Top Fin vs. All Glass vs. Oceanic

[Alshain]

Ok, so I went into the next city to browse the pet stores. Here is the breakdown of the two cities.

Petco: All Glass $110
Petsmart: Top Fin $120
Petland: Oceanic $150

So, Oceanic is out of the question. Of the other two, is one of them better than the other? Any recommendations? Keep in mind Petco is an hour and a half trip to get it home so if there is no big difference, the $10 is probably worth it.

 

[rich311k]

All of my tanks are all-glass, but I think that all 3 brands make quality tanks. You wont go wrong with any of them. I have never seen a thread anywhere saying any of those brands made an inferior fish tank.

 

[joannde]

is that just a tank ? or a complete set up ? what's included ?

 

[JustOneMore20]

All-Glass is a good brand. Its also well known. Top Fin is Petsmart's brand. They have pretty good tanks. I have a Top-Fin 29g and have never had any problems.

Personally I'd go with the All-Glass just because they are a good brand.

 

[SCFatz]

I have a Top-Fin 29g and have never had any problems.

Same here...no complaints.

 

[Blazeherd2306]

All my tanks are all-glass and I have no complaints. But from what I've heard, Oceanic is the best as far as quality.

 

[Guest]

Oceanic owns All-Glass and wouldn't surprise me if they were made in the same factory. Myself I've used all-glass almost exclusively with no problems. Never really had a need to get into a custom designed aquarium that oceanic says they do for customers

 

[Pleco]

I have a All-Glass 40 Gallon tank with an Eclipse filter/lighting integrated hood and i love it

I wanted All-Glass as ive had nothing but great tanks from them.

-Pleco

 

[Guest]

I have always bought All-Glass and NEVER had a leak or problem. Because of this I will probably always stay with them. Just MO

 

[Alshain]

To answer the question, that is a tank with 2 24" lighting fixtures/hoods that would give about 80 T8 Watts total on a 55 gallon for the all-glass, I think thats the one I'm going for because I realized that the Top-Fin has black silicone and as a personal preference, I just don't like that. I want black trim with clear silicone and I don't want to have to reseal a brand new tank Also I think the Top-Fin light fixtures have a LOT less light capacity. I would rather have something a bit stronger so I could grow high light plants but I may just settle for what I can get. I will always have the option of replacing/retrofiting the fixtures later.

 

[greenmaji]

Ive owned all three brands at one point or another..
Allglass bought Oceanic not the other way around..

Oceanic always had a better build quality and are heaveir then the other brands.. My 75 gallon Oceanic was a pain to move. Oceanic is known for using alot of tempered glass, even were its not needed. And they used to come with a 30 year warantee IIRC.

All that said, I wouldn't have bought the Oceanic new, I got it used for a more then fair price. I don't think the extra's are worth it, fishtanks last a LONG time regardless IMHO.

best quality/price I would go with perfecto (wich isn't on your list)

If its 55gal or under.. I would just get the cheapest one.
btw.. I would think you could find a tank only in 55g for less then that 8O
check the big department/hypermarket stores 8)

 

[Fishyfanatic]

They are all good tanks but I would go with the All Glass.

 

[Alshain]

If its 55gal or under.. I would just get the cheapest one.
btw.. I would think you could find a tank only in 55g for less then that 8O
check the big department/hypermarket stores 8)

I've been looking for months, nobody in the general area sells just a tank for an acceptable price (ie cheaper than the same tanks at petsmart or petco). There is one place that sells the exact same All-Glass aquarium without the hoods for $129 For that much I might as well get the hoods and pay less.

 

[Jarred Darque]

Walmart sells 55s...and 29s and 10s


of course, hte lighting on wally worlds tanks may not be the best, and their filters are horrid if I amy say so.

 

[JRagg]

Personally I would go with the AGA or Oceanic.

Topfin has left a bad taste in my mouth with the "quality" of the rest of their products. Everything that I've ever owned that said TopFin on it has broken (with exception of the actual 10g topfin aquarium). You'll probably be fine with any of the three, but AGA or Oceanic is the better quality in this case.

 

[Codefox]

My larger tanks have always been AGA and I've never had a problem.

 

[hc8719]

never had a top fin aquarium...

has anybody actually had a bad "brand new" aquarium?

you'd save money on gas going to petsmart for top fin

 

[Alshain]

never had a top fin aquarium...

has anybody actually had a bad "brand new" aquarium?

you'd save money on gas going to petsmart for top fin

Yeah but we are talking about 40 miles, which really isn't that much (when I said an hour and a half, I meant round trip). Besides, as I said, there is an actual product difference and its one I'm willing to go that distance to get what I want. I really dislike the black silicone. If the top fin had clear silicone then yes I would probably just get that one and be done with it.

 

[frostby]

I wonder about TOPFIN, I bought some topfin filters and they were the "tetra/whisper" brand filters with the same carbon packages and all. This differently labeled box saved me $3... Could their aquariums also be made by one it's 'quality' counterparts?

 

[hc8719]

topfin does have clear silicone