At what point is acrylic 'better' than glass?

pdxmonkeyboy

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Acrylic is not bonded together, in the strictest sense of the word. If properly constructed then the panels are actually welded together (they are melted during the process) so an acrylic tank is really just one solid piece of acrylic after bonding.

I agree that keeping it clean is a PIA. But I also can't imagine where a glass tank would be cheaper than acrylic for a build this size. Personally, I think you would be bat _blank_ crazy for wanting a glass tank that size but hey.. whatever. For what its worth, my 1" thick 600 gallon build was $3,200 in material cost.
 

Crustaceon

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Noted Crustaceon. I never managed to scratch a tank before, but noted it can happen. But keeping acrylic clean of algae is a real challenge... especially at 3 to 4 feet deep.
I used to clean an enormous tank at a local Chevy dealership and it wasn’t too bad. I used a magfloat and a near-religious cleaning pad and scraper blade prep each time. I’ve also seen glass tanks scratch for no perceptible reason, namely my own.

75FE11D9-B74E-4803-8C9D-E2D1DB3019BE.png
 

chiefifd

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I wish you all the best in your dream build! I'd love to see it's progress when ever you start it. And congratulations on your retirement!
 

Aardvark1134

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To answer your question about lifespan and buffing limit...I have an acrylic tank that looks like new (except 1 scratch on side) and its a dozen years old already. As for buffing the only limit is it slightly thins the wall. So if you upsize your walls 1 size more than needed you can buff them tons and tons and tons with no problem.
 

Aardvark1134

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Most these threads come down to 4 posts.
1) I never had an acrylic tank but they scratch and suck
2) I have an acrylic tank and will never go back to glass
3) I had cheap acrylic tank or even a home made one and never again only glass from now on.
4) Acrylic does scratch easy but as long as you are careful it will be fine.

#2 and 4 are me
 

IKD

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Just curious, but with the benefits of acrylic we hear about (price, weight, strength, etc.), why don’t the major brands (Red Sea, Waterbox, Planet Aquarium, Glass Cages, etc.) make acrylic tanks instead of glass? It would be much cheaper to ship lighter material. Seems like there some deterrent for them to be mass produced.
 

squampton

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I had an acrylic tank for many years, not a big one though, 50 gallons, never had issues with scratches, and overall preferred it over glass mainly due to it being a fair bit lighter than glass and easier to move.
 

Joe Glass Cages

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Just curious, but with the benefits of acrylic we hear about (price, weight, strength, etc.), why don’t the major brands (Red Sea, Waterbox, Planet Aquarium, Glass Cages, etc.) make acrylic tanks instead of glass? It would be much cheaper to ship lighter material. Seems like there some deterrent for them to be mass produced.
Hi @IKD, Glass Cages makes both Glass and Acrylic Tanks. Here to support the journey!
 

Hugh Mann

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This might be a stupid question, and I'm sure there is a reason it's not done, but could a person not put a thin sheet of glass on the inside of an acrylic tank? Say just on the front panel, or whatever sides you view. Weight savings of acrylic, scratch resistance of glass.

Again, I am sure there is a reason it's not done, but am curious as to why.
 

ca1ore

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Just curious, but with the benefits of acrylic we hear about (price, weight, strength, etc.), why don’t the major brands (Red Sea, Waterbox, Planet Aquarium, Glass Cages, etc.) make acrylic tanks instead of glass? It would be much cheaper to ship lighter material. Seems like there some deterrent for them to be mass produced.

A brief scan of the glasscages website reveals that they DO make acrylic tanks. Local reefer to me owned one for many years. Acrylic is not always cheaper .... for the smaller, and much more popular, tank sizes it’s usually much more expensive. That the most likely reason.
 

IKD

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A brief scan of the glasscages website reveals that they DO make acrylic tanks. Local reefer to me owned one for many years. Acrylic is not always cheaper .... for the smaller, and much more popular, tank sizes it’s usually much more expensive. That the most likely reason.
Thats good to know, but I think my question is still relevant that you don’t see mass produced acrylic tanks sitting in store shops like we do with glass. Maybe it’s the rimless focus as said earlier. I do like rimless tanks.
 

chipmunkofdoom2

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I work in the Living Seashore at the National Aquarium in Baltimore. The exhibit has several touch tanks and several traditional displays. As with most large or unique tanks at the Aquarium, all are acrylic.

These displays have almost no scratches, despite being exposed to children almost 365 days a year. The touch tanks are low to the ground and kids put their hands all over them, all day (trust me, I know.. I have to clean the acrylic before we open). If scratching acrylic was as easy as hobbyists make it sound, after a few weeks, these displays would look like they were made from frosted glass, and we'd be polishing them every month. I've been at the Aquarium for probably about 4 years now and we've never buffed the acrylic in the Living Seashore to the best of my knowledge.

I think hobbyists fail to take into context the relative effort it takes to scratch any given tank. For example, it's really hard to scratch glass tanks. You can do it, but you really have to have a bad day to do it. It's easier to scratch acrylic than it is to scratch glass. But, I certainly wouldn't call it "easy" in general. It's just easy relative to the effort required to scratch glass, which again, is relatively difficult to do. I would personally classify acrylic as "difficult" to scratch, especially if you use the right tools as discussed earlier in this thread. Easier than glass, but certainly not "easy" in general.
 

chipmunkofdoom2

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Just adding one more thought. During my time at the National Aquarium, I've noticed that hobbyists do things very differently than large institutions. There are many examples that should probably be saved for another thread, but one such example is glass versus acrylic.

Among hobbyists, the discussion is typically "when do I need to use acrylic," or "when is acrylic a better choice than glass." Except for very rare instances, EVERYTHING in my department at the Aquarium is acrylic. The few glass tanks that I have seen are in backup areas. These are usually used in a temporary capacity to hold fish in QT, or to hold animals that are waiting to go in a display tank. Aside from these specific cases, everything that can be acrylic is acrylic.
 

ca1ore

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Thats good to know, but I think my question is still relevant that you don’t see mass produced acrylic tanks sitting in store shops like we do with glass. Maybe it’s the rimless focus as said earlier. I do like rimless tanks.

I suggested that it was about price, and I think that is a big part of it. My guess, and it is only a guess, is that manufacturers and retailers can move a $500 glass tank much more easily than a $1,000 acrylic tank. Why do you think Jebao pumps became so popular so quickly despite deplorable initial quality ….. they were cheap! Also remember that R2R members are not broadly representative of the general aquarium keeping masses. Most here recognize that acrylic tanks scratch much more easily, but can you imagine how many of the aforementioned masses would be complaining to their retailers about 'all the scratches'. I've made the point before that, for me, glass tanks are preferable at smaller sizes; acrylic at larger sizes … and that limits the addressable market considerably.

BTW, thanks for making an interesting observation in a thread that invariably just parrots what every other thread on the glass versus acrylic thread has said. Not a criticism of this thread solely; every thread on this topic ends up making the same four or five basic points.
 

biecacka

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I love my acrylic tank, sure it has a few scratches but I can buff them out if I cared enough to do so. Can’t do that with a glass tank.
they both have pros and cons, but for me the acrylic was a no brainer..


corey
 

92Miata

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The aquariums I know that use acrylic have scratches however I would not be surprised if someone is better at not scratching it than I am. I tend to get lazy with my maintenance sometimes (over the years) and this is when I pick up a bit of sand or coralline in between the magnets accidentally and bingo...
I've been to most of the major public aquariums in the US, and I've never seen one that has acrylic in good enough condition that I'd be happy with it in my home.

Scratches aren't as big of a deal when you have a 15 foot display window, with low light, and sharks.
 

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