jpun1 Posted June 8, 2003 Share Posted June 8, 2003 Wondering if anyone can recommend a good store I can check out for my reef tank... I'm looking to get some aragonite sand for a DSB, good LIVE SAND, and a good skimmer. I live in the San Francisco area. I'd also be willing to check out online stores that you guys have had good expereinces with! Thanks! Link to comment
powerofslack Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 IN SF I'd recommend 6th ave aquarium at 6th and clement heartuily and they're open until 10pm- online i think marine depot has your cheapest prices for supplies like aragonite chems etc; I'd go with the GARF method of using caribsea special reef grade aragonite seeded with a starter live snad kit from GARF (www.garf.org) or indo-pacific sea farms, etc. Link to comment
supernip Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 I would recommend you not buy livestock form 6th street. You'll thank yourself. Maybe inverts will survive but most fish will die. Trust me, I've spent a lot of money on their stuff. It's self service so people mess with the fishes a lot and it's transhipped. Poor fish condition. I've rarely had a fish from them that survived, I dunno why I keep going back there. Cheap price, cheap livestock, cheap health :/ Link to comment
Vincerama Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 How is the Live Rock from 6th Ave?? Link to comment
JIM27 Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 The only thing I'd recommend from 6th ave is the sunday bag sales. You can find some awesome deals in there(I paid $13 for my old brownbanded bamboo shark, they're normally $40 or $50)and the fish haven't touched there sub par display tanks. I've never bought any corals from them so I cant comment on them. I also bought some lr from them a while ago, I found some good peices with the perfect shapes to make a little cave thing for my shark tank. Of course this was over a year ago when I bought it so you'd have to check ot out for yourself now. Link to comment
IUnknown Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 wouldn't tropical paradise be worth the drive for corals. Link to comment
supernip Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 I would recommend you not listen to jim27. Geez sunday bag sell=100 ppl tossing fish around that's been laying in a bag all day. Major stress major disappointments. You better get there early and be ready to fight the crowd. BTW jim, that shark is regularly 20 bucks and I hope you have a HUGE aquarium for it. The rock there is ok, it's cheap but stinky. It's not even cured. I'd be extra careful if I were gonna get anything from there other than dry goods. Link to comment
jpun1 Posted June 10, 2003 Author Share Posted June 10, 2003 i agree that 6th ave aquarium is not the best place for quality livestock. i haven't had much luck with any of their livestock other than their inverts. fish always die when i get them from there. it's hard to believe there is not a quality store in SF! anybody been to the one on taravel?? i've also heard good things about tropical paradise, but it is a long drive... Link to comment
JIM27 Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 Originally posted by supernip I would recommend you not listen to jim27. Geez sunday bag sell=100 ppl tossing fish around that's been laying in a bag all day. Major stress major disappointments. You better get there early and be ready to fight the crowd. BTW jim, that shark is regularly 20 bucks and I hope you have a HUGE aquarium for it. The rock there is ok, it's cheap but stinky. It's not even cured. I'd be extra careful if I were gonna get anything from there other than dry goods. What the hell is your problem? Its fine if you disagree with me but you dont have to word it like I'm a moron or something. No, the shark is not normally 20 bucks, at least not at any stores around here. Check out some online sites, most will have them for around $40. The shark I bought requires a minimum of 180 gallons for life(as said in Scott Michaels, Aquarium Sharks and Rays). I know this. That's why there is a 180 gallon sitting in my living room. I'm not claiming to be an expert on sharks(far from it) but I do know a lot about sharks and there captive care from doing lots of reading and research, as well as my own experiences with them. I never said that the fish weren't stressed by all the people in there. All I said is you can find some really good deals there, which is true. If you know how to spot a healthy looking fish at least. Link to comment
supernip Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 So... where in my trend did I call you stupid aye? And oh yes the sharks are 20 bucks. You want proof? I'll take a picture of it when I go there. BTW, you're in a nano-reef forum, how am I supposed to know you had a 180? And I'm sorry if I seemed mean. I just find it ridiculous how anyone could endorse such a bad bad fishstore. Have you ever seen them get in a new shipment? They THROW boxes full of fish on the ground. If you even look at the display tanks itself, you can see lions in the same tank as tiny gobies and the likes. The bag sales are the worst. It's like a mob and those fishes are tugs and tossed around by at least 5 people before someone decides to pick them up. Link to comment
Vincerama Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 Hey, they (6th ave) sells Instant Ocean in 50gal bags for 10 bucks. The other places I've seen are a touch more, though Natural Life Aquarium in Mountain view claims to have the cheapest. Well, it starts at about 13 bucks, but if you buy 9 bags, the price is $89.99...so 10 bucks, but at 6th, you only have to buy one bag for that price... That place seems to be always crowded! I thought that their lights were a little inadequate over their coral displays... V Link to comment
JIM27 Posted June 12, 2003 Share Posted June 12, 2003 Originally posted by supernip So... where in my trend did I call you stupid aye? And oh yes the sharks are 20 bucks. You want proof? I'll take a picture of it when I go there. BTW, you're in a nano-reef forum, how am I supposed to know you had a 180? And I'm sorry if I seemed mean. I just find it ridiculous how anyone could endorse such a bad bad fishstore. Have you ever seen them get in a new shipment? They THROW boxes full of fish on the ground. If you even look at the display tanks itself, you can see lions in the same tank as tiny gobies and the likes. The bag sales are the worst. It's like a mob and those fishes are tugs and tossed around by at least 5 people before someone decides to pick them up. You didn't directly call me stupid, but the way you worded your responce( "I would recommend you not listen to jim27.") sounded like you were saying, "dont listen to him he's an idiot" or "he doesn't know what the hell he's talking about." Atleast thats how I took it. Where did you get your shark? I've never seen them anywhere for $20. Maybe where you live, but here I highly doubt you'd find them at that price. Around here they're always around $40 or $50. I'm not trying to endorse 6th ave, because like you said they're display tanks are ######. They are a bad lfs. I'm just saying that you can find some cheap fish in there bag sales, which is 100% true. Unlike you all of the fish I've bought from the sales have survived(a bamboo shark, hippo tang, and purple tang). Link to comment
KamDesai Posted June 23, 2003 Share Posted June 23, 2003 6th ave is terrible. It is kind of a neat place to go look at since its so different, but every fish I have purchased from there has died. I even tried to pick out the healthiest, but they still have died. Also, most the tanks have some dead fish or dying fish along the bottom, which can never be a good sign. Try Nippon or Hung Ming (Pet Central) on Broadway. Link to comment
foo Posted July 4, 2003 Share Posted July 4, 2003 If you're looking for live sand and cultures for starting a tank I would recommend seriously considering online sellers, I've had mostly good luck with online purchases. Indo-Pacific Sea Farms or Inland Aquatics. For dry goods your best bets online are: Marine Depot Dr. Foster's and Smith (formally Pet's Warehouse) Champion Lighting and Supply. Hellolights. LFS San Francisco I would also say 6th ave on Clement street is to be avoided. I've never bought salt water fish from them becuase of the worst conditions I've ever seen. All of the livestock is crowded and all of the saltwater fish are on a single system so the whole lot is always suspect with all of the dying and dead fish in the tanks. Their dry goods as someone else commented are the low in price. Of all of the LFS in the entire bay area they have the best prices. However if you buy online you can still beat their prices. Nippon Goldfish on Geary street is okay, they do a decent job of handling the fish and cleaning the tanks. Hung Ming (Pet Central) on Broadway should be treated as suspicioulsy. They pack their fish in there and sometimes they have many sickly fish in their tanks, though nowhere near as bad as 6th ave. I bought a tang for my 50G tank and it died after a few days of mysterious circumstances, I was never able to diagnose that one. Mountain View: Seascapes in on Castro street has livestock of decent quality but I avoid that place since that Rick guy took over since he's so obnoxious and treats his customers with contempt. The don't post any prices so if you want something you have to haggle with that dude. Sunnyvale: Natural Life Aquarium next to Town and Country mall seems to be very well run though I've never bought anything there. I think the guy that used to work over at Seascapes before Rick took over is there now. He's got a lot of brown air and a beard and is very slight in build. He seemed to be concensious about his fishkeeping and quaranteen procedures when he was at Seascapes. I don't know if he's the owner or just works there. Kind of small place but if you're in the area take a look. San Jose: Dolphin Pet Village on San Tomas Aquinas road is a nice big all around pet store. They have a bunch of kids working under one or two knowledgeable guys so their tanks aren't the best cared for always. Drygoods Online: marinedepot.com great prices but they only carry marine goods. I'll make an order for $150 of stuff from them occasionally to get free shipping. drsfostersmith.com good prices. I also order from these guys since they also carry freshwater goods. I have too many fishtanks. championlighting.com the best prices on lighting in general. hellolights.com best lighing for the nano reefer at reasonable prices. Livestock Online: I bought a cleanup kit from Marinedepot Live and was quite happy with it 2 or 3 years ago when they opened. Indo-Pacific Sea Farms ipsf.com has some interesting starter kits. I bought their mix and match special on my 50G tank 2 years ago and was very happy with it. Dr fosters has a live section now. I bought two orchid dotty backs 2 years ago and they are still happy along with an small acopora. The fish are still happy but I've managed to half kill the acopora. My fault, I let the tank chemistry get out of balance a while back. Oops but not their fault. inlandaquatics is a site that I want to try next. I've read good things about them and they have some interesting starter kits. Link to comment
cuteios Posted July 4, 2003 Share Posted July 4, 2003 Hey I haven't been in the bay area in years, but when I was young they had this great aquarium store in San Bruno. I wonder if it's still around...does anyone know the place??? Link to comment
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