GARF - biodiversity

[hart24601]

Hey all. Just wanted to give a shout out to GARF. I have ordered a couple times from them in the past few years and it's been great. I think a while back a few had issues, but Sally Jo seems to have things back in good shape after LeRoys death.

Biodiversity is a hot topic in reefs right now and with so many having dinos and wanting to add biodiversity via live rock or other methods one should give GARF a look. Just for my pico I ordered a bag of bugs and 1lb grunge (just email her, will get you whatever you are after)

Arrived in great shape and packed with inverts





https://www.facebook.com/GARF.org/posts/1638091099572872

 

[DSC reef]

Good stuff, thanks for the info.

 

[hart24601]

I forgot to say came with clumps of chaeto, micro stars, worms, looked like stomatella snails and lots more.

Kind of funny but 20 years or so after GARF was cutting edge they may have a rejuvenated importance in the hobby again.

 

[Matt Carden]

I am working on trying to start up a 150 gallon reef tank with only natural biological filtration and the bag of bugs seems like something I want to use. Would I need to wait for the tank to cycle before adding these?

 

[hart24601]

I personally would wait until cycled, maximize the life that comes with it and I don't see any need to add before the cycle is finished, but after cycle it's a great option and if you email her and explain the system I bet she will hand select some great life for you.

 

[vegamedic]

The longer I'm in the hobby the more I realize how important biodiversity is to the reef (tank). The best tanks I've ever seen have been crawling with tiny snails and worms, rocks/sump covered with sponges, pods jumping everywhere, etc. I've been wondering how to order from garf though, do you have to call or what? Their site is like a 1999 geocities page and the facebook doesn't help much either. need some grunge for my new system

 

[chefjpaul]

The longer I'm in the hobby the more I realize how important biodiversity is to the reef (tank). The best tanks I've ever seen have been crawling with tiny snails and worms, rocks/sump covered with sponges, pods jumping everywhere, etc. I've been wondering how to order from garf though, do you have to call or what? Their site is like a 1999 geocities page and the facebook doesn't help much either. need some grunge for my new system

http://www.garf.org/!paypal2010/Store.html

Push on the "button" itll take you to order through PayPal

 

[hart24601]

Sorry I didn't see the post. Yea the site is terrible and it used to be even worse. I would recommend emailing Sally Joe at [email protected] she got back to me very quickly.

 

[ectoaesthetics]

LOL. I am so stoked to see someone else give GARF the love they deserve. I also think it it weird when people write reviews about how ugly GARF grunge is and how much they dislike how ugly it is. It is like buying the sludge and junk of the bottom of the tank -and that is exactly what you want! That's where the good stuff is! I actually used to take a turkey baster and suck up the gunk from the sumps and sand beds of trusted friends and add it to a new tank. There is all kinds of great bacteria, worms, spores, and pods in that gunk.

I do NOT add everything directly to my tank however!! Flatworms and aptasia have been known to show up in these packs... So I typically pull out an old 2.5 gallon and add everything to that... then transfer things to my actual aquarium. No matter what you are buying from anyone, quarantining is a must.

Their bag-o-bugs really does come with a lot of diversity of bugs as well -I was impressed.

But yes the site really is a serious throw back to my college days -and I kinda love that about them.

 

[Graffiti Spot]

Tyree farming tiny sponge packs and garf sites farming tank starter packs. I don't think either of them is currently doing anything I would expect, it can be done by just about anyone, but its good too see they are still active. I guess maybe I expect/wish for more.

 

[Subsea]

Geothermal Aquaculture Research Foundation has served me well from 20 years ago before internet search engines. I was always impressed with Sally Joe “bullet proof” tank and how a mature biofilter of coral could be maintained easily.

I am starting up a new 20G tank for a community center. Thank you for bag of bugs idea. I will combine that with some live rock from a mature system.

 

[hart24601]

Tyree farming tiny sponge packs and garf sites farming tank starter packs. I don't think either of them is currently doing anything I would expect, it can be done by just about anyone, but its good too see they are still active. I guess maybe I expect/wish for more.

I know I wish GARF had even more, but it's been a while since LeRoy's passing and really it's pretty amazing Sally Joe has been able to keep it all running. I appreciate the work and dedication it has been for her to keep things open and at least in my case, ship quickly communicate well and deliver a good item that I didn’t see any pests in. I think there were some rocky patches right around the time of LeRoy’s passing for GARF, but at least for my last orders it was smooth and well done. Times do change, but I hope places like GARF and Sally Joe can experience a rejuvenation in their role of the modern mainstream reefing community.

 

[IgnatiusRath]

I have used them since my first saltwater tank and talked on the phone with LeRoy a few times when I first started out; he really helped knock my over excited noobie ideas back into reality while still keeping me pumped. I'm lucky GARF is local for me and Sally Jo brings stuff into one of the LFS in town to trade when she needs more salt or dry goods, so I get some Saltwater Molly's and other GARF critters every now and then. I'd also say, most of us here in town probably get the benefit of GARF bacteria and bugs second hand at least since their stuff ends up in the LFS tanks in town.