ACRYLIC TANKS

[REEFAHOLIC]

I just brought my new tank home (320g) and I found a scratch on the bottom of it. My spouse is all concerned now that it is a major defect. Can this really cause me any problems?? At first I thought it was a crack but it is a scratch, but he doesn't believe me. I don't think acrylic cracks, does it :? Any advise would be great

Thanks
Tina

[dan]

it can crack if it was droped. hopefully that did'nt happen. don't worry if it's just a scratch. most acrylic tanks are all scratched up on the bottom from pushing and shoving

[Henry]

If its just a scratch you should be fine. Acrylic may crack if dropped or has a lot of torsional stress. As Dan said alot of acrylic tanks have scratches on the bottom from moving and from rock on the inside.

[greatbarrier52]

Torsional Stress. Love the vocabulary Henry. I guess I learn something new every day. Go to tenecor.com They will have everthing that you will need to buff out any scratches if they really bother you.

[Henry]

Hey I had to look that one up.

[prof]

Liquid Lense...Do a web search for it...

Sounds like hype to me but if it can cover scratches in glass well enough to prevent algea from growing in them it might be worth it. I was tempted to buy a bottle but have not.

Someone should try it. I would like to know if it works.

Oh, the scratch on the bottom should not cause any problem.

[greatbarrier52]

Liquid Lense???? Can I use it while I got the fish and water still in the tank?

[matt]

Regarding the scratch in your acrylic tank, I'd have to look at it to determine if it's a potential structural problem. If it's a DEEP scratch, and long, it could potentially act as a "scribe" and cause weakness in that area. This is unlikely, though. A good precaution would be to either buff it out, or fill it with a fillet of weldon #40 if it's a monster. Since it's on the bottom, you're not concerned about the appearance. Micro mesh is the best product for removing deep scratches in acrylic; it's a series of abrasive sheets, starting at 1500 grit and going to 12000 grit. Since there's no liquid or powder, there is nothing left on the acrylic after you're finished, and so it's completely animal safe.

[greatbarrier52]

Hey Matt will you notice a difference after you buff it out or do you have to be an artist to do a great job? How easy is it to work with.

[matt]

I'm not sure what you're asking. If you have scratches on the side of an acrylic tank, and you buff them out, of course there's a difference, you don't have scratches anymore. If you have really deep scratches, it's a lot of work to get the area so there's no optical distortion; you have to buff over a fairly large area. Does that answer your question? The micromesh is really easy to use; it's basically high quality sand paper. But it's a lot of work, in that there are 9 different grits, and you have to use all of them.

[Henry]

Well Jeff sound like its too much work for you. :-D :lol2:

[REEFAHOLIC]

Thanks for all your input everybody.

[greatbarrier52]

WOW! Henry is right that is a lot of work. Yeah matt I was wondering if you had to feather out pretty far so that you would not see the distortion. You answered my question. Thanks

[REEFAHOLIC]

Matt:

I did a search on the micro mesh, is it the same product that can be hooked up on an orbit sander. I have some surface scratches to remove from inside the tank also.

Tina

[REEFAHOLIC]

I found it, Tenecor sells it. :D

[matt]

You can also get it locally at woodcraft. It's a kit, that contains two pieces of each grit, plus a foam sanding block. It's $40. I've seen the same kit on line for a little less, but they also make a smaller kit, which really only has a tiny piece of each grit. Since I go through this stuff, if you buy the $40 kit and would like to sell one of the pieces of each grit, I'll buy them. If you could find full size sheets, you could use them on an orbital sander, but I'd be VERY cautious about doing that on a finished tank.

When I assemble a skimmer or reactor, I use this stuff to finish the joints. So, we're talking an edge of acrylic that's been routed, usually with some cement build up as well. IOW, a pretty rough surface, much worse than typical surface scratches on an aquarium. I usually go over the joint with 320 wet/dry paper to flush the edge and remove the router marks, then go right to the 1500 micromesh, by hand. It doesn't take much with the micromesh by hand to remove the scratches left by the 320 paper. So, using it in an electric sander, I think it would cut pretty fast, and you might take off more than you want, leaving some optical distortion.

I think you'll like the stuff. On the wet side, once you get to 8000, it looks identical to new acrylic. On the dry side, you have to go all the way to 12000, then finish off with some acrylic polish like brillianeeze, novus #2, something like that.

[dan]

how long is that baby and how tall and deep?

[REEFAHOLIC]

Its 8 feet long x 24 inch wide. 32 high

[matt]

I'd like to see it.

[REEFAHOLIC]

Sure, I'll be home all weekend, just name the time, its still in the back of my truck. Haven't finished the stand yet. The tank came available before I was actually ready for it.

[REEFAHOLIC]

I forgot to ask, if anyone knows if the Acrylic stores have the Novus or micro mesh for sale.

[dan]

you can buy the novus at allied plastics # 655-2415 or regal plastics # 559-8291 comes in corse and fine. they also have sample packs. i have a whole bottle of the fine if you want to try it.

[REEFAHOLIC]

Thanks for the help guys :)