Best Acrylic Tank Manufacturer???????

[vetteguy53081]

Just watched that great video. A lot easier and quicker. Well explained and looks easy enough

 

[italquam]

Good post as I have a monster acrylic arriving Saturday

What manufacturer made your tank and do you mind giving some feedback and photos from it?

 

[JoshH]

Any chance you could post some pics of the overflow setup?

A little late but I slept in lol here is the overflow as promised.

 

[italquam]

That is awesome....Overflow is a thing of beauty.

Is the weir on overflow removable? Is the overflow box as well made of glass?

Did you set that up for bean animal overflow?

 

[italquam]

Wow that is awesome, is the weir removable on that overflow. ??

Is the overflow made from glass ?

Is it setup for Bean Animal overflow?

 

[vetteguy53081]

What manufacturer made your tank and do you mind giving some feedback and photos from it?

I believe its' custom aquariums as this is custom designed with steel frame stand, complete cherry wood with canopy and all doors invisible as they are flush and hidden.

 

[JoshH]

Wow that is awesome, is the weir removable on that overflow. ??

Is the overflow made from glass ?

Is it setup for Bean Animal overflow?

The weir is not removable, it is siliconed to the back panel. The overflow box itself is made from the same 1/2" Starfire glass as the rest of the tank and is drilled for a Bean Animal Drain style. The weir itself is 1/4" Black acrylic. I will add that Miracles offers a Ghost overflow from Reef Savvy on there tanks as well as long as the panel you want the overflow on is wide enough ( The overflow itself is 21 1/2" Wide) I believe it would cost an additional $389.00 CAD if I'm remembering correctly.

I have only 3 minor issues with my tank and 2 of them aren't Miracles fault.

1 - the inside edge of the Euro bracing isn't polished but I didn't specify to polish it.

2 - I didn't ask for tooled interior silicone seams and while the seams are still neat and clean I would have preferred tooled. Although I'll admit if they were tooled they would be MUCH wider than they are which might make the corners look really bulky.

3 - The weir has an extra slot cut into either end that don't match up with the opening in the glass and were subsequently filled with silicone. Definately not the end if the world as you can't see it unless you really stare at it lol

As I said earlier, these are tiny issues and even with those the tank truly is a work of art I also didn't ask or pay for it but both the back 2 corners are reinforced on the inside with 1/2" glass and the bottom is braced with 1 1/2" glass as well. The exterior of the overflow box is also reinforced where it meets the tank with the same 1/2" Glass trim as the interior.

 

[Cesar Romero]

Check out Windrider Creations. I got my acrylic 60x24x26 from him at a great price, and am super happy with the craftsmanship. Check out his Facebook page as he has pictures of other custom tank builds he has done.

Great idea with going 30 depth, I wish I had the extra inches.

 

[Cesar Romero]

Also for a sleek quite overflow box really check out Exotic Marine System, I got the 32 inch one and it is AWESOME! So much better than the synergy reef one I had. I went from a waterfall to a completely silent box and no more saltcreep.

 

[jfree07]

I had a midwest tank several years ago. It was a nice solid tank but there was a lot of bubbles in the seams. Also some minor crazing. I wasn't super impressed.

 

[italquam]

I had a midwest tank several years ago. It was a nice solid tank but there was a lot of bubbles in the seams. Also some minor crazing. I wasn't super impressed.

Wow that is terrible to hear, any pictures ?

 

[Solace87]

Acrylic actually has better optic clarity over standard glass. Acrylic is a better insulator over glass. The seams, when done correctly, are stronger than silicone with glass. It's actually much better all around other than the fact that gets scratched up so very easily.

An INCREDIBLY ignorant post.

 

[italquam]

An INCREDIBLY ignorant post.

Care to explain your very strong response?

 

[JaimeAdams]

An INCREDIBLY ignorant post.

Not exactly sure what you mean to imply here. I must be missing your expert knowledge somewhere, care to add to a conversation?

 

[Lowell Lemon]

An INCREDIBLY ignorant post.

Says a man who knows how much about the subject? Oh and has 7 posts.
Cell Cast Acrylic is 6 to 7 times more impact resistant, optically clearer, thermally more effecient, and proper welds are as stong as the parent material. Add to the fact that proper welds do not degrade over time like silicone seams and you will start to understand why all major public aquariums use Cell Cast Acrylic or laminated acrylic and glass panels for all their major displays. Just try to get an insurance company to underwrite a policy for manufacturing glass tanks versus acrylic or for use in a major public venue like a public aquarium. There is a hugh safety advantage in every aspect to cell cast acrylic use in aquarium construction.

I actually looked at buying a glass aquarium business back in the 80's but my insurance company would not provide a policy. I was able to get 2 million dollar coverage for $750.00 a year for the same business plan but using Cell Cast Acrylics to manufacture aquariums. Have over 30 years of experience building tanks from 16 gallons to over 1400 gallons. Never a problem for strength. Compare that to the dollar a gallon glass tanks that end up in the yard catching rain after the seal let go after a year or two of use.

By the way before making and selling my own brand I sold lots of glass tanks through the product lines I distributed. In the period of five years there were many glass tanks that failed by at least two different manufacturers. I sold Clarity Plus and Tenecor acrylic tanks during the same time with zero failures. Seems like a major advantage to protect your investment with acrylic like the professionals that run public aquariums do.

A scratch can be repaired but you can't put all the pieces back together after the glass explodes.

 

[Dkeller_nc]

Regardless of the acrylic vs. glass debate, Lowell does make an excellent, if implied, point. Engineering and craftsmanship aren't free, and it's incorrect to state that someone like Reef Savvy is "overpriced". They're correctly priced for what goes into them, which is gigantically higher quality and safety than bottom of the rung tanks like Glass Cages. Even if you're not an engineer, it should be clear to folks looking at a tank like Reef Savvy (and others of similar ilk, like Elos, etc...) that a great deal of the purchase price is going into making sure that the tank will be tough with an extremely low risk of failure - "armored seams" in one example of this sort of construction feature.

A similar situation exists with acrylic tanks (and just about everything else) - you get at most what you pay for, and the quality and safety of the tank is directly influenced by the cost, as well as the manufacturer's business practices. I can assure the OP that it certainly is possible to get an acrylic tank that is poorly constructed, just the same as getting a glass tank that's poorly constructed. Generally speaking, the potentially severe structural and cosmetic damage to your home is going to be far, far more costly than ponying up the extra $$ it takes to get a quality tank of either material, and to pay the manufacturer to make your stand so that there's no question that you've not compromised the structural integrity in any way if you find yourself talking to an insurance company.

Food for thought....

 

[italquam]

Regardless of the acrylic vs. glass debate, Lowell does make an excellent, if implied, point. Engineering and craftsmanship aren't free, and it's incorrect to state that someone like Reef Savvy is "overpriced". They're correctly priced for what goes into them, which is gigantically higher quality and safety than bottom of the rung tanks like Glass Cages. Even if you're not an engineer, it should be clear to folks looking at a tank like Reef Savvy (and others of similar ilk, like Elos, etc...) that a great deal of the purchase price is going into making sure that the tank will be tough with an extremely low risk of failure - "armored seams" in one example of this sort of construction feature.

A similar situation exists with acrylic tanks (and just about everything else) - you get at most what you pay for, and the quality and safety of the tank is directly influenced by the cost, as well as the manufacturer's business practices. I can assure the OP that it certainly is possible to get an acrylic tank that is poorly constructed, just the same as getting a glass tank that's poorly constructed. Generally speaking, the potentially severe structural and cosmetic damage to your home is going to be far, far more costly than ponying up the extra $$ it takes to get a quality tank of either material, and to pay the manufacturer to make your stand so that there's no question that you've not compromised the structural integrity in any way if you find yourself talking to an insurance company.

Food for thought....

Excellent advice

 

[italquam]

Says a man who knows how much about the subject? Oh and has 7 posts.
Cell Cast Acrylic is 6 to 7 times more impact resistant, optically clearer, thermally more effecient, and proper welds are as stong as the parent material. Add to the fact that proper welds do not degrade over time like silicone seams and you will start to understand why all major public aquariums use Cell Cast Acrylic or laminated acrylic and glass panels for all their major displays. Just try to get an insurance company to underwrite a policy for manufacturing glass tanks versus acrylic or for use in a major public venue like a public aquarium. There is a hugh safety advantage in every aspect to cell cast acrylic use in aquarium construction.

I actually looked at buying a glass aquarium business back in the 80's but my insurance company would not provide a policy. I was able to get 2 million dollar coverage for $750.00 a year for the same business plan but using Cell Cast Acrylics to manufacture aquariums. Have over 30 years of experience building tanks from 16 gallons to over 1400 gallons. Never a problem for strength. Compare that to the dollar a gallon glass tanks that end up in the yard catching rain after the seal let go after a year or two of use.

By the way before making and selling my own brand I sold lots of glass tanks through the product lines I distributed. In the period of five years there were many glass tanks that failed by at least two different manufacturers. I sold Clarity Plus and Tenecor acrylic tanks during the same time with zero failures. Seems like a major advantage to protect your investment with acrylic like the professionals that run public aquariums do.

A scratch can be repaired but you can't put all the pieces back together after the glass explodes.

Awesome information here..... If you don't mind me asking do you still make acrylic aquariums?

 

[Lowell Lemon]

Awesome information here..... If you don't mind me asking do you still make acrylic aquariums?

I still have the occasional interest but I switched industries to fabricate Quartz, and Solid Surface counter tops with DuPont Corian products and keep quite busy as a result! I was making aquarium cabinets in Corian Solid Surface before DuPont offered me the opportunity to to service our local area. I am just getting pricing for acrylic for a request but it is more for fun than my main business.

 

[italquam]

I still have the occasional interest but I switched industries to fabricate Quartz, and Solid Surface counter tops with DuPont Corian products and keep quite busy as a result! I was making aquarium cabinets in Corian Solid Surface before DuPont offered me the opportunity to to service our local area. I am just getting pricing for acrylic for a request but it is more for fun than my main business.

Would love to see some pictures of your work? Any chance you still would price one up for me?