Why I prefer acrylic over glass

hart24601 · Jan 13, 2016

squareriggersailor said:
The weight seems like it would be the least of your concerns. You look like you should be wearing a kilt throwing a hammer in the Highland Games. I mean that as a high compliment Sir.

Haha! Cheers!

Having miracles build me a 6x2x2 starfire external overflow tank... Might need just a bit of help on that thing kilt or not!!!

timkenagy · Jan 13, 2016

eatbreakfast said:
...until it gets scratches.

Spent $1300 on a custom acrylic 180 gallon tank. Got a big scratch every time anyone sneezed near it. Had it up for 3 years before tearing it down and buying a standard AGA tank. It's not 100% clear but it's clean all the time because I don't have to climb up in my canopy with a scrubber pad every week.. Just one pass with the flipper.. No sweat/no scratches..

Lowell Lemon · Jan 14, 2016

I guess the reason I like acrylic is the fact that I am fully equipped to make any tank out there with acrylic. I guess you go so far down a road and you just stop looking back. Well that and the insurance cost as a manufacturer (way cheaper on liability) I also love the clear, strong bonds and the lack of worry about leaks. Scratches are not a problem since I can repair them or make a new tank. I guess if I had invested in glass equipment I would vigorously defend glass as the best product. The thing is that I have built many glass tanks and the green tint, cut hands, and clean up after a silicone seam leaks just leaves me...well less that confident in glass. I just purchased the first glass tank in over 30 years. Nice low iron with the intent of making a freshwater planted tank...ADA style. I would like to continue to learn about aquatic environments and different challenges. I have a new acrylic and solid surface hybrid in static load testing now in my shop. It may be my new build that I may share here...if the bonding technique I developed works. Love the look and the flexibility of rimless tanks either glass or acrylic. I love the confidence of a well made acrylic tank. I have had to many wet floors and watched to many corals and fish die to trust large glass tanks anymore.

Midrats · Jan 14, 2016

Peter giving the new ArtFully Acrylic AIO the sniff test.

skydancer · Jan 14, 2016

Lionfish Lair said:
I wouldn't mind seeing pictures of that tank in your avatar!

The tank was custom built in 2004 and the back of it is bent to "hug" the staircase.
The cabinet is attached to the house trim. It's a piece of artwork in our living room.

shred5 · Jan 14, 2016

Naiad said:
My only problem with acrylic is that I can't have urchins

Actually they are more dangerous in glass tanks because they eat the seams when algae gets on them..

That said I have and have both and I have had as many scratches in acrylic and glass. People will glass tanks are usually not as careful and people with acrylic are.

Low iron glass is softer and scratches easier than regular glass.

With smaller tanks it clarity really does not matter much that is why glass is used. Glass aquariums are usually cheaper and the clarity does not matter as much because the thinner glass. When you get to large tanks it matters a lot more.

Most large impressive tanks are acrylic because the clarity makes a bigger difference plus the weight.. Why do most zoo's and public aquariums use acrylic if it scratches so easy? Most people think acrylic scratches so easy because they have bought cheap acrylic tanks.

Lowell Lemon · Jan 14, 2016

Most zoos and public aquariums use acrylic due to the higher strength and lower insurance liability. Some use a glass clad acrylic to reduce scratches to the surfaces both inside and out. The cost of such panels is very high and is a special process.

ClearView Lids · Jan 14, 2016

Wow, who would have thought a new customer starting thread about their love for acrylic would start all this

). Great job on stirring the waters akida

.

I haven't checked this thread in a while and it's gotten pretty darn big. I think it's fair to say Glass and Acrylic will both always have their equal share of fans and people who don't like one or the other for whatever reason or another. I've personally owned both. I like both.

This is like the war between Apple and Android fans...you can't win nor necessarily convince another that one is better. Each set of users feels strongly about their side. Bottom line however, they are both awesome products categories that have completely changed our world as we know it. I have no problem residing in either camp.

The same stands true here in the debate between glass and acrylic. Clearly (pun intended haha, couldn't resist), I am biased towards Acrylic as that is my craft and canvas of choice. However, as with Apple and Android debates, this one comes down to the same brass tax...Does the "end user", or the hobbyist in this case, feel happy with the device or product they got? Does it have the features and whistles that they were looking for?

That being said, I also feel there is a lot of misinformation out there regarding modern acrylics, the engineering of an acrylic aquarium, the methods used for cleaning, and the methods used for repairing them. We also have a retail store in addition to our acrylic fabrication workshop. All of our frag tanks and our displays are acrylic (of course lol). Our fish and invert holding systems are however glass as we use the Marineland MARS system for that purpose. You can find a number of scratches in our MARS system. You won't find many at all in our acrylic systems. I say this because any I know about are repaired quickly and generally quite quickly. The glass systems? Nope, can't do anything about those scratches

. But, yes, our glass fish and invert systems are faster to clean than all of our acrylic tanks usually...