Do not EVER order from glasscages.com

flasher1

flasher1

New member
After seeing mcola's tank, I decided to scrap my 125 project and go with a similar setup to his, but not the same. So I call up glasscages to ask a few questions like "Why are your tanks advertised to be between 5 and 15 gallons more then what they actually are?"
Their response was "I dont know."

Next question, "Why is the 70 gallon $40 less then the 65 gallon?

Their response, "They are priced differently due to different thickness's of glass because they are different heights."

Me: "Ok, how thick is the 65 gallon vs the 70 gallon?"

Glasscages: "They are both 3/8 of an inch."

Me: "Ok, I guess this is not making sense to me. The volume of both tanks are the same at 60 gallons and the surface area is the same. So why is there a difference in price?"

Glasscages: "I dont know why they are priced that way but it is what it is."

Me: "Ok, I am going to take my business elsewhere."

The woman I was talking to hung up on me. What kind of business are they trying to run? There pricing makes no sense and the calculations are wrong for tank volume.

Also, they told me that a 24" x 16" piece of 1/4" black acrylic would run $30 @ $7.50/sq ft. Last time I checked 24 x 16= 384 sq in. Divide that by 144" (1 sq ft) and you get 2.666667. Even if you were to round up to the nearest whole foot, it should cost $22.50, not $30. When I asked about this the woman got angry and said "Because that is what it's going to cost you."


In my opinion they are nothing but crooks.
 
Now that I have expressed my distaste for the way I was treated by glasscages.com, does anyone know of anyone who can build me a custom tank?
 
I knew a person who was going to make a custom pipefish tank through them. He moved up north but ~6 months ago or so he showed me what was sent to him.

It was roughly 2x2 or maybe 3x3, somewhere inbetween there that had the perfect spot in his house. He seemed really unhappy with the way that they did the bracing on the top of the tank as it wasn't as seamless looking as it should have been and had... not scratches but like a.. Reminds me of the imperfections you see in an ice cube sometimes - the ones at restaurants with the holes in the middle. They also didn't make his overflow notches long enough to properly work. He too spoke of a rude woman on the phone so I had to chuckle when you said that.

I also know people who have had a lot of great luck with them but were able to just send off some blueprints they made up and for the most part were extremely satisfied with what they got.

All things considered though, when I set up my first real big tank (say 215ish) I think I am going to just say screw it, I'm going brand new top of the line everything and do it right from every hardware perspective. I've seen too many peoples tanks exploding (my hat goes off to you Ray) and overall bad juju to set something so big up without going for a company with a long line of customer support as well as high standards in making.

Sent you a pm about the custom makers i do know of, though, hope it helps
 
there is a decent ongoing thread in the vendor experience forum right now.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=11940836

there are just as many good reviews as there are bad, and from what i gather, they are notoriously bad at customer service. sorry to hear you had to experience that!!

i am pretty sure i am going with the 90 gallon from them with their custom stands. i have read more good than bad, and im sure all vendors have their fair share of both.

best of luck with your custom tank!! :)
 
In that ongoing thread, ALL GC TANK OWNERS that posted are pleased with their tank. There are three of us in Tampa that have GC tanks and are completely pleased. I have a 390, ReefArtist has a 280 and poknsnok has a 240.
If I were on the phone with you and you said that you were going to take your business somewhere else, I would hang up to. What's the point of staying on the phone.
 
so you dont get a bad rap for being rude. I have been in retail and the restaurant industries and if someone says "I am taking my business else where" I would ask myself why that happened and try to build on top of that.

If you have a custom tank, then great. They build it to your specifications, so there is no lying when it comes to price or tank volume.

I am glad all of you in Tampa are happy with your tanks. I am sure they all cost a large chunk of change, so I would hope they wouldnt mess things up for you. I understand the whole concept of making your big account happy, but you cant forget about the little guy.
 
I have read LITERALLY dozens of accounts of poor workmanship, shoddy construction and poor customer support from them....I guess if you are buying a monster tank from them they might consider it worth the time to do it right, but I have read enough accounts from dissatisfied buyers to steer clear....Go to the ORCA site and contact davy182....he is a club sponsor and makes wonderful customs.....
 
I've never ordered from them and probably never will, but one point I'd like to make. I see, more often than not, people justifying GC's with, "There are just as many good reviews as there are bad reviews."

I don't know about you, but I wouldn't buy from a company with a 50% approval rating, IMHO.

Luis
 
Mike - Its funny, my tank is from glasscages and I love it, but I have heard so many horror stories that when I finally upgrade to the 450 gallon, I will find another vendor.

Their Customer Service is horrible. I kind of equate it to the "Soup Nazi" from Seinfeld. They dont really care that they are rude. If you dont like it (or if they dont like you) they will just hang up the phone...No Tank for You!

Sometimes when I'm bored, I call to ask questions and hang up before they can hang up on me! It's a fun Sunday afternoon pastime now that there is no football :) - Just kidding

They stay in business because they are so cheap...I paid $200 less for my tank than the next closest quote.

I guess the savings on their tanks comes at a cost for service...
 
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All of this is just my opinion and experience. It is not meant to flame or offend. I'm sure you were polite when you spoke with GC, but your questions seem to be more about pricing practices more than what you wanted to order from them. There price could vary because of the yield they get from a single sheet of glass/acrylic, more common size so they do more volume, or just because they said so. When I ordered my tank there was a $600 jump in price to get a 30" tall tank instead of 24". Why, because the sheets are 48" wide so it changes the yield. I think you may have come across like you were giving a quiz more so than making an order. Most of the customer service complaints I have read center around that sort of thing. I made it a point to make the conversation just about what I wanted to order when I called and to know what I wanted to order.

Glasscages is not a hold your hand hem and haw back and fourth what should I do, what do you suggest company kind of company. They are the company you call when you know exactly what you want. If you don' t know what you want then they don't have time for you. That is my take on the way they function. Call it poor customer service, but they just don't make a lot of effort to answer "what if" questions. If you call and know exactly what you want then you will be pleased with your experience and what you get. Have I bought from them yes, and I could not be more pleased. Well, I guess I could at 2x the price. Did I make some compromises? Yes. Are the edges of my 300 beveled and polished, no. Am I happy to have a 300 gallon "ultra white" front aquarium. You bet. When I spoke with the same woman you are referring to, I was respectful and specific as to what I wanted and she was the same. I called several times and even changed the order. No problem. I also got some custom options. No problem. Just faxed a sketch of what I wanted. If they don't do something you ask for they will tell you.

Lastly, there pricing certainly does not reflect that of crooks. They are cheap as dirt comparatively. You can't expect Mercedes quality at pinto prices. There are compromises like the lack of beveled and polished edges and some sloppy silicone to clean etc, but I can do that for what I saved. Cost benefit analysis. I'm sorry you had a bad experience though.
 
I just received my second custom tank from Glass Cages this weekend, and have nothing but great things to say about them. The customer service was great and so was the product. As achilles said, their pricing definitely does not reflect them being crooks.
 
They lie about their tank volumes on their website. Plain and simple. I asked them if they sold the tanks based on sq ft of glass being used and they told me no. Even if they did, you can still get 3 pieces of 16 inch glass from 48 inches. If they make two tanks like that and then sell the other one.

I called them up with custom dimensions. I wanted a 33" x 24" x 14" and they said we dont cut glass to those dimensions. I was willing to pay whatever for that tank. I am not stating that there tanks are not reasonably priced, I am simply stating they are crooks.
 
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I had gotten my 75g slideing front door from them at a reptile convention and they were great. They sell alot @ different shows all over.
 
From what I understand, they are probably charging you on the acrylic at 30 dollars because they get that in as squares.

7.50 per full square foot. I don't think they are gonna deduct the waste from a cut. You pay for the full foot used. Same goes when buying glass at lowes.

To make that piece requires a 4 square foot piece cut down.

I am not the biggest fan of their tanks either but from what I can tell, it did seem like you were enflaming them some. Should they have acted that way? No. But they aren't known for their CS. If I call someone and the price is way high, I just thank them and not call back.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11946569#post11946569 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by flasher1
I am simply stating they are crooks.
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