Acrylic vs. Glass

[cheeks69]

Originally Posted by Woodstock

I have someone that could get me great deals on an acrylic tank...



That is a major concern of mine as well as crazing.

What I did to eliminate this problem is to have a euro-brace that way there's no halide light over any cross braces. AFA bowing if the tank is thick enough that will not be a problem. I have a 93 gal and insisted on going 1/2" thick to avoid this problem. The clarity of acrylic is incredible as long as you avoid scratches

[mps9506]

I think a lot of us are also thinking of the old school acrylic tanks that did scratch very easily and yellow quickly.
IMO the newer acrylic tanks I've seen are crystal clear, more scratch resistant, and not prone to yellow. The bowing shouldn't occur if the proper thickness acrylic is used. (BTW I'm not saying none of the above doesn't occur, but in newer tanks acrylic tanks I've seen, they are much more scratch resitant, heck, I've already put scratches into the glass of our new 144 oceanic).
I really can vote for either glass or acrylic doni. You are gonna have to weigh out each option and decide what will work best for you.
Acrylic will give you more options for shapes and dimensions without having to brace the hell out of the tank, or having a tank that weighs 1500lbs empty.
Glass is more durable, generally easier to get in our part of the country, and easy to clean. I also don't know how much you want to spend, but the clarity of good acrylic vs glass is noticable, unless you want to go starphire or low iron. I personally don't care that much to invest in starphire or chose acrylic over glass for that reason though.

I say just build an indoor pool. I'll help you with water changes on weekends if you do. Just not the salt bill.

[Frankie]

Originally Posted by mps9506

I think a lot of us are also thinking of the old school acrylic tanks that did scratch very easily and yellow quickly.
IMO the newer acrylic tanks I've seen are crystal clear, more scratch resistant, and not prone to yellow. The bowing shouldn't occur if the proper thickness acrylic is used. (BTW I'm not saying none of the above doesn't occur, but in newer tanks acrylic tanks I've seen, they are much more scratch resitant, heck, I've already put scratches into the glass of our new 144 oceanic).
I really can vote for either glass or acrylic doni. You are gonna have to weigh out each option and decide what will work best for you.
Acrylic will give you more options for shapes and dimensions without having to brace the hell out of the tank, or having a tank that weighs 1500lbs empty.
Glass is more durable, generally easier to get in our part of the country, and easy to clean. I also don't know how much you want to spend, but the clarity of good acrylic vs glass is noticable, unless you want to go starphire or low iron. I personally don't care that much to invest in starphire or chose acrylic over glass for that reason though.

I say just build an indoor pool. I'll help you with water changes on weekends if you do. Just not the salt bill.

All very good points. I do tend to remember the older tanks and notwhats out there now and new. The weight issue might be a good point Doni concerning your flooring.Plus i must say you are patrticular on the up keep of your tank so im sure you will be carful not to scratch the tank. Me, im to wild to have an acrylic tank. Always changing things around and messin with it. Ive been known to use a chisel and hammer to remove coraline. LOL jk

[Witfull]

im to wild to have an acrylic tank. Always changing things around and messin with it.

A BIG DITTO TO THAT~

[Woodstock]

Well... the scratching is a HUGE concern. I have to scrape coralline off my glass weekly. A worse case senario would be for me to have a beautiful reef tank with so many scratches on the glass that I couldn't take a decent photo .

[Frankie]

This time around I had to go for the starphire front pane just for that reason. I love to take pictures and starphire is as good as its going to get in what iv'e seen of photo's of fish and coral. Just some food for thought
click on this dudes pictures for a close up and you can clearly see.
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/20...totm/index.php

[jimeluiz]

I went with glass mostly based on the scratch-factor. I did not want to be the only one who could touch the tank. And I knew my partner and visiting children (yes I am grouping the two together! ) would be less-than-super-careful. So thinking long-term I went with an ounce of prevention.

[boozeman]

This is a big dilema for me...love the look and weight of the acrylic but I have nightmares of my 2yo son 'driving' one of his matchbox cars all over it

[Woodstock]

You can fix the scratches rather easily if they are on the OUTSIDE of the tank... but the idea of having to drain the tank to fix any on the inside is not very appealing

[Gina]

I take it you've chosen glass?
When are you finally going to get this baby up and going?
I'm very impatient and can't wait to see it! LOL

[Woodstock]

Glass

I am interested in the AGA Mission style stand and canopy in the oak color. They are a bit pricey at $1k for the pair but have some very nice features apart from being beautiful. I like the way the canopy opens and the stand is tall!!

I am still weighing out the different options... custom vs the misison.... soooo many decisions....

[billyr98]

i like the mission stand.. its a very nice piece of furniture...
but you only do a tank like this once... so having a stand or canopy that no one else has is very attractive too... Guess I am not really helping here...

[Woodstock]

Exactly what I was thinking

[Witfull]

like this woody?

[Woodstock]

Yes! But in an oak finish...
http://www.all-glass.com/products/fe...n_brochure.pdf

I like the way the canopy opens too.