Hello, I am looking for a new fish tank (30-50 gallons), however I am not sure what I should go with. I am currently looking at the seaclear system II which is acrylic and has wet-dry filtration, an eclipse system 3 with a 37 gallon tank which can either come in glass or acrylic (which is $100 more), or an oceanic with a penguin filter which is glass and looks very sharp. I would really like to know firsthand problems with acrylic. I also want to know if the brand name on an aquarium accounts for anything. I would also want a filtration system that works well and is easy to manage, (right now I have an eclipse bias as this is the system I own right now)
What type of tank should I get?
- Thread starter nkelmquist
- Start date
Often the decision of tank shape (long, high, corner, hex etc.) and filtration system can really be affected by what type of fish you want to keep, whether or not you want live plants, etc. Do you know the type of fish/plants you'd like to have?
I'd say if you're looking at 30-50g you might want to stretch that a bit and get a 55g, it's a very nice size and allows a lot of options.
The biggest problem I know about with acrylic is that it scratches quite easily (even plecos can scratch it by grazing on algae, I've heard), but there are ways to repair it. It's also much more expensive than glass.
As for filtration, that can also depend on what you'll be keeping in the tank - bigger, messier fish need larger filters with faster flow, planted tanks are best with filters that don't create much surface disturbance, etc. If money's not an object, Eheim makes wonderful cannister filters - if I was setting up a new system and had the money, that's what I'd go with.
I'd say if you're looking at 30-50g you might want to stretch that a bit and get a 55g, it's a very nice size and allows a lot of options.
The biggest problem I know about with acrylic is that it scratches quite easily (even plecos can scratch it by grazing on algae, I've heard), but there are ways to repair it. It's also much more expensive than glass.
As for filtration, that can also depend on what you'll be keeping in the tank - bigger, messier fish need larger filters with faster flow, planted tanks are best with filters that don't create much surface disturbance, etc. If money's not an object, Eheim makes wonderful cannister filters - if I was setting up a new system and had the money, that's what I'd go with.
I have an acrylic tank and YES it scratches easily! I used those magnet algae cleaner things on it and now it has hairline scratches all along it. You can only see them if you are REALLY close, but still......that's not good. I would stick with glass.
Erynn said:
do you have the magnet algae cleaner that is nade for acrylic??? do you use pads made for cleaning acrylic??? if so they still scratched it???
if you have the room you can get a 55 gallon for a decent price and then just add 1 or 2 HOB filters
i'd look for a '40 breeder'. great size if you ask me. it's shorter than a 55 but it's also much wider - dimensions are 36" X 18" i believe. i'm not entirely sure it's worth while to spend extra money on an acrylic tank with a wet/dry filtration system, when glass with a good HOB is just as good, and a lot less expensive - spend the extra money on a good stand, or an upgrade of your lights.
Yup, I use the magnets used for acrylic. It's a little Eclipse 5 gallon hex, and you can't see the scratches unless you are RIGHT beside it. Still, it was disappointing.