Has anyone ever had a problem with an acrylic aquarium?

[dereks]

Has anyone ever had a leak on an acrylic aquarium?

Ever had to repair one?

Has anyone ever buffed out scratches on one? Did it turn out well and were there any challenges during the process?

Just curious how reliable they are compared to glass. I'm thinking about marrying mine and settling down in a small house out in the country.

 

[FishL0ver]

Not sure about fixing it. I have heard that smearing toothpaste on the scratches on the outside of the tank may fix it. If you want to not have to deal with scratches you should consider a glass aquarium.

 

[fishorama]

Well, my plant club had a demo of polishing out scratches on acrylic tanks last year (I didn't really pay attention, it didn't seem too hard). I've heard of leaking seams... & that scares me away from them. It seems a lot harder than resealing glass tanks; I've done that several times, no big deal.

But acrylic is a whole different thing. Before I moved to the West Coast, I was told it was the preferred earthquake (-proof?) tank material. But almost no one I know here uses anything but glass. Here they're all about rimless, often low iron glass tanks. Earthquakes be darned! Well, I haven't heard anyone actually say that...but still, you get my drift...

 

[FreshyFresh]

I think acrylic's benefits are it can be molded into shapes other than glass boxes and like fishorama said, it's less likely to crack and shatter under stresses. I know I've had my share of cracks and leaks on glass tanks. I have no experience with acrylic tanks. Never owned one.

 

[fishorama]

I forgot to say I was given a 55g acrylic tank but I hated the 2 or 3 inch rim around the top. Just 2 holes for cords & a slot for a filter. I gave it away without ever setting it up.