Glass cages aquariums

[Bugsy_Barboza]

Whats your opinion on aquariums built by glass cages?

 

[nick12881]

I have never dealt with the personally. I have heard some things here and there but you never know. I personally use Planet Aquariums out of Texas alot. Jerry and those guys used to run the old Oceanic. They over build their tanks, use either Hybrid or PVC bottoms, etc.. the prices are very reasonable too

 

[Cleo642]

I have never dealt with the personally. I have heard some things here and there but you never know. I personally use Planet Aquariums out of Texas alot. Jerry and those guys used to run the old Oceanic. They over build their tanks, use either Hybrid or PVC bottoms, etc.. the prices are very reasonable too

What do you think of truvu aquariums?

 

[nick12881]

Sorry, not familiar with them.

My go to are Planet, Miracles or Reef Savvy.

 

[Cleo642]

Sorry, not familiar with them.

My go to are Planet, Miracles or Reef Savvy.

They only deal with glass?

 

[nick12881]

Yes. I don't think they do any acrylic work that i know of.

If you want a nice acrylic work you can contact ryan satterfield with Critical Tanking. He does all our acrylic work and he is great.

 

[booth2010]

I have heard good and bad things about them. Some of their tanks are built with high quality and have lasted years, while others could have been built better by someone new to the hobby and busted.

 

[Bugsy_Barboza]

I personally have never heard bad things, (only read online) i've only heard good things. But tank looks like a beast. And with it being 2 years old. Kinda makes me think its had a good test. But i dont know guess im just being paranoid. But its not like a 180 gallons in your living is anything to worry about hahahaha

 

[schprock]

I have used two of glass cages tanks over the years. Tanks is built solid but edges and silicone is sloppy. If you want cheap and don't care about minor cosmetic stuff, glasscages is a good option. Also they don't like customization or changes after the initial order. They get grumpy and may just cancel your order if you try to make changes with the wrong guy. Pick up off the back of a truck so make sure you have help and check your tank well before taking delivery. Otherwise I don't think anyone else can beat their price.

 

[csharps42]

I have had a glass cages tank. Had them custom build it. And went and picked it up from them even. They are built like tanks. Only downfall is they do not do the best silicone work. A little rough. Other than that no problems.

 

[Lenny_S]

What do you think of truvu aquariums?

I just got a 160 from TruVu. They were fantastic to work with.

 

[Patrick Cox]

Sorry, not familiar with them.

My go to are Planet, Miracles or Reef Savvy.

Hi
How would you say the Planet tanks compare to the other two? Thx

 

[ss95003]

I own a Planet Tank, never dealt with Miracles, and on the wait list with Reef Savvy.
There is nothing wrong with Planet Tanks, they are nice very clean silicon work, and like pointed out above pvc bottom.
Reef Savvy tank are just over the top nice imo have seen several in person. Bang for buck I personally think Planet Tanks are up there.
Other then wanting the best of the best I can't explain why I went with Reef Savvy on my new tank.

 

[Patrick Cox]

Thanks for your comments. What is the benefit of the PVC bottom?

 

[mfinn]

Whats your opinion on aquariums built by glass cages?

I've had 2 glasscages tanks. One was a used 100 gallon tank I picked up and used for a couple years. Seemed ok. Very solid and heavy. Almost overbuilt.
So about 10 years ago when I decided to do a upgrade I ordered a custom 240 gallon tank from them.
They were doing a west coast swing with their delivery truck, so shipping was only $250. Total cost of the tank was $890. Starfire glass on 3 sides, extra holes, plus larger than normal holes.
I didn't have any problems with anyone there. I knew exactly what I wanted when I called. I didn't try and change things up after the order was placed. I was told a completion date, and a delivery date. I was lucky that my schedule was flexible at the time. They were a week late.
At the time I thought it was a sweet deal, and it was for a while.
It came and I met the truck about 30 miles from my house at a place the semi truck driver could park.

The tank it's self was pretty dirty. A lot of dust, sharpie markings on the glass and of course the always present sloppy silicone job.
Took 3-4 hours to really clean it up. But once that was done and on the stand, I was really happy.
Of all the bids I got, I figured I saved $700-$800.
I did have to buy new acrylic overflow covers. The ones I paid extra for were the worst p o s things I had ever seen.
Think their silicone work is bad? You should see their acrylic work. When I met the truck, they had two 25 gallon acrylic cube tanks that I grabbed for a friend who couldn't meet the truck.
They were absolutely horrible. I felt embarrassed when I delivered them to my friend. He never did use them. He later sold them for top off containers.

I was pretty happy with my tank up until the 8th year.
One morning I noticed water on the front lip of the stand.
I wiped it off and later that day it was back. So I started looking around and found a leak. It was on the bottom front seem. It was very slow at first. Maybe a couple drops per hour. Then it got to a regular steady drip of about a drip every second.
So, that's when the bargain tank became a nightmare.
I was able to contact another tank maker and get a new tank built in about 8-9 weeks. I was lucky that he was able to move me to the head of the line to get my new tank built.
I was able to get containers and temporary holding tanks to house all my fish and corals and live rock.

During that 8 years, I saw lots of threads where people asked about glasscages and I defended them. There were a bunch of people pretty unhappy who had similar experiences with them.
I figured my first tank was ok and for the first 8 years the second tank was ok.
I guess my loyalty was misplaced.

Would I buy another tank from them if the circumstances were optimal?
No, I would not.

I found someone who decided they wanted that tank. They were led to believe it could be salvaged to hold water again. I did not even consider keeping it. I was going to drag it out in back and smash it up and recycle the glass. IMO once the seal had been breached, it had to be completely taken apart and rebuilt from the bottom up.

The person who took the tank had a friend do a reseal job and it held, for about 6 months.
Then one Sunday morning last fall she called and was crying. The tank sprung a leak and this time the water was pouring out of the front seam. 2-3 gallons of water every 10 minutes.
It was bad.

I'd look some where else for your new tank.

 

[ss95003]

Thanks for your comments. What is the benefit of the PVC bottom?

Personal preference really. Don't have glass sitting on stand surface so no pressure points on glass, and protection from a rock fall. I've never had a rock fall though, and I've always had about an inch of sand. Really again it's just a nice thing to have a true upgrade not a must have item.

 

[Reefrookie220]

The key to ordering from glasscages in my experience is to make your tank dimensions something a little skewed from a standard measurement. This insures that you get fresh cut glass for all your tank....not pieced from odds and ends around the shop. Happened to me and I sent it right back to them and got a fresh one built. No issues with that tank at all. If you wanted a 75g for example. Make it 5ft instead of 4ft so it's cut from a new sheet of glass.

 

[Lenny_S]

I received my 160 custom from TruVue a week and a half ago but waited until it was filled and running for a while before I wrote any kind of review. I'll start by saying I'm very happy with the tank. The workmanship was outstanding! All of the holes for the access, bulkheads, and overflow were obviously machined on a CNC. every edge, including all the holes were torched to a smooth high polish and no ripples at all from the router, totally smooth. Every seam was flawless and not even the tiniest bubble to be found. The placement of the drain and return holes were perfectly placed. I built the stand while the tank was being build and when I set the tank on it everything lined up exactly, literally with only 1/8" tolerance. I filled it and leak tested it last week and no problems at all. It came very well packaged and very clean. It's been up and running almost a week now and there have been absolutely no issues. From ordering to delivery they were a really professional and responsive company. Highly recommend if you go down the path of an acrylic tank.