Congressional Aquarium Inc.

138 Congressional Ln, Rockville, MD 20852, USA

Address:	138 Congressional Ln, Rockville, MD 20852, USA
Phone:	+1 301-881-6182
Site:	congressionalaquarium.com
Rating:	3.7
Working:	10AM–9PM 10AM–9PM 10AM–9PM 10AM–9PM 10AM–9PM 10AM–9PM 11AM–6PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 4

Dave Fringe

This is the worst fish store in the area hands down. Not only are the employees extremely rude, the prices are the highest out of every fish store in the area(when they buy from the same wholesaler!) and the owner is a complete weirdo. I gave this store numerous chances to gain my business but I will never set foot into this store again. The first time I went into the store to purchase a new coral for my SW tank the employee Greg who helped me was extremely rude. I first had to walk around the store numerous times before someone even acknowledged me and when Greg finally did he acted like he taking personal time out of his day to sell me one of his stores products. I ended up purchasing a Gonipora flower pot coral and Greg didnt even ask me if I wanted anything else before he walked away and left me standing there looking at the other corals. When I finally saw him up front just standing there I was so disgruntled by his rudeness I purchased the coral and left. I decided I would give the store one more chance and went back a month later to purchase a filter for my Cichlid tank. I looked at the Fluval 406 and COULD NOT believe the price, $419.99!!!!! I asked an employee if that was the correct price and they told me it was, when asked why the SAME EXACT filter was $200 cheaper ($219.99) RIGHT ACROSS the street at Petco their reply was they arent a chain store. Now I understand you dont get the product at the same price as a big chain store but you cant tell me you get it for $200 more. I then asked for the person in charge and this is when I dealt with Jay the owner. Not only would he not look me in the eye when he talked to me (as a business man I find this very rude) he told me he would give me a 10% discount on my purchase. I thought he was joking as that is such a minuscule amount considering I can save $200 walking right across the street so I started laughing. He laughed along with me and then in all seriousness I said youre joking right. He laughed again and said no thats the best I can do. I told him thanks anyway, walked out the store and havent been back. Petco right across the street carries all the same products at literally HALF the price and their SW selection isnt the greatest but their prices are literally HALF as well. If anything I go to Tropical Lagoon in Silver Spring who gets their fish from the same wholesaler (Exotic Reef Imports) Ive seen their deliveries at both stores and Tropical Lagoon sells them for 25-50% less. As for corals I go to Aquarium One in Rockville right down the street from Congressional Aquarium they have the best prices and best selection in Montgomery County.

Lee C

This is a very good store and I love to just walk around and browse all the livestock and equipment. The fish will be a little more expensive than Petco/Petsmart but having bought from both here and Petsmart, I can say Congressional has healthier and more robust livestock. The selection of course is far larger than Petsmart. Good selection of inverts and plants as well. They sell live brine shrimp and other live and frozen foods you cannot get anywhere else locally. As to the staff, I notice a lot of reviews talk about rudeness and unprofessionalism. Ive never had that experience after making several purchases and visiting the store more than a dozen times. It is definitely not the most gregarious bunch but they all seem to be very much into the hobby, knowledgeable and probably doing this part time to make some extra cash and get the discounts. I generally dont go prime time like Saturday day, so I dont know how that experience is, but the later evening times I go, there is never a wait, in fact there are usually a few sales people ready to help. One thing I consider both a positive and negative, I am almost certain they are paid on commission as they can be a little aggressive with recommending additional purchases. Its a positive because it does result in the customer getting the attention of a motivated employee. The negative is that they are trying to sell. So if you ask "do you think I could fit one more of these into my overstocked tank?" And they say "yes", I would take their response with a grain of salt. As far as prices on food, goods, and equipment, some of it is priced competitively, for example I buy Prime in there for what I would pay on Amazon. Recently I was looking at a Fluval 5 gallon which is $84 on Amazon and $88 at Congressional, small enough I would probably choose to support a local business. Some of their merchandise obviously can be found cheaper online, and other stuff would be plain dumb to buy from there like a standard electric timer that they charge $20 for but could be purchased for a few bucks online, or even at a CVS. If you are in this section of the DC metro area and into the hobby, this is the place to go.

A Private User

THE WORST LFS IN THE AREA FOR SALT! To the people suggesting Petco as an alternative, I would never go there either for livestock ever again since I have started my first reef tank. You need professionals working in the store who know their stuff. Alternatives in the area: 1) The Tropical Lagoon (Silver Spring, MD - ) - no frills, no gimmicks or sales, just the best prices in town. Fish I have purchased at the Lagoon is consistently around half the price of Congressional and Aquarium ~ One (I think thats the name). Every fish and LPS / SPS coral I have purchased at the Lagoon in the last year is still alive and flourishing! in my 55G tank, which I should mention is my first aquarium of any kind, purchased the last week of 2010. Aquarium - 1 is close to congressional, has more saltwater stuff, but is still overpricing their coral and saltwater fish in my opinion (and compared to Tropical Lagoons prices). Not bad for expertise and other stuff, but still not the best around. If you want to start an aquarium, go to a Local Fish Store ("LFS"), NOT a pet store. At a pet store you will get a teenager who has never even owned an aquarium. At a GOOD LFS, you will find staff that can be hired out to do professional tank cleaning, and they are deep into the hobby themselves. This place is awful. I dont know how they compete with the other Local Fish Stores in the area - EVEN PETCO! 1) Horrendously overpriced. 2) I have seen diseased saltwater fish in there on numerous occasions (on one visit, they had at least 5 yellow tangs with black and white Ich, a potentially (and often) fatal parasite infection caused by any number of things, including poor water conditions (they were also using 10-15 Gallon tanks, tops. Great for gas exchange! 2) I went over to an employee and told him about this potentially dangerous issue (ICH is highly contagious). He shrugged and said we will just put him in a freshwater dip like it wasnt any big deal to throw saltwater fish into freshwater for 15 minutes. It can work, but the fish isnt going to be healthy.

A Private User

Good selection of fish, but poor customer service and advice. Pros: They have a wide selection of fish, and supplies. You will be hard pressed to fins a larger selection of equipment or supplies in the area. Congressional is located in a nice and easy to get to area with ample parking. The staff are nice, if you can get them to pay attention to you. Cons: 1. Their fish and supplies are priced the highest in the area. 2. They sell painted fish ( fish that have been artificially injected with dye) which is very unethical in my book. 3. The staff will not tell you no and or ask you basic fish keeping questions. One example I witnessed today was, an associate telling a father and two sons that it is perfectly OK to keep 6 Neon Tetras and a Pleco in a 10 gallon tank which already has Cory Catfish and other fish in it. This is flat out a false statement by the store associate. You need at least a 55 gallon aquarium to keep all of those fish. The associates at the store are only trying to make quick sales, at the expense of the customers and the fish. 4. The store doesnt have a trade in policy, all of the other local fish stores in the area will give you store credit for a fish that is not working out for you and or have gotten bored with. Congressional only accepts donations which is complete crap in my book, because they will turn around and sell that fish to someone else. 5. The store associates are hard to get a hold of, and they will not pay attention to you, unless you find them and get them to pay attention to you. I do not shop at this store unless I am in a bind and need a specific part / medication in an emergency. Although they do have a beautiful selection of fish and equipment I would urge you to look at some of the other great local fish stores in the area. Ask the staff questions, and if they do not have what you are looking for they should be happy to locate the fish or supply you want and sell it to you at a competitive price.