Acrylic scratch true or false? or how easily
- Thread starter Chaka
- Start date
I originally had glass, but now I have 2 acrylic tanks a truvu 26L and a 55 acrylic by a different CA company.
I really like both, they do have their fair share of scratches and wear, but if you really want to you can usually buff out the scratches easily with either the polish kits, or wet/dry sandpaper. Its by no means difficult, or expensive, but it takes a bit of time and elbow grease.
I love the weight, moving them is easy, and most of all I love the clean look acrylic has, similar to a rimless tank, but you don't have to go either ADA or custom to get it.
I really like both, they do have their fair share of scratches and wear, but if you really want to you can usually buff out the scratches easily with either the polish kits, or wet/dry sandpaper. Its by no means difficult, or expensive, but it takes a bit of time and elbow grease.
I love the weight, moving them is easy, and most of all I love the clean look acrylic has, similar to a rimless tank, but you don't have to go either ADA or custom to get it.
Get a small snail trapped between a cleaning sponge and the inside wall of an acrylic tank (an Eclipse 6) and you'll get scratches. Fortunately, I saw this happening in time to scratch no more than about 2" long, and it's hard to see the mark.
As for public aquariums, we have a beautiful Aquarium and Botanic Garden at Central Ave and the Rio Grande here in Albuquerque and some public school kids were caught doing thousands of $ of damage to the tank walls... The whole school was banned from revisiting, but the student body worked to raise $ to pay for the damage to the public facility and to the school's good name. I think currently the bad kids' parents and officials are working things out, and I think the school as a whole has been let off the hook and can revisit. Probably stricter supervision is now in place, plus camaras. I imagine the city's risk management insurance covered the damage, but imagine having to drain millions of gallons of water, after removing everything from jelly fish to sharks, to replace the acrylic panels in the various tanks... On a more positive(?) note, a few years ago a nutty man thought he was friends with a jaguar at the zoo; the man jumped the fence, reached through and tried to pat the animal. The man lost some fingers. The cat was not in trouble (there would have been a public outrage had the cat received any blame)
As for public aquariums, we have a beautiful Aquarium and Botanic Garden at Central Ave and the Rio Grande here in Albuquerque and some public school kids were caught doing thousands of $ of damage to the tank walls... The whole school was banned from revisiting, but the student body worked to raise $ to pay for the damage to the public facility and to the school's good name. I think currently the bad kids' parents and officials are working things out, and I think the school as a whole has been let off the hook and can revisit. Probably stricter supervision is now in place, plus camaras. I imagine the city's risk management insurance covered the damage, but imagine having to drain millions of gallons of water, after removing everything from jelly fish to sharks, to replace the acrylic panels in the various tanks... On a more positive(?) note, a few years ago a nutty man thought he was friends with a jaguar at the zoo; the man jumped the fence, reached through and tried to pat the animal. The man lost some fingers. The cat was not in trouble (there would have been a public outrage had the cat received any blame)
The main differences I see:
Acrylic
+lighter
+clearer*
+sometimes made seemless by bending front corners
-scratches easier
-more expensive
Glass
+cheaper
+more scratch resistant
-green tint*
-heavy
*Some report that the clearity of some acrylic diminishes over time. Also there is low iron glass available that is really clear, but also costs more.
Acrylic
+lighter
+clearer*
+sometimes made seemless by bending front corners
-scratches easier
-more expensive
Glass
+cheaper
+more scratch resistant
-green tint*
-heavy
*Some report that the clearity of some acrylic diminishes over time. Also there is low iron glass available that is really clear, but also costs more.
