[Dean Ladd]

I just purchased a 72x30x24 from my LFS which I have been doing business with for over 20 years and I bought my current tank from in 1998. That said the custom builder he ordered my custom build from is the original owner/builder of Oceanic Tanks which I have a Model 135 Oceanic that has been wet since 2000. My new tank will be 1/2" glass panes, back drilled for a Synergy Shadow Overflow and 3/4" bottom with traditional framing and bracing. The tank cost me $1459.00 drilled and delivered to the LFS plus sales tax. I went with this because I prefer to support local businesses (I doubt my LFS made much money on the tank sale but they know I will spend more money with them). The delivered cost was inline with what I had found if I ordered online or from a custom builder shipped to my home. Since I have had great luck with my Oceanic, it is over built IMO, if this builder is in fact the same builder as my Oceanic I am OK with that.

Myself I looked at Glasscages, Customaquariums, Marineland and AGA. Note I have not owned any of these tanks nor purchased from any of these builders. I will share what I found researching my tank purchase. All of these offer a standard 180 or 220 but I wanted a wide 220 not a tall 220. Also, there are some very good builders in Canada but I just did not want to deal with all of that.

Glasscages: had mixed reviews many claimed poor quality construction. But I found nothing definitive or negative enough to discourage me from considering them. They were high on my short list since they offered the tank size I wanted off the shelf and a reduced shipping cost if I picked up the aquarium at one of their drop sites.
Customeraquariums: I found very little in the way of reviews for this builder. They we not high on my list since they did not offer any kind of help with shipping cost, which is a big deal when you are looking at $400 - $500 shipping cost in itself. But they do offer a huge selection of standard sizes. They have an exceptional website.
Marineland did not offer the size I wanted so they were not considered. But they are considered by most as the standard in off the shelf builders. There are some complaints about tank failures with Marineland, mainly with their DD tanks.
AGA (Aqueon) did not offer the tank size I wanted so they were not on my list. Again another company measured as the off the shelf builder. In fact they are the builder that purchased the Oceanic name.

If you are looking at a 73.5x25x30 210 or a 73.5x25.13x26.25 180 you can walk into most any LFS and purchase this tank in either a Marineland or AGA.

Hopefully this was helpful, Good Luck!