Glass or Acrylic?

[kevinsimons]

I've NEVER liked my 55 Acrylic - it's lightweight, which was great when I carried up 20 stairs during startup, but beyond that, I think it's a pain. Is glass easier to clean? My arms get sore from scrubbing algae and coraline off the glass... and now I have a big ol' scratch right across the middle of the pane where my algae pad picked up a piece of sand (I knew this would happen)..

SO... is glass significantly easier to keep clean? I know it's more difficult to scratch glass, I know it's heavier... but the time spent cleaning the acrylic is wearing me down. It's not a matter of IF I do a change to glass - but when, since I know have a big scratch right in the middle of the window... should I do it now, or does it matter if I put it off? I understand doing a tank move like this will likely result in a mini-cycle (we'll cover that as the inevitable move draws closer)... the important question now is: NOW OR LATER?

 

[nudy6969]

you can use a special acrylic scratch removal kit to remove scratches.

 

[Doc]

glass is the best way to go. Acryllic is a huge pain in the ass. I would never get it unless I went with a custom tank that was over 400 gallons. Glass starts to get less desirable when the thickness gets over about 3/4 of an inch and the view starts to look green. acryllic is more clear in thicker pieces than glass. For a 55 gallon? glass all the way. You can't scratch it near as easy and getting coralline off with a blade is a piece of cake

-Doc

 

[daugherty]

i will never buy an acryllic tank again my 50 is acryllic and now it has scratches all over it. i just dont want to tear it apart to fix the scratches.

 

[reeffreak]

Why bother to fix the scratch on your acrylic tank if you're going to change to glass.Go glass and never look back until they come out with scratch proof acrylic.

 

[cthegame]

Doc as you covered 100%. With the size you want, glass is the way to go.

 

[RyanG]

When you do switch up the old acrylic tank will be a great sump though! Glass is the way to go for everything!

 

[kevinsimons]

So, are there advantages to doing it now vs later? If I do it now, do I reduce the risk of a mini-cycle when I move everything over to the new tank? or will the mini-cycle likely occur no matter what? Tank has been running since June 07.

 

[sen5241b]

So, are there advantages to doing it now vs later? If I do it now, do I reduce the risk of a mini-cycle when I move everything over to the new tank? or will the mini-cycle likely occur no matter what? Tank has been running since June 07.

To help prevent a mini cycle after the move use water and LR from the old tank.

 

[Bifferwine]

If you use old sand and old rock and a bit of old water, you will probably avoid a minicycle, but there are no guarantees. Sometimes just moving rocks around can trigger a minicycle.

 

[yote]

Switch it out now.
Just use the sand and rock you already have,and as much of the water as possible.
When I switched from the 55 to the 75,I didnt have a mini-cycle.

 

[Altohombre]

go glass