biocube refugium baskets - why have plastic wall facing the light?

[saltyfish24]

If you have a macro algae light right up against the glass to grow chaeto in the refugium basket, don't you get a lot of algae growing on the plastic on that side, thus blocking the light from getting to the chaeto?

I already get a lot of algae on the inside glass surface. But that's pretty easy to scrape clean (because it's glass). It seems like not having plastic where the light coming from - like just having an opened wall on that side - would work best?

 

[TX_REEF]

I think it's so you can remove the whole thing without the media spilling out.

 

[penfold2]

I've always thought this was an incredibly poor design. There are two open sides anyways, so why not put the acrylic on the sides and leave the front and back open? With their design you have to clean three surfaces instead of one. Maybe there's some practical reason, but I don't see it. I made my own out of plastic mesh and zip ties for precisely this reason.