is there a differnce between plexiglass and acrylic?

[coujo]

was putting together some acrylic i had in the garage and ran out so i went to home depo and got some plexiglass. is it the same? can i mix it with the acrylic or can i use the plexi instead? going to use it for a hang on refugium.where do i get weldon 16 without haveing to order it and can i use somethin else? got clear silicone from lfs. any help?

[Mackman]

I believe they are the same thing, get the solvent from your local acrylic dealer, unless you live in a small town you should have at least 1 distributer locally.

Good luck

Mack.

[coujo]

i live near newburgh ny. i heard there is one in westchester but dont know. gotta do some research. i can get the plexiglass up to 1/4 inch from home depo. had some acrylic in the garage from when i mooved in.

[r95rdstr]

I ordered some custom acrylic pieces a couple of days ago at a local acrylic shop. The owner said that plexiglass is a brand name of acrylic, so yes, same thing.

[Fiji Live Rock]

Go with Lexan (Polycarbonate).

It is easy to work with and is MUCH stronger than Acrylic and WAY WAY more stronger than glass.

1/8" glass -vs- 1/8" Acrylic = Acrylic is 20x stronger then the glass.
1/8" glass -vs- 1/8" Lexan = Lexan is 250x stronger then the glass.
1/8" Acrylic -vs- 1/8" Lexan = Lexan is 12.5x stronger then the Acrylic.

Hope that helps you some in your decisions. :wink:

[setoneup]

i used to put lexan windows in cabinets day in , day out
lexan is super strong but................

will scratch and buff sooner than you can look at it
thats ok to read a meter in a cabinet , great for sercuity but.......
i think it would be a huge mistake for an aquarium
plus its about $100 a 8x4 trade
more retail

it will easy cut onyour table saw , (with a fine blade )
you cannot score and run a brake on it like glass or plexy
you can smash it with a hammer it wont crack.
we used rhino brand

if you sand it (belt sander etc. ) it is realy bad for your lungs and very harmful to your well being
remember always wear googles when using power tools and lexan


not trying to cause trouble , just my experience

sorry about any spelling errors , writing is not my strengh

[camarojweed]

There is a BIG difference between acrylic and plexiglass, the biggest being ductility, acrylic is "softer" than plexiglass, if is more forgiving under stress and better suited for aquarium/sump use. Always ensure that you get acrylic when you go to home improvement stores, if you build a tank out of plexiglass and has high stress points due to inproper joints it is more likely to crack. Also the acrylic is much easier to work with, it doesn't splinter on a router or with a saw blade like plexiglass might. Hope this helps.

Jay

[Mike O'Brien]

here is the deal
acrylic trade names plexiglass acrylite lucite

polycarbonate trade names lexan tuffak hyzoid[/b]