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#1
09/15/2004, 12:12 PM
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acrylic tanks and natural lighting?
anyone have any long term experience using acrylic tanks in an outdoor or natural lighting setting?
I am curious if acrylic tends to get brittle over time from exposure to sunlight. |
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#2
09/15/2004, 06:00 PM
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All of the newer acrylics are supposed to be UV stable. I would worry more about the silicone on a glass tank outdoors.
__________________
"Not cheap, but silent and absofrickenlutely no bubbles" "Be sure and wear a speedo lest tangs nest in your britches" |
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#3
09/23/2004, 02:12 PM
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http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...04#post3507004
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- most of current acrylics are UV stable -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I think there may be coating available, but when you talk about molecular structure, not a chance. I talked with a professor of polymer engineering on the very subject. __________________ - Than (dendro) |
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#4
09/23/2004, 05:17 PM
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Hmmm. Interesting. I'd like to hear more about it.
In the past, acrylic would turn yellow and brittle in the sun. Most acrylic now days is suposedly guaranteed not to yellow and degrade. James (Acrylics), Where are you? Chris
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"Not cheap, but silent and absofrickenlutely no bubbles" "Be sure and wear a speedo lest tangs nest in your britches" |
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#5
09/23/2004, 05:50 PM
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While it's tru that UV is an "aging accelerant", acrylic these days is guaranteed not to yellow or degrade from *naturally occuring* UV radiation for 10 yrs - life depending on mfr. The waves we are primarily referring to are in the UVB range (290-315nm) which will cause a photochemical reaction (degradation) are not transimitted at all by acrylic as it's threshold is 345nm - ie nothing is transmitted below 345nm until you get down to the x-ray/gamma wave range. Which in turn means it (UVB) does not get "into" the material enough to cause the reaction in question except over long periods of time. Even at these long periods of time (10yrs) the actual degradation is approximately 3% which is not much.
If you hit it with shorter waves or high intensity UVA (such as tanning beds) obviously things change more rapidly but the atmosphere filters out these waves - hence the term "naturally occuring". James |
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