Petsmart... Thoughts?

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blackandwhite

Aquarium Advice Regular
Joined
Mar 21, 2014
Messages
55
Location
upstate NY
Hi

I am looking to buy my first tank and so far petsmart seems to have the best prices for a reasonable size and quality.

Does anyone have a tank from petsmart? Are you happy with the quality of the tank?

Where would you recommend I shop for my first tank?
 
I bought a 75 gallon top fin aquarium thay came with glass tops and the light fixture from petsmart. Over all I highly recommend Top fin aquariums from petsmart. There priced reasonably. No cons at all. I also have a top fin 20 gallon long aquarium from petsmart. Again I'm very satisfied with it.
 
I bought a 75 gallon top fin aquarium thay came with glass tops and the light fixture from petsmart. Over all I highly recommend Top fin aquariums from petsmart. There priced reasonably. No cons at all. I also have a top fin 20 gallon long aquarium from petsmart. Again I'm very satisfied with it.
what kind of lights?
 
Also you can find amazing deals on craigslist, local classifieds, thrift shops etc. I bought my tank from a classified ad and it included a stand, fish, food, and all the accessories.
 
Tanks are gonna be about the same at any retailer. I read in another post that Petsmart is about to do the $1 a gallon sale starting 3-30-14! The corporate stores might be better in terms of if you have any leak issues etc..
Be careful with craigslist or any secondhand tanks. You can find some great deals but there are also some sheisty people that sell bad tanks.
I would reccomend where ever you buy a tank, start with at least a 29 gallon. It will be easier to maintain the water quality, and triples the # of species of fish you can keep(compared to say a 10 gallon!). Good luck!
 
Tanks are gonna be about the same at any retailer. I read in another post that Petsmart is about to do the $1 a gallon sale starting 3-30-14! The corporate stores might be better in terms of if you have any leak issues etc..
Be careful with craigslist or any secondhand tanks. You can find some great deals but there are also some sheisty people that sell bad tanks.
I would reccomend where ever you buy a tank, start with at least a 29 gallon. It will be easier to maintain the water quality, and triples the # of species of fish you can keep(compared to say a 10 gallon!). Good luck!
I believe it's Petco doing the $1 sale on 3-30 rather than Petsmart, I'm planning on going! I don't have any experience with TopFin tanks, Petsmart is about 30 miles from here so I only get to go once a while. But the Tetra tanks at Petco I'm not real sure about either. I have a 20 and a 55, both from the $1 sale. I like the 55 better due to a good brace. But I'm really not pleased with the 20 gallon. There is at least an 1/8" bow to it filled! A 20 has no brace, nor should one be needed. I think that's crazy. To be fair, I've never had a problem with it in over a year. But for how long...... I was just in Petco yesterday and they were stocking up for the sale, but no 55's came in. Thinking about a 40b tank, but again, no brace....... Same issue maybe. Would I be assuming that TopFin is better than Tetra?
 
+1 to Petco not Petsmart for the sale. A Tetra brand tank bought in a pet store, Petco or Petsmart should all be the same tank so for that, price becomes more the issue than the item itself.
As for the store in general, it's hit or miss as to the staff's abilities and knowledge. I've read many on this site who say their stores have excellent personnel. My "local" store ( about 50 miles away is the closest to me) has had a higher turnover of staff and I know why ( They weren't very knowledgeable about their livestock.) So I would say" Trust, but verify" for anything you are told. Don't fall victim to impulse buying. THAT kills more fish and pets than almost anything else.
My first choice is always a local Mom & Pop pet store. While you may pay a couple extra pennies for your items, you are paying for their knowledge and expertise which, in the long run, will save you much more than what you would by shopping the discount stores.
If you are new to the hobby, you may want to stay away from used equipment outside of a pet shop as you don't have the experience to know what you are getting. You don't always get perfectly working equipment in these type purchases but how would you know?

Hope this helps
 
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