Why are nano kits so expensive.

I was looking at a few nano tanks for my betta who is currently in a filtered 3 gallon bowl. Man these things cost an arm and a leg. The fluval spec 5 which is 17.5 long 6.3 deep and 10 high was $75. The eheim aquastly 6 was $62 and that is 12x12x10 (these figures are usable water space). These are really neat tanks, but I am not sure the cost is justifiable.. not when I can pick up a 10 gallon led kit for $60 or a 15 gallon standard kit for $50. So are these worth the extra money.. and why are they so expensive.

 

I wish I knew. There's a shrimp tank I've been lusting after every time I go to my LFS. I think it's 9 gallons and $80 or something like that. It's so cute, but that's a lot for a tiny little tank. I think it's mostly aesthetics. The nano kits are very "pretty" so they think they can get more for them.

 

I'm thinking the uniqueness and the materials ( Acrylic ) used in some of those designs.
They are def more "decorative" than just a regular 5 gallon tank which makes it more desirable. When I was looking for a bigger tank, I opted for a bowfront - although just a few dollars more, it was more decorative than just a standard square or rectangular tank....

 

You can get a glass 5 gallon tank at walmart for $30

 

I was looking at a few nano tanks for my betta who is currently in a filtered 3 gallon bowl. Man these things cost an arm and a leg. The fluval spec 5 which is 17.5 long 6.3 deep and 10 high was $75. The eheim aquastly 6 was $62 and that is 12x12x10 (these figures are usable water space). These are really neat tanks, but I am not sure the cost is justifiable.. not when I can pick up a 10 gallon led kit for $60 or a 15 gallon standard kit for $50. So are these worth the extra money.. and why are they so expensive.

I think they are expensive because they have the word "nano" on the packaging. If you want a small tank, just get a 2.5, 5.5 or 10 gallon and call it your nano tank. Mimic a nano underwater world.

I thought about getting a nano tank but I am just going to wait for the PetCo $1 gallon sale.

 

I'm thinking the uniqueness and the materials ( Acrylic ) used in some of those designs.
..

I read somewhere that the reason why acrylic tanks are more expensive than glass is not due to uniqueness, but because acrilic scratches easily, and is often scratched when purchased, and is then returned to the manufacturer or store more frequently, whereas glass tanks have fewer returns/exchanges.

That said we have an acrylic tank, and yes it has some scratches on it, but I don't mind, but I would not trust my boys around a glass tank. Even before we had fish, we had a small ball landed in the tank incident. So I am willing to pay extra for that.

I wonder whether smaller tanks also have a higher percentage of returns than bigger ones regardless of material. It is more of a hassle to get a larger tank back to where one bought it from, and thus I would think that fewer people will bother to do it if there is a minor scratch or some other minor imperfection on a larger tank, but on a small tank even a small scratch may lead some people to go return/exchange it.

 

You can get a glass 5 gallon tank at walmart for $30

You can get a 5.5 gallon at Meijer for $11. Granted you're probably talking about a kit, which is $30-40 as expected.

I'm always flabbergasted at how expensive small tanks are. I'm looking at another tank for my betta, and I'm having a hard time finding anything reasonably priced.

 

You're paying for a name brand art piece.
A basic 5.5g is around $10.