out of it. never did try buffing it though.

my 1000 gallon tank I'm ordering is glass... now if I can find where I put that powerball ticket... hmmmm....

 

[scottfarcuz]

I can see why people do acrylic on large tanks. My aga 210 weighs like 345lbs. It makes it a handful for 2 guys to move. Also thicker glass has a distortion effect.

I have no idea how true t is, but I've seen more than a few posts on RC about how the low iron glass scratches easily also.

 

[Brad Black]

I have an acrylic 100 gal flatback hex, had it several years now. I am the 2nd owner-he had it several years I think also. I Love the way it glows, it is IMO much much nicer than glass for viewing (unless using starfire). I have also never had a problem with clouding. I have no chiller. I have also removed scratches inside with all livestk still in tank (the shavings seem to me to be inert and my skimmer takes care of them), with no problems with livestk. Cleaning coraline is hard even with a jackhammer and scuba gear and thats on all tanks.
ONLY problem is that it does scratch very easily and what a b**** to repair. My 2 year old went tony soprano on it, that sucked! He got the inside with the mag cleaner (picked up sand-put these away if you have kids!!!!!) and the outside with a machine gun I think. Lots of hard labor from then on. I'm still removing scratches and it's been over a year (only work on it here and there). Also I've heard horror stories about acrylic suddenly breaking but never met anyone who has had one break. Mine does bow out noticeably on the front (if you look hard), but that's normal I'm told.
BUT as for beauty you simply cannot beat it, sorry glass owners. Do you get one or not?? Tough choice. Me-next time I splurge for the starfire front glass or a custom-molded 2 story wall divider acrylic with no kids (ahhh...dreams) Good luck

 

[Howieytown]

Thanks for all the replies, seems I will probably stay with glass for the next tank. If one has a tank built to order the addition of starfire glass to the front isnt all that much costly.

~have a great holiday season everyone~