Glass or Acrylic?

So I know this may sound a little stupid but which is better Glass or Acrylic? Also is Starphire glass worth the extra pennies? I am thinking at the moment I would rather glass because I hate the idea of scratching the front of the display ;D

 

Ime, buffing out a scratch in acrylic easier than dealing with a sratch in glass. Just some food for thought.

 

acrylic scratches so easy i wouldnt do it again

 

I don think one is better than the other...I think they each offer unique advantages and disadvantages. Currently I have one of each. When I upgrade next I will not be doing acrylilc again - and I will be getting rid of the one acrylix tank I have. My main complaint is the scratches...acrylic scratches way too easy and way too badly. I have a lot of anxeity every time I scrub algae in that tank...if you get even a little bit of sand in between your pad and the acrylic...you will have a horrible scratch. As a result, it takes me like 3x as long to clean that tank as it does my glass tank. Also, with acrylic, you cant really use razor blades to scrape off coraline algae...which I do all the time in my glass tank. All of that being said, you can get some really cool shaped tanks in acrylic, and they weigh a lot less than glass...but the grief associated with the scratches and the cleaning has been too much for me...they are off my list for good.

 

Well said.
Who needs more anxiety?

 

Buffing out scratches isn't to bad on the outside of acrylic the inside however is easier said then done.but it can be done as opposed to glass.also acrylic is much easier to add holesfor closed loop or more returns or what ever you may decide.acrylic is also stronger then glass(17x?).comparing my acrylic tank to my glass tank I seem to have to clean the acrylic tank much more often then the glass not sure why this is but food for thought.that being said I would choose acrylic over glass on my next build.they are alittle more work to maintain but they look so much better,rounded corners and much clearer.after all isn't the point of the tank to look pretty.

 

I totally agree but it also come with dedication. If you dont want to put in the effort then glass is for you. If you do then acrylic. I have the MR. Clean Magic Eraser and I use them for cleaning the inside of the tank. Its only holding water now but like a previous post said you have to watch and make sure sand doesnt get in between the eraser and acrylic. I just move the sand away from the bottom of the sides and then clean that way no sand or better yet you have a better chance of not getting into any contact with the sand and eraser. Just my 2 pennies.

 

The rounded corners of acrylic look nice but to me it's not a deal breaker. The main reason i might want acrylic would be clarity. Do y'all fine Starphire is near acrylic in clarity?

 

I would never go acrylic... Glass is so tough to scratch that you can just not scratch it.. Acrylic on the other hand will be scratched. And you will do it easily. It's clear, but not noticeably clearer than low iron glass (starphire is a brand name, you can get something like diamante that is the same thing but costs less) Unless your tank design requires acrylic, I personally wouldn't touch it. There is no question I would ruin an acrylic display.

 

Very good to know. The reason I said Starphire is because I was looking at Glasscages and it's a extra $140 or so to get just the front panel made with it. Are there any particular brands of Glass tanks y'all would recommend and is black silicone worth it or is it just personal opinion?