Commercially Available Wood Tanks, Would you buy one, and why?

[The R/C Man]

Hypothetical Scenario - - If you where looking to purchase a new reef ready tank, and the store has three choices in lets say 180 gallons. First is a acrylic. It costs the most but it the lightest and is easy to drill should you need to make changes. It is also very clear 98% light transmission. It requires a stand with a solid top for support. The second option is a standard glass tank, also reef ready. This tank is heavy and harder to drill. The plus side is they last forever. Usually less expensive than acrylic and not prone to stress cracking. They are however easier to break. (kids) Then you see a wood tank. It's weight is somewhere in between that of the other two tanks. Price is a little less the glass tank making the most affordable. It is also able to be drilled easily for additional equipment. The viewing window is low iron glass giving you similar transparency to the acrylic. The downside is there is only one viewing window. Currently a new product, the tank is unfinished allowing you to stain it to your liking.

Okay, there are many pros and cons to every design and I only touched on just a few for this scenario. If these were your choices which would you pick and why?

[Original Fin]

I would go glass, because that's what I'm most comfortable with. My main gripe with acrylic is longevity, and scratching. Sure it let's the most light and colors through when it's new, but it doesn't stay that way for long. Buffing it out means tearing the system down.

Commercially, wood tanks would be a new thing without a track record...that would be the perception anyway. I know that folks have been building these for themselves successfully for a long time now, but the public doesn't know that.
The big hump to get over IMO will be the issue of people trusting it to not break or leak, so you'd have to have knowledgable trained sales folks pitching it at first. I don't think it would do well selling itself from the shelf.
Also, the quality of the manufacturing process would have to be top notch. Any failure defects would totally derail it's future.
Another downside is that it's only one side viewable. I know you could do side panels too, but I assume that would drive the price higher, and it still wouldn't be a completely unobstructed wrap around view.

I do like the idea though. When I think of doing an inwall build someday, I will give this design some serious thought.



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[FoMoCo Master Tech]

I was all about acrylic because I live in earthquake country and it gave me a sense of security ( however false it may really be) but after dealing with an acrylic tank ( thank goodness I got it used), I found out it wasn't durable enough for my clumsy hands. I must have scratched it more than I was actually cleaning it! Also, most standard acrylic tanks are not completely "open top". They have cut out openings that I found awkward when putting in larger pieces of rock, mounting/ moving corals, etc... It doesn't help that the price difference is considerably more than standard glass tanks either. When I think of wood tanks, the two things that come to mind are in wall applications and huge tanks. I never considered smaller wood tanks ( like 75g, 100g, etc...). Having 3 viewing angles is nice but I only spend a fraction of the time away from the front. I'm not even sure I would miss the sides if they weren't there. As of now, standard glass is good enough for me but I would consider wood for larger tanks ( as small as 180g), mostly for cost reasons.Lets not forget that with wood, you could also " wrap it with fabric, leather, cowhide, etc... for additional customization. Speaker box felt comes to mind. Nothing like telling the wife you can't go shopping with her because you have to vacuum and lint roll the outside of the tank!

[chrisfont23]

Glass. No scratches and built the 'old fashioned way' to last.

[The R/C Man]

After building my own acrylic tanks I must say it is nice to work with. It can be made into about any shape you can imagine. The clarity is second to none. However, acrylic is easily scratched but it can be buffed back to its original luster. (I have done many tanks) With that said I have seen acrylic tanks fail and I believe the shelf life of an acrylic is less than that of glass. Glass is as I said heavy. My 75 gallon tank is really a two person job to move safely. Glass is less expensive unless you opt for the low iron stuff then the price goes up. While getting closer to the clarity of acrylic you do start to loose some of the scratch resistance of iron glass. Glass does look really nice though (clean). A wood tank lined with fiberglass would give the DIYer the ability to drill at their discretion. The tank would be really durable. Cost would be less especially when the tank sizes start to get large 180 - 240 gallons and up. While you do loose multi-sided views with wood tanks, if they are assembled nicely with trim molding (to look like a window frame) they could make a really beautiful piece of "furniture" in the living room. After having both acrylic and glass if those were the only choices I would go glass. However, with the beauty and durability of a wood tank I would give it try. +1 for Wood....

[muttley000]

I would surely look at a wood and starfire tank! In the hypothetical 180 gallon size I would go with glass 2nd.