Acrylic Fish Tank

[32Bit_Fish]

Hi Guys,

Anyone own an acrylic fish tank? Is it easy to keep them clean? I know they are super easy to get scratched up.

I'm in NY metropolitan area and wondering if there is a reputable vendor that I can buy an acrylic tank from.

I'm looking for a 125G or a 150G. I love the fact that the light weight of an acrylic compare to a glass tank.

Thanks

[adrian31@outlook.com]

I have a 180gal acrylic which is my first.

RE: Cleaning: the one drawback I have in regard to cleaning is on mine the top only has two oval shaped cutouts instead of the top being completely open so I have to reach my hand through these to clean. Maybe you can get one with no acrylic at the top.

RE: Scratches: mine is a 'Clear-For-Life' tank which was manufactured three months ago. I've read that the manufacturing processes have come a long way and Clear-for-Life is one of the better ones as far as scratching. I purchased an 'acrylic algae remover' which is on a handle, this doesn't remove the algae/film from my tank walls that well. So I use a normal soft wash rag and this works quickly and really well, no scratches so far. Just make sure you don't get any sand/substrate between your rag and the tank wall, this will definitely cause scratches.

I've always had glass tanks up to now and if I had the choice again whether glass or acrylic I'd choose acrylic again.

[32Bit_Fish]

Thanks for your response Adrian. Would you be able to move the tank by yourself? I would guess your 180G weight a little 100 lb vs a 300lb glass?

Did you order your 180g online?

[pastry]

What sort of prices are you two looking at for those sizes? Moving in the spring and want a bigger tank. Keeping my 150 glass but man is that thing a beast... even empty.

[adrian31@outlook.com]

Thanks for your response Adrian. Would you be able to move the tank by yourself? I would guess your 180G weight a little 100 lb vs a 300lb glass?

Did you order your 180g online?

I couldn't move it by myself comfortably mostly because of the length, but easy with two people. I ordered mine from fishtanksdirect.com as a package with sump, stand & canopy, lights, etc. included. I know I seriously overpaid but with no prior knowledge with sumps it was the easiest thing for me to do. Now that I've seen firsthand all the components I could buy things separately and save money.

[adrian31@outlook.com]

What sort of prices are you two looking at for those sizes? Moving in the spring and want a bigger tank. Keeping my 150 glass but man is that thing a beast... even empty.

I did the easiest thing and bought a complete package from fishtanksdirect.com, if you have experience I think you could buy the tank & stand first, then buy filter, etc separately and save money. Fishtanksdirect.com has quite a few sizes & makes of acrylics available.

[Candydiscus]

I moved my 135g which has 1/2 thick glass on it because it was made in 1982 all bymyself up 2 flights of stairs to my bedroom.. Its wiehgs probly 300lbs at least. So if acrylic weighs half that of glass i would imagine you could move a 180g by yourself if you go slow.

[atlantadiscus]

After having dozens of glass tanks since the late 1960s,I finally have a acrylic tank.There are pros and cons to each,the least being their weight in my opinion {how often do you really move your aquarium?}.My main reason for choosing acrylic is the tank is less prone to leak over time as there is no silicone holding multiple panes of glass together- in an acrylic tank,all individual panes are fused by a molecular bond,literally melted together to become one piece.,the seams are said to be stronger than the individual panes of acrylic themselves.I have had glass tanks leak before,the last being a 1 year old 90 gallon that completely emptied on the floor while nobody was home for the entire weekend.

Acrylic scratches easier than glass,but unlike glass,those scratches can be buffed out.Acrylic is also said to be a much better insulator than glass,so cheaper to maintain water temps.Acrylic is also clearer than glass,with no tint,so the fishes true colors are displayed better than glass.Acrylic also is less prone to breaking{something to consider if you have little kids who throw things} The real downside is cost,acrylic tanks cost much more than glass tanks.

For a small tank,I would probably choose glass,larger {over 40 gallons IMO} I would lean towards acrylic.Over 100 gallons,no question,acrylic.

[Candydiscus]

I should note, glass can be buffed as well. All acrylics can yellow over time as well if it isnt a high quality acrylic, while as glass doesnt change colors. There are glass types that are clear as well for aquariums it just costs more, the glass that is "green" is just a ferris (or a type of iron) oxide impurity.

I would never have an acrylic tanks because of the scratches and the yellowing of the acrylic over time some do some dont.. Not worth the risk or hassle IMO. Its the same process like car headlights.. they all yellow over time while glass ones dont.


Acrylic looks clearer because its refraction index is the same as water almost, glass has a higher refraction of light

[adrian31@outlook.com]

I moved my 135g which has 1/2 thick glass on it because it was made in 1982 all bymyself up 2 flights of stairs to my bedroom.. Its wiehgs probly 300lbs at least. So if acrylic weighs half that of glass i would imagine you could move a 180g by yourself if you go slow.

Agreed, so I'll clarify my previous post; I couldn't easily pick it up and carry it but I suppose it'd be little problem putting a rug underneath and dragging it.

[32Bit_Fish]

The best price for a 125g or 130g acrylic tank is $1100 online and anything lower than that were all sold out.

A 200 lb fish tank becomes burden whenever I tried to move due to lack of manpower to move it and the cost of hiring someone to move it.

[Candydiscus]

Agreed, so I'll clarify my previous post; I couldn't easily pick it up and carry it but I suppose it'd be little problem putting a rug underneath and dragging it.

Dont need a rug. Just lay the tank length wise on the stairs. Lift the bottom end and slide it up. Mine was difficult because my stairs have two landing and they are U shaped to get to the top level. So the first landing had one end of the tank and i had to lift the entire other end of the tank and push it above my head and tilt it on on the glass on the end and twist the tank on the landing (in order to get around the railings and lay it down on the stairs and repeat that one more time. It was very hard as pushing a 300+ lbs tank above my head. Granted one end was laying on the landing but still it was very hard so it was like lifting a 300lbs bar bell above your head

[32Bit_Fish]

Does anyone know any store in tri-state areas that sell acrylic fish tank? I've called petland discount and they don't even know the difference between a glass tank and an acrylic fish tank. All other LFs don't even sell acrylic fish tank.

[adrian31@outlook.com]

Dont need a rug. Just lay the tank length wise on the stairs. Lift the bottom end and slide it up. Mine was difficult because my stairs have two landing and they are U shaped to get to the top level. So the first landing had one end of the tank and i had to lift the entire other end of the tank and push it above my head and tilt it on on the glass on the end and twist the tank on the landing (in order to get around the railings and lay it down on the stairs and repeat that one more time. It was very hard as pushing a 300+ lbs tank above my head. Granted one end was laying on the landing but still it was very hard so it was like lifting a 300lbs bar bell above your head

Hi CandyDiscus:

Sounds like quite a task but you were able to pull it off. But with an acrylic you'd need a rug or something else to protect it as you dragged it, anything that scraped any surface of the acrylic would most likely scratch it.

Kenny

[Candydiscus]

Oh yea i forgot acrylic doesnt have rims