Glass and Acrylic

Sniperelite8243

Simple qustion, what are the pros and cons of glass and acrylic aquariums

ahill3780

Glass aquariums tend to offer slightly clearer viewing of the ecosystem within, but they have plenty of cons. For one, glass contains silica which can over time be released into the water column feeding the growth of nuisance algae such as diatoms. Not a huge problem at all as the rate of release is extremely slow and it is more likely the algae will form on the glass itself where it can be easily wiped away rather than settle in other areas of the aquarium yet it should be listed as one of the arguable cons. Another is the cost of replacing a cracked or broken pane since glass is more expensive than acrylic, both in material cost as well as cutting and shaping the material. However, glass aquariums can offer superior strength over acrylic when it has been tempered. Another con is that glass can offer sharp edges to cut the unwary aquarist - a feature that is mostly lost on acrylic tanks, and good riddance!

Acrylic is truely a wonder for the aquarium hobby! It is light, durable, strong, plentiful, and cheap by comparison! It's cons are far outweighed by its pros. I think the biggest con for acrylic is that it is not easily cleaned since it scratches so easily - you should not use an abrasive material when cleaning an acrylic tank as the resulting scuffs and scratches can be a real boon. Other than that there are many good things that can be said of acrylic. For one, acrylic holds in heat much better than glass does causing your system to maintain a constant steady temperature and not overworking your heating equipment. Another is that acrylic can be easily drilled for when you want to install plumbing or bulkheads for increasing your filtration system, whereas if you were to try drilling a similar hole into a piece of tempered aquarium glass (which is extremely hard, and almost impossible to tell from normal glass) the glass would simply shatter giving you an costly problem to deal with.

Most of the time acrylic wins out over glass as the material of choice for aquariums, but that does not mean that glass is going to be phased out anytime soon - quite the contrary actually.

It is my personal opinion that acrylic should be the material of choice for small to medium sized tanks (5-120 gallon) due to the advantage of being so light. I say this since it is more likely someone will decide to move a smaller tank than a larger one, and the weight difference will be well worth it then! However, if you plan to keep a larger system (150+ gallons) then I would stick with the stronger and more maintenance friendly Glass aquariums.

Sniperelite8243

Wow , Didnt expect it that specific, thank you very much

ahill3780

No problem. I had the same question myself a little while back and was just as surprised at what I found.

Sniperelite8243

thanks getting 120 gallon acrylic aquarium this week, 4 ft long, 2 ft wide and tall

lennon

I saw your post and thought I'd add my 2 cents.

I have to tell you that I have read so many posts about this and even though acrylic is light and all....the scratching part of it may throw you for a loop.

My friend has a , I believe, 90 gallon acrylic tank and when he got his first scratch, He was SOOOOO upset.

As much as they say that it is repairable, it really isn't.

In my opinion, a 120 gallon tank is on the big side. I know there are bigger, BUT should a rock fall over or when cleaning the gravel you touch the acrylic, you will probably scratch it. And even if you don't, you will have to be SO gentle and so careful when you clean the tank.
You really have to decide if that would bother you. It would be a shame and probably annoying to look at a scratch on such a beautiful tank.

I would keep reading and maybe take a poll from others who have acrylic tanks and see if they would do it again.

Just my opinion. Some may not agree, but I know it would bug me alot if I scratched my tank.

Good luck with everything!!

If I were you, I would keep rea

ahill3780

He raises a very valid arguement. But, just because you choose to go with glass instead would not mean that you are scratchproof since the same rock falling inside the tank would scratch a glass wall too. (My 55 gallon glass tank has plenty of ugly scratches all over it from over the years ) You just have to be even more careful when working inside around the walls of your tank when you have an acrylic tank. It is not only rocks that can scratch a tank, sand is an abrasive and can easily scratch the walls of an acrylic tank if you aren't careful. Even the soft surface of aged driftwood is sufficient enough to scratch the tank if it is dragged across it. The point here is that you should always use caution when working inside the tank.

Also I should point out that no scratches made inside the aquarium should be removed using the scratch remover kits. You should not ever let anything besides water, and approved silicone come into long term contact with your tanks water. Some scratch removal kits are safe to use in aquariums, but just because it is made for that purpose does not mean that it is safe in your tank. Many manufacturers will tell you straight out that the removal kits are made for repairing scratches on the outside surfaces of your tanks and should not be used on the inside.

Just a forewarning.

Sniperelite8243

Ok then you both have valid arguments

there now i got a different quistion,

what would be gentler on acrylic, sand, or gravel. and what of each typen would look more natral

and would that aquarium be suficent to have a health, happy pleco, ones that get up to 1 ft long, strict herbavore, no alqea, well hopefully, most likely ill be use algea wafers, it will show a picture on the following link of it.


http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/p...pcatid=984&N=3

This will mostly be a community freshwater tank,i also bought a skimmer for the tank to help keep the tank cleaner,(SKIMMERS ARE MEANT FOR SALTWATER BECAUSE THE FISH ARE SENSITIVE TO WASTE, AND I FIGURED IT WILL HELP SOME BY TAKING SOME WASTE OUT OF THE FRESHWATER TANK TAKING STRESS OFF THE FISH)

but back to the pleco, what live plants do you recomend to help plecos hide, it is after all nocturnal, but i was thinking of buying some cave decorations. something he can hide in.

I am also going to buy some cory cats to help get the sand/ or gravel cleaner

ty to who replies

lennon

Well, I am pretty new to this and I am also getting my tank ready. It is a freshwater tank BUT I am putting sand in it.
I tend to like that more natural SW tank look.

Someone on another one of my threads suggested gravel first and then sand. That way the plants can get their roots in. But I am unsure if I will do that since I plan on getting a stingray in the future.

Oh, there is the coolest foam background that someone showed me on another one of my posts. It is the foam stuff they use to fill in ponds. Once algae forms..it tends to look like LR. It is so cool and I am sure your pleco would love it. Take a look. I may do a small thin amount on the back of my tank and then add a few things in front. I can't wait!!

ahill3780

Sniper,

Logically sand would be the correct answer as to which are less abrasive of the two towards the acrylic walls of your tank because of the much smaller grain size.

I can take that answer one step further and make the claim that an aragonite (calcium carbonate) type sand would be the better choice as its chemical makeup means that it is not as hard as some other sands made from more rocky materials.

I think your choice of getting rock structured, cavelike decorations is a good enough choice as far as cover is concerned. Most Plecos that I have seen and owned tend to like hiding in these areas more so than in grassy outcrops.

A Pleco will do just as well with sand or gravel in the tank so the choice is more preference than need. Go with whichever you like better. If you like a saltwater/beach type look then you may even consider the use of Florida Crushed Coral.

One last thing that I would like to clarify is that Protein Skimmers are not intended primarily for saltwater systems. They are just as important for use in freshwater systems and they perform the same in both applications. I commend you on your purchase and I know that you will be very happy with the results, and your tanks inhabitants will like having the cleaner environment. Great choice!

Let us know if you have any other concerns.

Cheers!