Need to vent about LFS

[chaseracing]

My wife and I decided to upgrade and combine tanks.

We are looking at a 150gal RR Oceanic with Stand & Canopy. We spent the day visiting the LFS in the area and I am now home and very very frustrated.

I spent a lot of time doing research prior to going out to the stores to be somewhat educated, but I received conflicting answers from every store I went to.

As always, I am sure my friends here at ReefCentral should be able to help out.

1) Is there a difference between the AGA and Oceanic tanks? If so, what are they?

2) Does the 150RR from Oceanic have corner overflows or back overflows?

3) Does Oceanic still have a trim kit available (wood trim that covers the corners of the tank to give it a finished look)

4) How thick is the glass on the Oceanic? How thick is it on the AGA?

5) Is the glass clearer on the Oceanic?

6) Are the silicone seals clear or black on the Oceanic?

7) Is a 12" canopy custom order or not? Some said yes, some said no.

8) I received a quote for an Oceanic Canopy that is 12" and has a covered back for about $900. Does this sound right?

I could go on and on, but these are the questions that I received several conflicting answers on.

Also, what ever happened to customer service? I am a nice person and very easy to get along with. I would think from a business owner standpoint that if I customer comes into your store and inquires about a tank setup that is nearing $2000 that you would be somewhat pleasant. The people I was speaking with today almost seemed frustrated that I was asking them for pricing on an item that was not sitting on their shelf.

And they wonder why we buy so much of our gear on the internet.


Thanks Everyone!


-=E=-

[Sk8r]

I have a corner Oceanic 55 bowfront, and my glass looks about half an inch thick at the corners. It has a corner in-tank downflow. I don't remember the cost. It wasn't cheap. I have a 9 inch stock canopy that was about 200.00. When I looked at the catalog to order it, I do not remember a 12 inch option, at least in my size. The canopy has only a fascia-board and a rim atop that on which I set my lights---simple but satisfactory, never mind my lights sit kind of kitty-cornered on the edge. IT had a lid, but I discarded it, because of my lights. I thought I might cut it so I could use part of it, but I decided evaporation was important, so I just use it lidless.

[poppin_fresh]

1. Some people say yes, others no. I think AGA might own Oceanic now.
2. From what I gather at Oceanic's website http://www.oceanicsystems.com/ there on the back.
3. I dont see the trim kits on the website
4. If they did their homework, glass thickness is unimportant to you.
5. Hmmm.. I dunno
6. I dont think anyone uses black silicone anymore.
7. It looks like 8" is standard, I dont know about custom.
8. $900 for just the canpoy!!?? Yikes. You could probably have one made by a cabinet maker for less than that, and it would be better quality. And it would fit YOUR specifications.

[chaseracing]

The one thing the stores did agree on, is that AGA bought Oceanic about 3 years ago.

One of the stores told me that Oceanic tank have been slipping in quality since AGA bought them. Everything from the options available all of the way down to the shipping material they are using.

About the Black Silicone.....I saw several tanks today that had the black silicone, but then had other stores tell me that Oceanic is now using the clear? (Believe it or not the black has a much cleaner look to it and it almost looks as if the silicone was trimmed after it was installed. The edges are perfectly straight and it does not even look like silicone was ever installed. It Has a very very nice look.

Oceanic is in TX, AGA is in WI. They are the same company but are still being run independantly of each other. Once again, a conflict that I heard today.

All other opinons or ideas are much appreciated.

Thanks!

-=E=-

[Rekonn]

Once I settled on what I wanted, I was able to calls several LFS near me and get quotes over the phone. I found it was better to do this during the week, usually they're pretty busy on the weekends. Anyway, here are the prices that I wound up getting:

All Glass 90 gal. Reef Ready aquarium = $330.24 + tax
Modern black stand = $464.60 + tax
Modern black canopy = $273.60 + tax
+10 handling charge

Take a look at this site, Elmer's Aquarium (http://www.elmersaquarium.com/nav/tanks_and_kits/index.html) it's one of the rare places I've found that has prices posted. A reef ready 150g Oceanic tank on that site is $796, stand $550, canopy $348. Hopefully that will help you know if you're getting a good deal.

[mm949]

oceanic tanks are designed so that the glass holds the tank together and not the TRIM....
megaoverflows are the same for both- no corners
oceanic glass IS thicker....more green than allglass
oceanic DOES bend u over for the taller canopy...not worth it..
oceanic has a sizable glass brace right down the center...bad if running center halides..plus u lose water turnover volume through filter because water rides glass brace
an all-glass tank on an oceanic stand/cap doesnt work beacuse trim is 1/2" taller than oceanic so your trim kits are a little short..