JaimeAdams
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Do you have separate systems to slowly increase the copper levels or are you dropping them right into full strength copper?
I've worked at an LFS, ask me anything about them
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ZoWhat
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While it is not something the place I worked did, it always bothers me when a store is willing to sell you a frag knowing it likely has some nasties on it. A lot of stores don't seem to care. I also had to fix problems in people's tanks created by other stores who simply wanted to sell something regardless if it was actually the right product for the customer (i.e. the wrong lights for a certain tank, cruddy filters, etc.). Some places give absolutely horrible advice that endangers the fish. This really varies by store, but I do believe that pest management is very poorly done at many stores.
smallcrpt
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Does your store label prices on livestock? a local place to me hardly does and its frustrating because for one person a $10 fish is like $30 for me. I would love to go there more often, but the variability makes me stay away
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Hahaha that is pretty funny to ask. This varies dramatically. One place I know of never changes any of their filters and were selling people tap water (this place was horrible). Many stores don't change the DI resin frequently. The place I worked would remove the DI resin if it got used up so it didn't dump things back in, but also did an ICP test to know what was being removed by the DI resin if they had to take it out (basically manganese, a little zinc, silica, and that's about it as far as I remember). They would only not replace it if there was no DI in stock.
People waste so much money and time buying store water. It's not bad if you have a small tank, but RODI units are much more cost effective in the long run. I have seen people come in buying 75 gallons of water and hauling massive amount of buckets at a time.
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Yes. Mostly everything was labeled.
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It depends on the place. We ran it between 2.0 and 2.5. It is really difficult not to because you would need several massive QT systems or tons of tanks on different individual systems that can each be emptied if something breaks out. Its just so much simpler to run copper power or similar.
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Yeah it really varies by store, just like the rest of a store's quality. There are definitely some shady pet stores haha
mdb_talon
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Ya i have heard from someone who worked at one of the stores local to me that for their rodi system they used legit rodi, but for their saltwater they just filled their container with tap and aerated for a day(to remove chlorine) and then mixed the salt. I guess the theory was people could easily test the tds of rodi, but not so easy to see that the mixed saltwater had used tapwater.
Not 100% sure this is true, but it wouldnt surprise me of some stores.
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This was a long time ago like 70s but I was told that markup on sw fish was 500% due to loses and you had to pickup your livestock at the airport as soon as it came in even if it was 2am, is or was that true?
mdb_talon
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The markup off the list price of the fish is tremendous and losses are high, but obviously varies. It is not just losses that have to be accounted for though. For example i can direct order a common blue green chromis for 20 cents each. I would certainly have losses. , But an even bigger factor is shipping/fees which will be $400-$600/box. They can squeeze 200 in a box and all the sudden that 20 cent fish just cost me $2.70 to get to my door. Or can get those same fish from a wholesaler in the $3-$4 range (less risk but higher cost).
I believe the 500% you heard is probably just the fish list price compared to the retail price and does not account for the true cost of that fish.
Lowell Lemon
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Is it true that most store owners are laundering drug money? LOL It takes a lot of scratch to build and run a store. Seems like a good way to lose lots of money in a short time!I was wondering, does anyone have any questions about some behind the scenes at an LFS? Any questions on disease, stocking, orders, or any other random questions you might have about an LFS? I figure I'd share with you all any answers I might have as to what are good and bad signs as to an LFS's quality, and what a realistic and unrealistic expectations out of your lfs. I have been to a LOT of lfs's, and some don't know what they are doing, some are lazy, and others are fantastic. I think LFS's can play a huge role in someone's interests and successes in the hobby, and I'd like to help others determine what qualities of an lfs are good coming from a behind the scenes view. I obviously can't speak for all of them, but I figured this could be a fun or helpful thread in general about them in general
PS No direct naming of stores please
;Peeking
