plexiglass aquarium top

[Trippy712000]

Hello, was wondering if plexiglass is ok for lighting thru, will it block any of the spectrum? And if not..where can one get a sheet of plexiglass and get it cut....was going to build a hood for my aquarium but want a sheet to put under the lights..would home depot have something like that?

Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

Hello Trippy, and :welcome:

Plexiglass should be fine unless you are using metal halide lighting. Halides will warp plexi and discolor it too.

What kind of lighting are you using?

How far will the light bulbs be from the plexi?

What size tank do you have? They make glass covers for many standard size tanks.

Louey

 

[Rikko]

Hi Trip, I agree with Louey - acrylic works just as well as glass (better at times).

You can get it from virtually any glass shop, though you will most likely have to pay a minimum cut fee (eg. when I needed to build a small baffle in a terrarium to create a water area for my frogs, it cost me $10 even though a piece twice that size would also cost $10). Call ahead and get quotes.
I'd suggest the thinnest acrylic available for your top, simply because that's less solid material the light needs to pass through. I think it comes as thin as 1/16" - that should be fine unless the piece is substantially large.

I have also seen sheets of acrylic at Home Depot (and Rona in Canada - Lowes most certainly has it as well) and it's quite thin - I believe they sell it as a window cover to make the glass tougher to break or something.

Like Louey said, though, if it's going to get substantially warm, go with glass instead as the glass won't discolor (it will of course shatter if it gets TOO warm and you splash colder water on it).

 

[hfmann]

How much air space do you recommend between a top and the water? I've got an acrylic tank with probably 1/3 of the top covered (two large cut outs). I'm wondering if I'm getting sufficient gas exchange.
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American Forum

 

[Anonymous]

Surface gas exchange does not do much for reef setup. If you have a sump, there is a lot more going on there inside the skimmer than the surface of the tank.

 

[hfmann]

Seven,

Yeh, got sump! So if I had only 1/2 to 3/4" of space between cover and water, that'd be fine as long as plenty of movement in the sump?

Always thought the skimmer would also provide plenty of oxygenation, but I've heard others say not necessarily so.

Hal
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Crete Forum

 

[Anonymous]

As long as you have good overflow that skim off the top layer of the water to the sump, don't be too concern about the amount of space up there. I will be more concern about overflowing if there is not sufficient "play" incase something goes wrong.

In term of surface area, a properly sized skimmer probably give you more than what you can do on the tank surface.

 

[hfmann]

Thanks Seven. That makes me feel more comfortable. I got a super size skimmer, the MACO Brian Ferguson beckett one. It's a monster.

Thanks again and Take care,
Hal
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Mercedes Vito