Carson Tropical Fish

Not sure where the bad reviews come from, I’ve been to several fish places around the 562 area code and I prefer Carson tropical fish. They don’t sell you stuff you don’t need and are honest about which fish survive, which coral are easier to care for, and generally answer any/​all questions I have

Simply the best fish store ever. The owner tom is really nice and knowledgeable. There is also this guy named shin is funny as hell but people who work there are really helpful. Again this is a great store to go to and lots of selection on saltwater items than their freshwater. Yall should check it out!

Was there till 11:15. They said they were open at 11. People were waiting outside. I don’t think I’ll come back to a place that can’t open on time. Especially since I made a trip from Beverly Hills.

Mostly marine fish. Store is dark and needs more maintenance. Hence 3 stars. Owner Tom is very nice and knowledgeable.

Don’t waste your time here. One of the worst fish spots ever. Dark inside the store and fish look horrible.

I have been a customer for 17 years. Tom is the owner and I consider him a friend. He very knowledgeable and friendly. He has the best prices. Also sells used equipment which makes his store unique. The store specialty is Reef keeping but he has pond and freshwater goods. He can special order equipment if he does not have it in stock. His store is practical. This is a tropical fish store not a restaurant. Their prices are lower because they don’t have extra employees to keep the store pristine. If you want a bright shiny store then go to PetSmart and pay for the high prices. If you want to save money and get great advice then this store will keep you in the hobby for years.

What a dark, dirty, messy shop. Most takes were dirty and dark, I wouldn’t have gotten anything from there even If I would have found what I was looking for. Sorry guys but have standards with your cleanliness and fish care!

Came here expecting a lot based on some of the reviews and the outside of the building is huge. Walk in and was highly let down. Store has a lot of empty wasted space and it is extremely dark and murky.
Saltwater fish seemed moderately ok, freshwater fish area was just sad. No lighting, small tanks and generally doesn’t look cared for. This place could be a gem with all of the space, they just need to undergo a serious overhaul to get it there. Not sure if the couple of people working were the owners, but they didn’t seem to care to find out why we were there.
Won’t be coming back.

Lawrence and shim (which is what I understood his name to be) were very helpful. I came in on a Sunday 20 mins before closing and asked many questions on stock I was looking to buy and not once did they make me feel rushed or pushed to either buy or leave. They were very informational and helpful.
Bought a lawnmower blenny, pulsating xenia frag and 2 blue damsels
Lighting in the rear tanks is non existant like others say but how much light does an eels and a lionfish need really lol.
Will visit again!

Probably of the worst fish stores I have been to yet. The service was horrible didn’t attempt to greet me after ten minutes. The selection of freshwater is poor and the saltwater isn’t so great. Also, the place isn’t really organized and dark. I went a few months back and i was browsing and found a big fish net that i was decided whether i wanted or not, so i carried it while i browsed and then decided to get a Oscar instead so i put it in their supplies area and when i was getting ready to purchase the man told me «where is the fish net you had» not literally but figuratively accusing me of possibly trying to steal it and then trying to play it of after i had led him to it. Never going to this place again.
Pros: don’t really remember the prices or saltwater but i think that’s the only thing they have going for them.
Cons: Bad environment, also bad service, horrible freshwater selection with dead fishes, and un organized.

Very dark shop. Most of the aquariums are not taken care of. Looks messy. I was there for a good amount of time and no one bothered to ask if I needed help. Fish selection is ok, nothing out of the ordinary. Tanks weren’t well lit and a bit on the dirty side.

Its ok… Great variety in coral but i still highly recommend Nautilus

love this place. Have been coming and off for about 10 years. Super friendly and the best prices around

Not the cleanest fish store but they have a cool selection of CORALS! But you would be disappointed in their saltwater fish selection and freshwater section.

We’ve been to every local aquarium store around… what were we thinking! Customer service is superb, best prices around & great selection on corals. Looks like we found our spot, why go anywhere else? Did I mention awesome customer service?

I love coming to this store. At one point, I maintained a coral reef tank for five years, then I had to move and start over. I bought my coral and fish from tons of different stores but most came from Carson fish because the prices were cheap and they carry rare pieces. They also gave me the best advice on how to maintain the tank. I followed instructions and my tank thrived!
I noticed an idiot posting a bad review (Jeremiah z). The guy claims to never leave bad reviews but I noticed he had a total of 4 reviews and two of them were 1 star. Go figure.
I just bought a new nano tank online but I will be buying the livestock from Carson fish. I hope this review helps others.

Let me start off by saying the only reason for not having 5 stars is their freshwater selection is non existent. Aside from this the service is excellent. The owner and workers know my face/​name and are always ready to help me out. They always ask me how my tanks are doing and are eager to see new pics.
I mainly come here for R/​O and random supplies that I may need for the week and the occasional tank purchase. The prices are good, The service is good, had it not been for a slight lack of selection this would be a full 5 star store.

I will address several issues I have with this store and why I will never be stepping foot in it again.
A little about me, I have been in the reefing hobby for over 7 years, my tank has some of the hardest to keep Zoas SPS and fish all of which are doing perfectly fine, with amazing growth and health.
This store had no lights on, really but I can get past that. I understand its expensive. So I went in under 24 hours ago and bought 200 $ worth of fish snails and a few powerheads. And one of these fish included a Niger Trigger. Not a hard fish to keep and something that would add a little flash to my prized collection. In under 24 hours the fish dies. No big deal its the hobby I understand this. so I called the store and after explaining that I am no amateur to this hobby and It was a bad fish and measly wanted a replacement or credit, For god sake it was only a 25 $ fish come on really? And was told how nothing could survive in my tank.
Nothing could survive in my tank really? Let me clue you in on my tank. I have over 30 polyps of black hornets, red hornets, purple hornets, Red Devil People Eaters, Hawaiian PE Prime Clementines Metallic Pink Sweet Orange Crazy Eye Hawaiian Leather Coral Hawaiian Purple Hearted Zoas Hawaiian People Eaters and the list goes on and on.
The point is I do not have a run of the mill cheap tank nor do I not know how to take care of a fish, and for you to tell me I dont know how to run a tank or that my tank cant handle any fish is absolutely absurd! You were extremely rude disrespectful and unprofessional.
For anyone wanting to buy from here be aware that there is no warranty on any of their fish!

Four years ago there was an amazing Fish Store that closed down in Cerritos. Thee best customer service you could imagine. I would call the owner at 3 in the morning and he would have no problem helping me out with my troubles.
For four years I have been searching all so-​cal with not only great live stock, but great customer service.
Went to Strickly Fish — they don’t care about you just to sell something. They will say everything is okay to put in your tank, not caring if it will kill your other stuff.
Hong Kong Fish — Just over priced no customer support and they don’t have anything!
The list really could keep going. This place was amazing! Not only did they have a great stock of things. Their FRAG Prices were amazing (most places don’t even care about frags) Another thing is they have lots of product, even the hard to find stuff to add in your tank.
Pumps of all sizes and just anything you can think of, just amazing store.
Shean (sorry if I spelled your name wrong) was crazy helpful. These were my first frags, and he helped me take care of everything and took the time to explain why other frags would be bad for my set up.
I will be at this store at least once a week now to pick something up. PLUS THEY CARY JBJ!

We’ve been going to visit Tom at Carson Tropical Fish for over 15 years and consistently he is the best aquarium store around. Let me tell you why…
My husband has owned aquariums from 5 to 240 gallons during this period. His aquariums are mostly saltwater and therefore throughout the years we’ve gone through a variety of setups.
ABOUT THE SHOP: It’s not that he has the most exotic specimens of fishes or corals. It’s not that he has a wide selection of tanks on hand. It’s not because he has top of the line equipment for sale. It’s not that his shelves are the most organized… but it’s the personal service that he offers that puts him over the top. He has some of the best prices around and knows his stuff and is willing to special order anything you are looking for.
We’ve been to most of the aquarium shops over a 50 mile radius and no matter how much we end up driving to find new stuff we always end up buying our necessary essentials here.