Reef escape has always been my favorite local fish store since I bought my first coral frag 4 years ago. Whenever I travel to Virginia, I'll try to make a stop to check on Reed Escape. The staff is knowledgeable, professional and experienced. They are genuine and responsible when matching fish to the right tank/owner. When in doubt, ask Sexy Jae for advices! Beautiful variety on corals and the fish. They all went through solid quarantine process. Never has issue with the quality. En Bref, worth a trip! read more

Been going here for 2 years. Excited about them all expanding the shop next door. There's a very large workbench for aquascaping. Took my live rock there and broke it into pieces with my hammer and chisel and glued it right there. There are coral here that sell for $17 each and are a pretty nice size. All the workers here are avid aquarists and incredibly knowledgeable! Especially Jae. He's always been an incredible resource for aquascaping tips and advanced aquarium knowledge. Will continue coming here for years to come! read more

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terrible customer service i stood there waiting for 30 minutes and the ginger girl was rude and ignored me. come here if you wanna wait an hour for one thing. Edit: It was saturday but it was NOT busy there was only one other person in front of me when i first asked and when more people eventually came in the hour i waited, i was ignored. read more

Starting a reef tank can be intimidating. Especially when you have no prior reefing knowledge. A few months ago I decided it was time to create my dream nano-reef tank. I blindly searched for the nearest reef store and came across Reef Escape. The first time I walked in I was immediately greeted by a number of friendly employees who took over an hour to answer my many questions. I left the store that day with a rock structure, sand, wave pump, and much more. I felt confident with the detailed instructions they provided me on initial tank start up. Fast forward two months from the day I first walked into the store and I now have a beautiful reef tank in my bedroom! Reef escape helped me become a competent reefer. I make weekly trips to the store to have my water tested, as well as buy new corals (which can become very addictive!). I highly recommend Reef Escape to become your go-to store in the DMV area. I would also like to give specific thanks to Jae Lee. His guidance and patience allowed me to create the perfect tank. I couldn't be happier and it's all thanks to Jae and Reef Escape! read more

Reef eScape - My 2 month old reef tank. - Aquarium Services Near Me - Fairfax, Virginia

Let start with the best feature of this store and that's Jae. This dude loves his job and is so passionate about you getting the best customer service you could ever ask for. He was so helpful and I walked away with valuable information. Reef Escape offers both fresh and salt water options and has everything you need to build the water world you've been wanting. They take great care to quarantine their fish to ensure you get a healthy new friend. I highly recommend Reef Escape and I will certainly be a repeat customer. read more

Reef eScape - Aquarium Services Near Me - Fairfax, Virginia

I'm blessed that living in Fairfax gives me 3 places (only if you count Petco) to go for Saltwater fish and supplies. Reef eScape is definitely a go to place for fish, corals, live rock, etc. I have been getting my already mixed saltwater from here and they make it super convenient to get with a spout in front of the store. The employees are super friendly and knowledgeable. Don't be hesitant to give them a try for your saltwater needs. They are located in the back of the plaza if you were wondering. read more

The team at Reef Escape is amazing! When I arrived I was greeted by multiple employees asking if I needed assistance and once I let them know I was just looking around they let me do my own thing without following me around or information overloading me. Once I needed assistance they were knowledgeable and helped me pick out the first corals for my tank! Definitely recommend this store! read more

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I've been a customer for quite a few months now and I've also recently got back into the hobby after 22 years. Everyone at the shop is knowledgeable and all of the livestock I've purchased is still doing great. During the quarantine I got a flame angel and mocha storm from here. It's been over two months and both are doing well. They readily take flake food, which is a big deal. I also love their fish quarantine procedures. I've never been disappointed at this shop and I'll continue to shop here. read more

Reef eScape - Aquarium Services Near Me - Fairfax, Virginia

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The location itself is slightly hard to find. It's on the backside of the shopping center with no signs directing you there. But I had a good experience here once I found it! The staff was very friendly and knowledgeable. They greeted us upon entering and asked if they could help with anything. One of the kind staff members even identified some of the fish we were wondering about and told us some interesting facts about them. They have a nice selection, they mostly only have saltwater fish, I think they only had one 5gallon tank by the front with freshwater fish. But their selection of tropical was great. I'm sure the fish would prefer to be swimmin' in the ocean, but they appear* healthy and happy nonetheless. read more

Reef eScape - Starry Blenny - Aquarium Services Near Me - Fairfax, Virginia

Please Read I want to inform future customers of REEF eSCAPE about my terrible experience and about threating emails I received from the retail manager DAVID LIN. I pre-ordered a pair of black storm clown fish from REEF eScape earlier this year. When I picked them up curbside, the smaller one's tail and fins were torn to shreds and he had an obvious eye injury. Furthermore, they also looked like mocha storms(white and orange fading to brown), not like black storms(white and black). I contacted the owner Phil Wind. I informed Phil about the above stated issues I had upon picking up the fish. He told me its part of the bonding process and that there were no refunds for fish. I told him I was not advised of that. He offered me a refund on the condition that the fish be in resaleable condition. However, I didn't receive the fish in a saleable condition in the first place, so I feel like he had no intention of giving me a refund, given that the fish was not fit for sale when I received and thus would not be saleable if I brought it back either. I reminded Phil that under Virginia law pet store owners are obligated to excepts returns and offer refunds if an animal is unfit at the time of sale. He stated that he would only refund the fish if it was fit for resale and he was making it such a hassle that I just said don't worry about it I'll just deal with it. Fast forward to July 22, 2020. I go to pick up something from REEF eSCAPE that I ordered. That night I received numerous THREATING EMAILS from their retail manager David Lin. HE BANNED ME FROM THE STORE due to me voicing my concerns with how they treated me. I have enclosed copies of the emails so you all can read about my experience and see how I was threatened by David Lin. I don't want anyone else to go through such a traumatic and horrible experience as I did with this company and especially David Lin himself. PLEASE BE AWARE OF THIS COMPANY BRFORE SHOPPING WITH THEM. read more

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Store was immaculate, everyone was friendly and knowledgeable and also helpful. Wide selection of fish and coral to choose from.Thanks to Jae for all the help read more

Shady business practice. They tell you fish will be ready in a few weeks. They never call you, when you call to check they tell you very soon. A couple more weeks go by and then they tell you the whole lot of fish are gone. Amazingly bad communication and customer service. read more

So I drove an hour to visit this place without reading reviews on the place beforehand. I wanted to go in without any fog of good or bad reviews. First off, the display tanks upon entering are BEAUTIFUL. I always love looking at LFS' display tanks. I just feel like it reflects on how well they take care of their livestock. They have a GIGANTIC tank filled with liverock. But it makes you think, why is the tank that huge and filled with rock? Is it too expensive? Is the quality not that greatest? Do they just get an insane amount of live rock shipped to them for their inventory? Who knows, but it was odd. Now on to what was there. They had a good amount of dry goods and live stock. The fish were a bit pricey compared to other places but they looked healthy, which is important. As for their coral though, I felt like their most prized possessions were there zoas. The cleanest tank and they looked the best. Makes sense for the price they were selling the frags for. Which is a shame because with two huge tanks filled with different corals, there were several handfuls of them that were pretty close to bleached. The coral selection were the standard choices. Nothing to over the top or "gasp! I need that!" type feel. As for price, the quality did not match the price tag. Speaking about prices, I felt like there were such weird wrenches that kept getting thrown at me. For example, with the tank of mushrooms, it had some deal around the lines of 1 for $5 or 5 for some cost (I forgot). So I found a rock that had about 5 mushrooms..BUT, the associate there stopped us and said IF there were all on ONE single rock, it's the flat price of $$. OKAY. So I just bought 1 mushroom to minimize the awkwardness. Then I asked for a frag from the zoa tank. I was told that the frag I wanted was not in the price area that I was pointing to because the divider got removed and the powerhead blew the corals around. Well, it's on a plug and the other corals doesn't look like they were blown around. But OKAY. I will just proceed to purchase the coral because at this point I liked it already. Going to pay, I didn't understand the associate behind the counter. There were comments thrown around that was super condescending and honestly, I got to the point where I just wanted to finish paying and walk out. I shared a small story about my silly fis and I received an attitude like I didn't know what I was talking about. And a "they don't do that" accompanied with disbelief, sass, and attitude. Just because you don't believe what my fish does, doesn't mean you have to make me feel like I'm lying to you. The coral I bought are doing well in my tank now. However, I will not be returning here. It isn't worth another long drive when there are other places around that have not only better coral but nicer customer service. read more

Enthusiasm of the young staff is refreshing. No ce store with good inventory and knowledgeable and helpful staff.

Have been regularly shopping here for a couple years. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable, the livestock are healthy, and the store is clean. The display tanks are glorious and healthy which is a good indicator of the fact they know what they're doing. Highly recommend! read more

This is a great store. I trust their quarantine process and they don't cut corners even if it means making a customer upset and giving honest answers. For example, I walked in the store to buy a pair of fish but one of the staff suggested it may be a bad idea for the pair or a gamble. I ended up just getting one. They quarantine new livestock for two weeks and dose it with garlic and bits of antibiotic in their feed. In terms of price, it is fair or sometimes higher than certain places but I've had good experience with my livestock so far. Yes, I can order online or go to another store but the risk of putting something into your tank is risky, time consuming and possibly a big cost down the road. Hoping to get corals soon from them. The hours could be better since they are open only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday unless you make arrangements ahead of time. However, I know some of the staff work other jobs such as at the National Baltimore Aquarium. That's pretty cool! They know their stuff! read more

Reef eScape - Aquarium Services Near Me - Fairfax, Virginia

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There aren't enough words to express how much my family appreciates this shop. After receiving bad advice from another shop, Reef eScape was fast to help fix our tank with loads of helpful information. Our tank is now stable and in great condition and we will be loyal customers for life! read more

Reef eScape - Aquarium Services Near Me - Fairfax, Virginia

I'd just like to say it's not a lot of fish stores that will help a desperate person who just found an occupied abandoned mud tank and needed help to save the little fishies. Dave took the time to take my call, examine photos, and give me an honest analysis. That's my first experience. I'll update after going in! read more

Hands down the best place to get all of the answers to your fish questions. Jae is passionate, knowledgeable and above and beyond helpful about his craft. read more

If you understand reef tanks, they have EVERYTHING you need. Likewise, if you are just getting started in the aquarium world, they can help guide you to the essentials (and what you'll want next). Their policies are fair and reasonable considering these are live animals with real lifespans. Bravo to a great local business, let's keep them around! read more

There is a very condescending rude staff member, a female with short hair. She makes you feel stupid for asking questions and has an all around negative attitude. Avoid this place... their prices are ridiculous to say the least. read more

I'd give this place a half a star if I could. The customer service was appalling. Possibly the most condescending attitude I've ever encountered in a salt water aquarium store...and that's saying something. Was there with my wife with every intention on being a paying customer, when I was passed off to the girl with glasses wearing a gray shirt. After about that minutes with her, we couldn't leave fast enough. Too bad. I believe I was speaking with the owner initially, who was actually very friendly and nice. All it takes is one bad apple to cost you continued business, and that nasty girl I got passed off to was just that. Will never be back, and I will steer everyone I know away from this store. Hobbies are fun and exciting. Half the reason we go into these stores is to talk about our shared hobby because it's fun for us. The girl up front was rudest, most condescending piece of trash that I've ever encountered. She has no business being up front and speaking with customers. Keep her in the back mixing chemicals and cleaning tanks. Half a star. read more

Took my family in to Reef eScape and found the experience less Intimidating than originally thought. As this is a new hobby, I found the company really helpful. Chad is particular was wonderful. He's someone who like many of us , was a frequent patron turned part-time worker. I'm thrilled that we found Reef eScape. If you are ready to jump in to the deep water (couldn't resist), check them out. They also have in-home services, which is something we will look at in the future. read more

This little shop is located on the back of a shopping center. There isn't much parking so be aware of this. Two main reasons for not liking the store. Husbandry and customer service. The display tanks look really good. The tanks for holding fish and coral are terrible. All of their tangs look incredibly thin, fish with horrid skin, and algae everywhere. The coral prices are high and the pieces are extremely bleached. I came in around 1:45, so less than an hour after opening, and there were two people working. I spent approximately 20 minutes in the store and did not get acknowledged at all! There was only one other customer in the store. Though I come to the area often, I will not be returning or recommending this store. read more

We have visited this store so many times, and on one occasion twice on the same day, that I finally decided to write them a review. My husband has started this new hobby and somehow got me involved. Staff at this store, have varying degrees of expertise, my husband usually prefers to deal with a female called Oli. Some of the male staff can be a bit condescending. But as you get to know them, and they see your face more often, they can be more friendly. The main reason we prefer to go here is because of their advice and how they quarantine their stock, you do pay more, but it's worth the hassle, they also give decent advice over the phone. read more

Hello everyone. I bought an Orbit jellyfish tank from this company after finding I couldn't get it locally in California. I've had small issues with the electronics and parts, and Phil Wind the owner has personally made sure I got each and every replacement. Like, he actually will email weeks after the company says it has shipped something to see if they did. It's like a trip back to a very different time and planet. Highest recommendation possible. read more

This review is for anyone who is new to the hobby. I'm new to the hobby as well and I visited many stores before finding this one. I did not have a good experience with the other places because it was intimidating just to ask simple questions but not this place. They have helped me throughout the whole process and now I am thankful for making it an enjoyable experience. read more

We buy all our saltwater fish here. The staff is very knowledgeable and we have gotten excellent fish. This is not petco, so don't expect petco prices. Everything is properly quarantined and treated for most possible disease, such as ich and velvet. You get fish that won't die when they get home. Highly recommend. read more

I was having trouble getting my tank to cycle after several months, I was still getting nitrites building up in the tank. I went to Reef eScape for bacteria, but ending up getting great advice. They explained to me that I did not have enough porous media in the tank to support the numbers of necessary bacteria. They recommended some additional specific media. After putting the media in my tank and filter as recommended my tank was literally cycled in a week. No more nitrites. I was very grateful. read more

Utterly disappointing. We were looking to hire Phil's team to maintain the saltwater tank in our home. After cancelling on us a few times (we took time from work to accommodate his schedule), he came by for an estimate. He was enthusiastic & spent an hour in our home outlining his strategy. We were truly impressed by his credentials and ideas for helping us get tank back on track. We agreed to full price of tank overhaul. Despite knowing that we were on the heels of terrible experiences with previous tank guys, we NEVER HEARD FROM HIM AGAIN. I called, emailed and texted. He literally never responded. A complete waste of our time and a highly unprofessional encounter. read more

The female staff member with pink hair is extremely rude and condescending. What an awful experience!!!

I've visited the store twice and with no issues. I am a person who likes to inspect the fish I will buy very close so I do take my time. I had no issues during the first two visits, but yesterday and after I drove there for 40 minutes I was totally ignored for almost an hour. Needless to say that I left without anybody telling me "ill be with you soon". I am not going back any time soon. read more

(This business isn't just for saltwater, but I'm writing from that perspective.) As a beginner saltwater aquarist, I was a bit intimidated when I first visited this store but I think it is the nature of the very specialized hobby. I also shop at Petco for saltwater needs so wouldn't day I'm biased. It's just a different level of service. The staff tell it like it is and are not what you'd expect at a generic pet store. I wouldn't say they are rude, and I really believe they have a passion for saltwater and want their customers to succeed. I've since returned many times and found they will talk to me at length and patiently answer questions and make recommendations. I've already learned so much from these folks. No, the saltwater hobby isn't cheap or easy, although it gets easier as you build your knowledge and confidence. It's also true that you get what you pay for. If someone wants an inexpensive, out of the box aquarium, stick to the freshwater section at a pet store. read more

I moved to fairfax recently and started visiting their store for my saltwater tank needs. Phil and his crew (Olivia and other guy) they are really great. Honest and upfront and knowledgable. They are not trying to upsell their fish or inventory and will discuss with you what you should be doing. Their fish is really great quality, they Quarantine their fish strictly for 2 weeks with Prazi, hypo salinity and copper along with anti bacterial and deworming stuff. For the price they their their fish with this QT, its totally worth buying here. I have bought fish from Live aquaria and other online stores for cheap prices and done QT myself, but its not worth the painstaking effort in my opinion and worth buying fish from this store. Their Quarantine area is restricted and they don't like people looking or messing up in that area. They wouldn't even sell any fish in the quarantine even if you want to buy. This speaks a lot about how much they care about their quality of service than quick buck they want to make. read more

They gave expert advice! Walked out with a blueprint for a planted tank!

I have had a saltwater aquarium off and on for nearly 20 years in this area and South Florida, this is by far the best experience I had with a saltwater aquarium store. They will not sell you a fish unless it has gone into quarantine for an extended time. Any question I asked was answered honestly, not to sell more marine life. I have the original fish/crustaceans they sold me two years ago. After visiting their store once and the exceptional service I received, I do not go anywhere else. read more

I went here many times like over 20 times and they here all great experiences!I trust there quarantine as I have had very bad experience marine velvet and ich.Just yesterday I bought a beautiful anthias it is in perfect condition and is eating.One thing I would say is the store fish and coral are a little pricey but I think that's because if there long QT process and the medicine they treat there fish with.Overall Fantastic store I would give 1000 stars if I would.(PS I would love this store to expand a little bit.) read more

They get bumped a star b/c we need more marine type of stores for people who enjoy the hobby. Decent selection of marine life. Excellent selection of supplies with a good staff of people. It will break your wallet, so offer a rewards program or throw out some coupons. The little nerdy girl there takes her job very seriously....and that's a good thing! read more

I decided to get my husband a fish tank for his birthday but wanted something that was relatively easy and didn't take a ton of maintenance. We ended up getting a fresh water tank, but it is so much nicer than the tanks either of us had when we were younger. It has live plants, drift wood, rocks, and we have not just fish (that are colorful and fun to watch) but also a snail and we are getting a mini crayfish. Phil and his staff were very helpful about setting up the tank (you can set it up on your own or he'll deliver it and set it up), telling us how to take care of it (it does take a little work, but overall is pretty simple) and helping us pick what is appropriate to put in it so that our creatures don't eat each other and all live healthily together. The tank is beautiful! It has a clear top with an opening in the middle so you can fill it all the way up and see in it from all directions. It looks so clean and natural - it's own little ecosystem. We love it and couldn't be happier. We had a great experience and would highly recommend them. read more

I've had the absolute WORST experience with Phil Wind of Reef eScape. His communication skills (or lack thereof) were unbelievably unprofessional. He provided an "Estimate" for a Time and Material project to relocate my aquarium for roughly $3,000. Then followed up with an email just 3 days before my scheduled move stating that the project was a "Fixed Price" project! This means that whether it takes the full amount of time or less, I would be responsible to pay the full amount. When I questioned the communication disconnect, he accused me of "haggling" and told me "this is just too much headache". He followed up cancelling the project -- just three days before our scheduled move!!! They did refund my deposit. However, I'm now left with trying to move my 125gal freshwater tank with over $800 worth of fish on my own. I do not recommend working with Phil Wind whatsoever. read more