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Plastic Aquarium Tanks
Plastic aquairum tanks are the least popular of all aquariums and are very inexpensive and normally are found on the shelves of your local aquarium store. They have many disadvantages and no advantages over acrylic aquarium tanks or glass aquarium tanks and are now becoming obsolete for many reasons:
- Discoloring over time: They will turn yellowish color as the aquarium tank ages.
- Scratching: They very scratch easily and there is no real way to repair the scratches.
- Limited sizes of tanks: Typically only come in very small sizes with capacity of about 2 to 5 gallons.
- Melt under heat: They have been known to melt when their own lights get hot so not a good choice.
- Distortion: They suffer major distortion problems due to their odd shapes.
Acrylic Aquarium Tanks
Acrylic aquarium tanks have changed the face of aquariums in the last few years. The lightweight tanks come in many shapes and forms such as half spheres, bubble, L-shaped, triangular, tubular, and convex. With acrylic, the shapes and designs are endless and is up to our imagination.
Before we look at the advantages we start with the disadvantages.
Acrylic Disadvantages
More expensive: Acrylic aquariums are more expensive than the glass aquarium tanks. If you get into custom styles then your budget will go up, these forms of tanks are top of the range in terms of quality, workmanship and beauty. If you can buy one is worth the money.
Scratching: They are quite easily scratched so be careful when cleaning with an algae pad. Moving decorations around can bang and scratch the glass also. There are scratch removing kits available at your local aquarium shop that will remove most minor scratches and blemishes.
Distortion: Acrylic tanks will have some distortion due to the construction process from heating them before bending into the nice shapes but will give a seamless look and allow viewing from all angles.
Acrylic Advantages
Lightweight: Acrylic aquarium tanks are lighter than glass aquariums, which gives the advantages of placing them upstairs in your house and are far easier to move around.
Stronger: They can take an impact and will not shatter easily.
Different Shapes: As mentioned earlier they can be molded into half spheres, bubble, L-shaped, triangular, tubular, and convex.
Stylish: Acrylic tanks can come with colored backgrounds which can be stunning with the correct decoration. You also get more choices in colors and styles to match the interior of your home or office. They can give any room an appearance and generally looks more expensive than glass tanks.
Image: Aquarium Design
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