Would you find this custom tank acceptable?

[Leyth]

Will be even easier to dispute since you haven’t received the item. Hold onto as many cards as you can. Hopefully you don’t need them though.

Yea, I think this LFS will come through. I kind of got the vibe that they weren’t too happy either.

 

[Epic Aquaculture]

I agree with everyone above. I would not accept that tank. I have a custom 460 gallon tank and if it showed up with that kind of quality, I would never have taken delivery...

 

[Cell]

If the LFS uses them and likely facilitated the sale, did they not notice the quality issues compared to their other tanks from the same builder?

 

[Leyth]

If the LFS uses them and likely facilitated the sale, did they not notice the quality issues compared to their other tanks from the same builder?

Well it just arrived today and I was in the area so I stopped by and saw it before the owner has even seen it. So I haven’t really heard what any other party has to say about this. For all I know, every party might say “nope not acceptable, sorry for the trouble, we will fix everything”.

I just wanted to make sure that I wasn’t being unreasonable in case the opposite happens and I have to say I can’t accept it.

 

[Leyth]

Just an update, I think without me even having to say anything they were going to do this, but they're going to rebuild a new tank for me. Once they looked at it and sent pictures to the builder, they weren't happy with what they saw and immediately offered to do this. I am so relieved that they are doing this for me and I guess it shows what you get by going with a reputable builder.

Thank you everyone here for your advice and opinions. You'll have to wait a little longer for my build thread though lol.

 

[JasonK84]

Just an update, I think without me even having to say anything they were going to do this, but they're going to rebuild a new tank for me. Once they looked at it and sent pictures to the builder, they weren't happy with what they saw and immediately offered to do this. I am so relieved that they are doing this for me and I guess it shows what you get by going with a reputable builder.

Thank you everyone here for your advice and opinions. You'll have to wait a little longer for my build thread though lol.

Perfect! Link the build thread here when you start it so it alerts us. I’d follow along your journey with you.

 

[User1]

Hey guys, so I ordered a custom aquarium and I don't want to mention the vendors name yet to make sure I am not giving them bad publicity.

First - thank you for doing this. For both parties (buyer, seller).

The tank is 72x30x30 and I went to go see it today and thought that some of the silicone work was a bit sloppy.

This is the part that confused me. You said you went to see the tank today. So I'm assuming in-person (obviously, right?). Anyway I'm assuming, maybe incorrectly, that you brought it up to their attention while there looking at it.

In any case sounds like it worked its way out which is always a good thing. All the best.

 

[Ls7corvete]

First - thank you for doing this. For both parties (buyer, seller).



This is the part that confused me. You said you went to see the tank today. So I'm assuming in-person (obviously, right?). Anyway I'm assuming, maybe incorrectly, that you brought it up to their attention while there looking at it.

In any case sounds like it worked its way out which is always a good thing. All the best.

Shop owner had not seen the tank yet and the builder was not on site (I assume).

Sounds like a good resolution. Mistakes happen, its the companies that stand behind their work that are valuable.

 

[User1]

Shop owner had not seen the tank yet and the builder was not on site (I assume).

Sounds like a good resolution. Mistakes happen, its the companies that stand behind their work that are valuable.

Yup - thanks for clarity. Wasn't sure but figured it was something like that. What matters is that it is taken care of. All the best!

 

[tricky_tran]

Yes it is a very reputable builder and there are many tanks on this sub forum built by them. The LFS uses them too. That’s why I was surprised, but also why I didn’t want to mention their name. I’ve seen incredible work from them and I’m hoping this is just a one off. I needed to post this here to get your opinions because you guys know better than me I don’t want to be a difficult customer if there was nothing to be unhappy about. Hopefully I went about this the right way.

what did the LFS think about the workmanship? were they ok with it or had the same concerns? if I were them, I would have inspected it and kicked it back before even calling you ..

 

[Leyth]

what did the LFS think about the workmanship? were they ok with it or had the same concerns? if I were them, I would have inspected it and kicked it back before even calling you ..

LFS felt exactly the same way as all of us. I just got to see the tank in person before the owner got to. Once they saw it, there was nothing to discuss.

 

[Devaji]

so glad this worked out. nothing worse that spending hard erred money with the exception for a quality product and getting let down.

hats off to the builder for taking care of this before you even had to ask.

 

[tricky_tran]

LFS felt exactly the same way as all of us. I just got to see the tank in person before the owner got to. Once they saw it, there was nothing to discuss.

That is awesome. Glad they saw your side. "Customer is always right" . especially if its a custom thing ..

 

[Leyth]

Yea I’m really happy with everyone involved so far. I look forward to giving these companies great reviews for this great customer service.

 

[Joe Glass Cages]

An expert opinion may help here @Joe Glass Cages

Personally, I think that looks like crap. Not knowledgeable enough to speak on the structural integrity though.

Thanks for reaching out @Cell, This is delicate for me. There are some great builders out there. Excellent ones. Here is a list to mention a few.

1. Coast 2 Coast
2. Reef Savvy
3. Miracles Aquariums
4. Glass Cages
5. Concept Aquariums
6. Crystal Dynamics
7. Planet Aquariums
8. Advanced Acrylics
9. Midwest Custom Aquarium
10. Fish Tanks Direct
11. Custom Aquariums
12. Acrylic Tank Manufacturing
13. Tank Me USA
14. Crystal Reef Aquatics
15. Aqueon
16. Redsea
17. SCA
18. AGE
19. GEO
20. Elos
21. Exotic Aquariums
22. Waterbox
23. Cade

Sorry if I left anyone out. not intentional.

Glass Cages has been through some challenges. Everyone has. This is an Art in Custom Tank Building. We strive to build the best we can. Catch everything prior to leaving the shop. We are human and still miss a thing or two. Thats not ok. We focus on correcting to prevent reoccurrence and owning corrective solution for the customer.

Hobbyist focused is essential. Custom Tank Building is unique and typically one of a kind and problems happen sometimes.

regardless if the tank is structurally sound or not (hard to tell from a few pictures), how do you feel about it @Leyth? That is the most important question. Because you posted what you posted says a lot about how you feel. How you feel is what really needs to be addressed regardless of anything else.

What is the spirit of the company? In times of challenge how does a company respond? I have read through this thread and see that you are getting support. Bravo to this company! I am so glad that your LFS and the Builder are supporting you concerns. That is honorable. Many thanks to them!

Its a journey not to be rushed. They will make it right.

 

[samnaz]

I would never accept a new tank with air in the seams. Never ever. It’s quite frankly shocking they consider this work acceptable... it’s sloppy and unsafe.

edit, I should have read thru entirely. Seems they have done the right thing about this mishap, that’s all that matters. Props.

 

[RVA REEF]

they dont even know it

 

[Leyth]

Thanks for reaching out @Cell, This is delicate for me. There are some great builders out there. Excellent ones. Here is a list to mention a few.

1. Coast 2 Coast
2. Reef Savvy
3. Miracles Aquariums
4. Glass Cages
5. Concept Aquariums
6. Crystal Dynamics
7. Planet Aquariums
8. Advanced Acrylics
9. Midwest Custom Aquarium
10. Fish Tanks Direct
11. Custom Aquariums
12. Acrylic Tank Manufacturing
13. Tank Me USA
14. Crystal Reef Aquatics
15. Aqueon
16. Redsea
17. SCA
18. AGE
19. GEO
20. Elos
21. Exotic Aquariums
22. Waterbox
23. Cade

Sorry if I left anyone out. not intentional.

Glass Cages has been through some challenges. Everyone has. This is an Art in Custom Tank Building. We strive to build the best we can. Catch everything prior to leaving the shop. We are human and still miss a thing or two. Thats not ok. We focus on correcting to prevent reoccurrence and owning corrective solution for the customer.

Hobbyist focused is essential. Custom Tank Building is unique and typically one of a kind and problems happen sometimes.

regardless if the tank is structurally sound or not (hard to tell from a few pictures), how do you feel about it @Leyth? That is the most important question. Because you posted what you posted says a lot about how you feel. How you feel is what really needs to be addressed regardless of anything else.

What is the spirit of the company? In times of challenge how does a company respond? I have read through this thread and see that you are getting support. Bravo to this company! I am so glad that your LFS and the Builder are supporting you concerns. That is honorable. Many thanks to them!

Its a journey not to be rushed. They will make it right.

Hey Joe, thanks for replying. How I felt when I saw it was pretty heart broken to be honest. I’ve had many tanks before and through my years in this hobby I learned what I like and what I don’t like. So, I decided that I’ll just save up and get the exact specs that I want and I will pay the premium to get it from a reputable builder. Tank failures happen but I felt like this would be the best path to take to mitigate the chances of a tank failure. I figured this would be the best path to take to ensure the highest quality of materials and craftsmanship are applied.

So, when I saw the tank, I was pretty bummed to see the silicone work and trim not perfectly lined up. However, I was most concerned about the structural integrity. The larger these tanks are, the more damage they will do to our home if something happened. So that is the most important factor for me. If I don’t have confidence in the tanks integrity then I am going to always be paranoid about it and I don’t think that I should have to be. Not for what I’m paying at least.

I wanted to make sure I wasn’t being unreasonable for feeling this way before reaching out to my LFS and builder. They’ve been really good to me and I didn’t want to be a difficult customer to them.

My family owns a business and we deal with customers everyday. We think we are the absolute best at what we do, but mistakes still happen and we try to make it right with the customer the best we can. So, I completely understand that this happens. The company showed that they have pride in what they produce by sharing the same feelings as me when they saw the pictures and offering to replace the tank. I am very grateful that they are doing their best to make this experience great for me. I am confident that they are going to come through with an awesome tank that I am going to love.

I also agree, this community is incredible and I thank everyone here for your guidance. Custom aquariums is new territory for me. It can be a pretty scary endeavor for someone who has never done this and has limited knowledge of the process.

 

[Tamberav]

My deep blue mass produced tank looks way better.

 

[BurgerFish]

Wow, very unprofessional job. Don't accept that.