Glasscages or coast to coast? for 400 gal tank

[noobtothereef]

Im considering upgrading to a 400 gal 72"x48"x26" I got 2 quotes so far. glasscages for about 3,000. But i have heard some people say their work is sloppy, and what i dont like about them is they only have a 90 day warranty. I spoke to someone from there and he said its a full warranty for 90 days, i told him another company has a warranty for 10 yrs and he said that it was most likely a limited warranty so his is just as good. I didnt like that at all.

I loved everything anout Coast to Coast aquariums. Except for their price of 5,500 for a tank that was only 72"x36"x26" way smaller on the width. So im guessing the 48" width will be around another thied of the price like 7,500. It's just so much more than glasscages. I did like that chris was very helpful, and the 10 yr warranty is great.

Anyone have any experience with either of these companies? It's a big investment so any info is appreciated. I picked these 2 cause c2c is about 2 hrs from me so i can pick it up, and gc delivers 1 town away from me for 150 bucks.

$5500 for a 270 gallon tank :eek1: thats crazy, i just quoted a 1 1/4" acrylic 96x48x30 for $6000 here in town and thats over 600 gallons....

Im sure that glass cages tank is 1/2" right? theyre 300 gallon is like $1000 isnt it?

just get a marineland 300dd and be done with it....... its cheap...much cheaper than spending another $4000 for another 100 gallons... last time i checked 300dd's were $1000 or less

 

[reein101]

I have a glass cages tank its almost 5 years old , still holds water and no leaks yet:lolspin: 96 36 32
The tank was made very good with top and bottom eurobracing, but some of the cuts were not the best and the silicone work was sloppy and has many bubbles many places! So for me it worked at the time its all in the $ / luck you have at that time , good luck
P.S. go 48 deep if you can thats were i went wrong if you can!

 

[noobtothereef]

I have a glass cages tank its almost 5 years old , still holds water and no leaks yet:lolspin: 96 36 32
The tank was made very good with top and bottom eurobracing, but some of the cuts were not the best and the silicone work was sloppy and has many bubbles many places! So for me it worked at the time its all in the $ / luck you have at that time , good luck
P.S. go 48 deep if you can thats were i went wrong if you can!

except for 48" deep you need thicker material not to mention 1000w mh's instead of 400w's

 

[albano]

except for 48" deep you need thicker material not to mention 1000w mh's instead of 400w's

by 48" deep, I think, he means front to back, not top to bottom. going 'wider', would not require thicker glass

 

[noobtothereef]

by 48" deep, I think, he means front to back, not top to bottom. going 'wider', would not require thicker glass

that would explain it im going 48" wide on my next tank also, give me some actual room to work in it.

 

[noobtothereef]

Not that i am bias or anything but you can't go wrong with Coast to Coast. I just got my new tank back in June. When i went to finalize the specs back in may, they gave me a completion date of june 10th. Well would'nt you know they called me on June 8th and told to come get my tank. These guys where great to work with (just 2 guys) run the whole show.
All their glass is cut and polished by an outside vendor and then shipped to them for assembly. Heres some pics of my 96x23x20tall front side is starphire. bottom is 3/4" and sides are 1/2" I can tell you that my tank is built like a tank and the silicone work is perfect!!. Final price was $3100 with 3-1 1/2 bulkheads and 2 sets of 1" locline

thats a really nice looking tank!! I would think cleaning off all of the salt creep on those lids would be a pita...

 

[stan zemanek]

thats a really nice looking tank!! I would think cleaning off all of the salt creep on those lids would be a pita...

I know, the lids were something extra CtoC threw in. I don't think i'll be using them.

 

[Wrench]

There are close to two dozen people in my reef club with GC tanks and I've yet to hear of any failures. All of these tanks are in the 200-300 gallon range. Yes, the silicone is sloppy and the seams on the bracing aren't perfect. If you want a Mercedes, pay the Mercedes price. Otherwise the GC tank is an economical alternative.

 

[noobtothereef]

i like how they bead balsted the etchings into it, really nice professional touch, really hard to find anybody these days to actually put pride in theyre work and take the time to do the job right

 

[acasp4]

$5500 for a 270 gallon tank :eek1: thats crazy, i just quoted a 1 1/4" acrylic 96x48x30 for $6000 here in town and thats over 600 gallons....

Im sure that glass cages tank is 1/2" right? theyre 300 gallon is like $1000 isnt it?

just get a marineland 300dd and be done with it....... its cheap...much cheaper than spending another $4000 for another 100 gallons... last time i checked 300dd's were $1000 or less

 

[jt48]

Doing my own research. Currently have a 72x24x32 (240 gallon) acryllic but so much would rather be 72x32x24 glass. C2C is attractive cause I grew up in TR, NJ. Marineland is sweet cause rep is great and cheap due to mass production. I believe the only thing GC has going for it is cheap prices and website is fun to use, customizing different tanks and seeing prices without bothering anyone.

 

[Uncle Luke]

I would NEVER buy a Glasscages tank.
Way too many horror stories.

 

[Arthur1]

tozzi, I hope that you've made up your mind by now lol. Spend a little more and get a little more if you follow. I deal with people all the time that have tried to save money and buy lesser quality equipment only to have to buy it a second time, when it could've been done right the first time. The 90 day warranty on a larger aquarium..I wouldn't even consider. The fine print from some of the aquarium manufacturers that offer longer warranties is that you use a stand that they manufactured, you don't modify the tank, may or may not require something such as foam under the tank (still debated I know) etc. I personally haven't had any aquariums made by Miracles but I've heard all good things about them, GC I cannot say the same for... Enjoy your new aquarium when you get it:beer:

 

[asonitez]

I've been looking around for a new tank myself. Been looking at GlassCages a lot. the problem with other tank manufacturers is that they want you to use a stand they made. or the warranty is null and void. I priced out a coast to coast and after the sand the total was around 5 grand... this was

60X24X25 tank.. nothing special.. Since my tanks using a canopy and a custom stand i could care less if the eurobrace was 4" thick... and crooked... my canopy is hiding it. The ONE thing i want is good seams though.

 

[albano]

I've been looking around for a new tank myself. Been looking at GlassCages a lot. the problem with other tank manufacturers is that they want you to use a stand they made. or the warranty is null and void.

The ONE thing i want is good seams though.

Well if you're worried about 'warranty', you might still have a problem, because it seems that GC will do nothing for you if there is a problem.

Many of the complaints about a GC glass tank are sloppy silicone work, which can be 'cleaned up'.

FWIW, I currently have my 2nd GC ACRYLIC tank (450g 96"x40"x27"h) and am very happy with it. They built it exactly to my specs, and had it delivered a month early.

 

[bauereefer]

Coast to Coast Aquarium

Coast to Coast Aquarium

Just received our new Coast 2 Coast aquarium. Take a look a the quality!

Perfect glass cuts, immaculate polish and bevel, amazing silicon job with no air gaps, perfectly assembled, square and level.

Couldn't have asked for more for over $4K.

C2C Aquariums really is THE BEST!

A slight bit of sarcasm above. But seriously, are you kidding me?

I have no problem with mistakes being made and am always willing to listen and come up with a solution. I am reasonable.

The problem is that C2C will not pick up the phone, return a voicemail or email and its been 5 WEEKS! They refuse to even discuss my concern regarding the quality and construction of this aquarium.

This was my first C2C purchase. I chose them because they were "the best". That is what I expected. I thought I would be receiving the best quality aquarium available in the US.

As you can see from the few pictures above, what was delivered is far from "the best".

Next time, I think i'll go with Glass Cages and spend the $2300 I'll have saved on coral.

 

[BlackTip]

I have seen glasscages tank first hand. The 300g was build very very well, but very sloppy.The edges weren't smooth and not polished, silicone everywhere, etc. C2C build very nice tanks cosmetically, but they charge way too much for it. I don't believe they give you 10 yrs warranty without tons for conditions. Read the fine print. Also, consider shipping cost. If you are close to glasscages, they can ship for couple hundreds. C2C will cost you couple of grands for shipping and insurance. I just can't make sense of how much they charge. It is almost a price of a small car.

I was in the same boat a year ago. I couldn't get myself to order from the cheapest builder, and I couldn't justify C2C price. I went with GLA. A little more that GC and a lot less than C2C. Workmanship is good and the price was right. Too bad, they closed shop. If you look around, I am sure you will find someone right in the middle.

IIRC, C2C requires that you buy their stand for the 10 years. They quoted me about 7k + shipping for the stand. My tank and stand would have cost me 15k without even a sump.... I ran as fast as I could.

 

[gus6464]

Wow sorry to see that tank above as it looks like crap.

While my tank is small in comparison I went with Visio for my custom tank and they did a great job. Much cheaper than everyone else but they still used thicker glass, armored seams with no bubbles and the glass was perfectly cut and polished. They also did an amazing job cutting the holes for my return and ghost overflow as the tank is only 24" long and the return bulkhead holes are so perfectly cut that they look like they are integrated with the synergy overflow.

I went with them after they built my buddy's 120 rimless and his is flawless too. They definitely don't skimp on the glass thickness.

 

[FullBoreReefer]

I have a GC's tank. Specs are in my sig. Tank is almost 7yrs old. Built like a "tank" with upper and lower bracing. It's the heaviest 90gal I've ever handled. The entire tank is made from 1/2" glass, even the internal glass overflow(then covered by black acrylic).

I have no regrets. Have had zero issues. It's not show quality workmanship, but I'm also not complaining one bit as mine honestly was pretty darn good.

 

[spjames]

That sucks !

Hopefully you bought it using your credit card...they should start to take notice when you do the charge-back