Lids

[hfxfishguy]

Ok guys I have a 125gal with 2 lionfish, 2 snowflake eels and a zebra moray. ( Will be upgraded to my 300gal when they grow out) I also have some basic lps corals. I need to add lids to prevent eels from escaping and also reduce evaporation as all my open top aquariums evaporate rather quickly. My question is what should I use for lids that won't affect my lighting substantially.

"¢Should I just cut some acrylic sheets to fit? If so should I drill some vent holes?

"¢Should i just use glass?

"¢Forget about preventing evaporation and buy a screen lid

"¢Should I just build a wooden canopy?

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[Oldreeferman]

If i was inclined to have eels or anything that can slither out id probably go with a HD screen of some type, yes you still get evap issues but at least the salt creep would not be scarring the acrylic or glass.
Im using glass covers on my tank & the salt creep eventually etches the glass badly after about a yr. even tho i clean it at least 2 times a week & do a straight vinegar/soak clean once a month.
So i have new glass cut ea. yr to replace it due to light loss. Not a big expense but my DT isn't 125 gal either.
Not sure how acrylic will hold up next to glass far as etching & cleaning goes but id think harder glass would fare better by far.
I remember while being at the Shed aquarium i was looking at the eel tanks & what they had was high smooth walls so no help there.

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

No matter what you decide with a lid you will need to either secure it or use weights to prevent the eels from knocking them off.

 

[billdogg]

I kept a 4' Undulated Moray for 25 years. He escaped (carpet surfed) 3 times. The first was with eggcrate on top. He was able to push that out of the way without any trouble at all. IMO, glass will just get pushed up and shatter on the ground when your eel escapes (and they do). Acrylic is lighter and will get moved that much easier.

After the first escape, I put baseball sized pieces of rock on the corners of the eggcrate. He has able to easily push them out of the way as well.

I upgraded the baseball sized rocks to rather large (10+lb pieces) at the corners and that did fairly well. He'd still try but didn't get out until water change day when I stepped away for a couple minutes.

Then I moved, finished the basement, and built a new stand with canopy. That finally kept him in for the remainder of his days. It helped that I made the canopy from 3/4" plywood and that it weighed probably 50lb!