Sump Sump Sump

thisiscmd · Feb 22, 2006

I know theres a lot of discussion on sumps... but I was wondering, why does it seem like so many people make their sumps from acryllic? Isn't glass pretty easy to cut? It's certainly easy to put together (i.e. Silicone). I think its usually cheaper.
Whats the benefit of using acryllic opposed to glass when it comes to making sumps?

tekknoschtev · Feb 22, 2006

All of my sumps are, and as far ahead as I can see, will be glass, but when you get into custom stuff, glass can get pricey, and the larger tanks, I have heard, are much heavier in glass than acrylic, so perhaps thats a benefit.

Taylor_made · Feb 22, 2006

I would think the majority of people are far more comfortable working with plastic. They are much better equiped to handle plastic then glass.

thisiscmd · Feb 22, 2006

Yea I guess so. I just assumed that if you knew your dimensions at all, you could buy your glass already cut into pieces and just silicone it together. Hmm. I think I'll go with glass, but who knows.

jules77 · Feb 24, 2006

IME acrylic is simply much more versatile. You can easily add a bulkhead for an external pump at anytime by simply draining the water and using a hole saw. It being lighter than glass is also a factor, and I also think re-sale is much better on a custom sump than a glass one with goops of silicone. I personally hate working with silicone, smells bad, dries slow, and is easy to break the seal if you do a poor job. The tools to work with acrylic are also reasonably priced compared to a diamond bit, and a guide and all that. If you are careful you can keep the scratches to a minimum but even if you do scratch it, the fix is a lot easier and can be done with some water in the tank.

PaintGuru · Feb 24, 2006

I don't trust myself siliconing glass together and building a frame for it. On the other hand, I think I can deal with acrylic and weld-on (we'll find out soon!)

reefrookie · Feb 24, 2006

Sump

I like acrylic better due to the fact i can drill hole without buying any expensive tool. It is alot lighter compared to glass sump. You don't have to worry about crack due to vibration of the pump.

tekknoschtev · Feb 24, 2006

I have to retract my first statement about glass being expensive, relative to acrylic. I'm going to be pricing out custom pieces (I'll be putting it together myself) to make a sump for the up and coming 60gal cube tank, and I'll be able to get a true comparison at that point. I have found glass pieces, that arent tempered and arent intricate shapes, to be fairly inexpensive, so we'll have to see.

thisiscmd · Feb 24, 2006

Definitely fill me in once you figure it out schtev

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