Top Fin or Aqua Culture?

[Darkness]

Im gonna get a new 55 gallon tank, and im debating over the two brands for the 55 gallon tank. The Top Fin from petsmart is $150 and comes with starter bacteria, while the Aqua Culture from Walmart is $160. Both are glass. So i was wondering if anyone knew about the two brands and if there was much of a difference in quality

[Drumachine09]

The tank in the aqua culture package most likely contains an AGA (all glass aquariums) tank. It should come with hoods, lights, filter, and heater. I would go with the aqua culture, but thats only because all of my tanks are AGA, and i trust them.

[Rue]

...I'd go with the Top Fin...

...I've read complaints about the heaters...and a couple about noisy filters...but never about the tanks themselves...

...and I have heard about Walmart tanks falling apart...

...at any rate...it's probably six of one, a half-dozen of the other...

[tropfish]

ive had my top fin for 3 years with no problems at all. i would go with the top fisn. Its very reliabe nothing has broken so far ( i switched to flourescent lighting for plants tho.) they generally make good products. I wouldn't buy a fish tank from walmart only because its walmart (not saying anything bad but id rather get it from a store and company i know well)

[Drumachine09]

There no reason to say that you wont buy a tank from walmart. Walmart sells AGA tanks, they dont manufacture them:

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The only tanks ive ever had are AGA, and i have had zero problems. The filters that come with them are not the best, and another is highly reccomended, but thats expectable from any kit deal.

[tropfish]

i stand corrected then! thanks for the info. :22:

[Drumachine09]

i stand corrected then! thanks for the info. :22:

Just here to inform :28:

Top fin does make really good products too (i have no experiance with the tanks). I bought a long handled algae scrubber with a squeegy tip today for $3 on sale. It has interchangable scrubbers for glass, or acrylic aquariums. It works pretty good, and its ingenious as well.

[tropfish]

i have one of them but the foam scrubber came off the hander lol so now its a handheld scrubber :28:

[A340]

As far as the tanks themselves go, I doubt that there would be very much difference in the quality, but the finish may be something to look at. I've found that some manufactures don't trim the seals very nicely or the glass overlaps.

As far as kits go, I find that for the most part, the equipment that comes with it (filter, heater, lighting) is the most basic and sometimes cheapest stuff you can get. If I buy a kit, I usually end up replacing all that anyways.

[gm72]

Agreed. For quality, go with an AGA tank and add your own heaters/filters/etc. However if you want a quick fix, a kit from Walmart is fine, but also understand the heater may be difficult to set accurately and the filter will likely be quite weak.

[Rue]

...if it was all too simple and straightforward...

...what would we have to complain about and fiddle with? Even my new 'plug and play' is taking forever to actually get going...:c3:

[Lady Hobbs]

I got my 4 tanks all from Walmart. All are AllGlass tanks. I had one leak but that was my own fault. I believe I knocked some of the silicone loose when scraping the gravel out at one time or another but I easily repaired it.

It depends on what you want, really. I prefer glass tops and bigger filters so for me it's easier to get just the tank and buy those other items but for a quick set up and to get started, the WalMart kits are fine. Just add another filter for the other side.....perferably a canister but you don't need it immediately as you have to cycle the tank still.

[1MileCrash]

i got the aqua culture 55 gallon from wal-mart close to 2 years ago. the only thing that i added was a new filter system. the starter package that comes with it is great for the price. it's also not bad to pick up the stand that they have there for it.

[Bill M.]

my 29 gallon is a AGA (All Glass Aquarium). Everything but the filter is good quality. The heater has a setting for the "correct aquarium temp" around 78 degrees, and surprisngly, it was well calibrated. I only put the temp switch to the little carrot on the filter and the tank is at 79 degrees with no temp fluctuations.... I bought an eheim canister filter, and set it up on the other side of the filter that came with the AGA... so my tank is turned over nearly 5 times per hour.... cant have too much filtration.... imo...:19:

[Lady Hobbs]

i got the aqua culture 55 gallon from wal-mart close to 2 years ago. the only thing that i added was a new filter system. the starter package that comes with it is great for the price. it's also not bad to pick up the stand that they have there for it.

Yup! I got my stand from them as well and I love it.

[1MileCrash]

Yup! I got my stand from them as well and I love it.

sturdy...functional...looks pretty good as well

[RobbieG]

I just had to buy a new hood for one of my All Glass Tanks. All of the stores that I went to had parts for All Glass tanks. I was able to get the right size and exact finish. Most of the stores I went to only had All Glass parts.