Glass Types: Starphire, OptiWhite, Regular Glass

[scubadude]

Well I have heard that OptiWhite may be the new craze over Starphire glass....OptiWhite is cheaper and just as clear and is suppose to make your corals look alot more flourescent! Heres some pics of all 3 types of glass

Top piece is Regular Glass
Middle piece is Opti White
Bottom Piece is Starphire



Right piece is Reg.
Middle Opti
Left is Starphire

[organicreefer]

where did you get the samples?trying to make a decision?cool comparison.

[srgtkoons]

How much cheaper?

[scubadude]

got the glass from the guy who made my 220 starphire tank....look in reef discussion if u want to contact him....Im not sure how much cheaper the opti is...he said it was cheaper than starphire.

[organicreefer]

i dont know much about glass per say,so this might be a dumb question,but is any of them stronger than the others?do they weigh the same?

[scubadude]

That is a VERY good question organic!

Actually the strongest is the Reg. glass....it has Iron (i believe its iron) in it. This iron is what makes it stronger....you take out the iron and you get better visibility, but weaken the strength. I will show you sum more pics of my tank tommorow to show you what this guy did to reinforce the glass better! That is a very good question though! Im glad you asked that!

[naser]

ive allway used regular for some reason.. it seems like its not that huge of a difference between the three except when you have that side shot.i just ordered a 125 for like $370 or somthing close to it. i dont know how much a 125 in that startphire would be but i bet its not $370 bucks.

if i was rich maybe.

[icemark]

too bad you didn't have a piece of plexi to compare as well.

Great idea though.

[Ninong]

Originally posted by icemark
too bad you didn't have a piece of plexi to compare as well.

The transmission qualities of acrylic and Starphire are almost identical, although the diffraction characteristics are different.


Scubadude,

Is it possible that this OptiWhite glass is a product from a different manufacturer that is similar in content to the Starphire glass from PPG Industries? Starphire is just a product brand name used by PPG.


Naser,

Yes, tanks made with Starphire glass cost a lot more because the glass itself is about 40% more expensive than regular soda-lime glass. I would assume that regular soda-lime glass might be stronger than Starphire glass but I haven't really pressed that point with the manufacturer. However, the manufacturer does insist that there is no difference in surface hardness between regular soda-lime glass and Starphire glass, and therefore no difference in tendencies to scratch.


Someone posted a few weeks back that Oceanic was considering using Starphire glass. That would be interesting. They have always insisted in the past that there was no market for it because of the increased cost. It would be nice to see what kind of a product could be produced by a company with all of the expensive up-to-date finishing equipment.

Regards,

Ninong

[scubadude]

Originally posted by Ninong

Scubadude,

Is it possible that this OptiWhite glass is a product from a different manufacturer that is similar in content to the Starphire glass from PPG Industries? Starphire is just a product brand name used by PPG.

Regards,

Ninong

Yes i suppose its possible, Im not sure. I do know that opti is supposed to be different though by bringing out flourescence more. I have also been told that the longer the glass is the more difference you can tell with optiwhite, basically all I was told was that it will enhance everything the "norm" likes in a reeftank (the colors).

Ninong if you look at the first pic in the post and look at the glass down the length of it (right into the narrow width) as I did I can see all the way through a 72" piece of Starphire (see the wall on the other side) but if you do the same thing w/ a regular piece of glass its like black! I just thought that was an interesting observation on my tank....i guess the black is the iron

[scubadude]

Originally posted by organicreefer
i dont know much about glass per say,so this might be a dumb question,but is any of them stronger than the others?do they weigh the same?

Here is a pic of a 1" x 72" piece of glass brace on the inside bottom of my tank....there is 2 of them one on the front bottom and one on the back bottom.....this is what the guy that made my tank does for more support.

[organicreefer]

ninong,
when i ordered my tank the owner of aquarium concepts said that he could get a starphire tank from oceanic if i wanted

[algy1943]

Well I have heard that OptiWhite may be the new craze over Starphire glass....OptiWhite is cheaper and just as clear and is suppose to make your corals look alot more flourescent! Heres some pics of all 3 types of glass

Top piece is Regular Glass
Middle piece is Opti White
Bottom Piece is Starphire



Right piece is Reg.
Middle Opti
Left is Starphire

I cant see the glass

[Ninong]

I cant see the glass

That's because this is a thread from 2001 and the photos have disappeared over the past 9 years. They were lost during one of the software upgrades.

[Ninong]

This is a Starphire glass aquarium.

[Ninong]

Starphire is a brand name used by PPG for their clear, low-iron glass. It doesn't have that green tint that regular glass has. It is much better for viewing the true colors of the corals, clams and fish through the glass panes of the aquarium than regular glass. Much better!

Optiwhite is just the brand name used by a different manufacturer, Pilkington, based in the U.K., for their low-iron glass. Diamant is the brand name used by SGG for their low-iron glass.

P.S. -- The aquarium pictured in the previous post was my 120-gallon tank built with 12mm Starphire glass on the front and both sides. The top bracing was also Starphire.