BCWolfen
I use glass on mine. yes i do have to clean it once very two weeks but I put the glass on for the same reason you've mentioned. I put cupboard guides on both sides of the eurobrace and had glass cut to fit snug into the guides. My tank's about 6 feet long so the end pieces are one the lower guide and the middle piece is on the upper guide.
temps haven't been too bad yet because I have a sump in the basement thats as big as my display. I will have to see how things go in the summer but I do have a 1/3 hp chiller in the sump as well but my chiller is not used or required in the winter time.
as far as glass restricting the light, i've had good growth on everything (acros and other sps) with the glass cover. one the reasons that convinced me to put glass on was Steve's tests that he did a while ago on one of his posts (re: 1% restricting .... thanks Steve). My lighting consists of 3x250 watts SE 10000K bulbs and 2x140W super atinics.
Your decision should be based on what you want to do. Factors to consider:
- depending if you are willing to clean the glass, lighting restriction may or may not be a factor
- whether you have the means to keep your tank from over heating (ie chiller, fan(s) over sump etc)
- if you have a skimmer that increases gas exchange (ie beckett/venturi) or powerheads to promotes surface agititation in sump
- do you have a dehumidifier in your place? if not, how about a bathroom fan on a dehumidstat? If so, how much heat (in the winter) do you anticipate will be exhausted out of your place to remove the humidity via the fan (though in the summer shouldn't be a problem)? If its too much, should you consider getting a dehumidifier instead?
- is your place already suffering from moisture (ie older residence with less adequate insulation), weeping windows, dry rot in basement?
there's probably a lot more things to consider but thats just a few to start off with.
But to sum it up nicely,
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Stircrazy
If you are prepared to clean the glass every couple days and to buy a chiller to keep the temp down, then use a glass cover.
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HTH and good luck.
cwlee