Skeptical about a LFS store ...

Virtualbasil · Sep 7, 2015

I recently moved to King of Prussia PA. I went to check out a LFS and what I saw made me worried. The live rock he has for sale is just sitting in a tub with a powerhead! no light, no filtration, not even a heater? I looked at every live rock in the store and saw no purple coraline algae at all. I went to the back to check his frag tank out and everything was covered in brown hair algae, is this bad? The display tanks were totally barren of anything for the fish to hide in so they were at the corner back of the aquarium just hovering (yellow tangs, powder tangs, clowns everything) He also said all he uses for filtration is a filter sock and a refugium with deep sand bed. Is this guy ok to buy from?

jared graves · Sep 7, 2015

If it was a fellow reefer's tank I would say no big deal but with so many corals and fish coming through the store that shows lack of attention to detail which can spell parasites and unwanted hitch hikers imo

Virtualbasil · Sep 7, 2015

this is how he is curing the liverock its litterally just a powerhead? can you do it like that?

Virtualbasil · Sep 7, 2015

do you see all that dark in the background? that's a carpet of Brown hair algae. Is that normal?

jared graves · Sep 7, 2015

Virtualbasil said:
this is how he is curing the liverock its litterally just a powerhead? can you do it like that?

You totally can I've done it myself this way but I guess I hold a store to a higher standard than me when they charge $8 a pound haha

Virtualbasil · Sep 7, 2015

jared graves said:
You totally can I've done it myself this way but I guess I hold a store to a higher standard than me when they charge $8 a pound haha

But there is no coraline algae at all.

jared graves · Sep 7, 2015

Virtualbasil said:
do you see all that dark in the background? that's a carpet of Brown hair algae. Is that normal?

It just means he doesn't do as many water changes or feeds too heavily but again lack of attention to detail with lots of turnover in live stock can spell parasites and unwanted hitch hikers. Now that doesn't necessarily mean he doesn't pay attention to that but

jared graves · Sep 7, 2015

Virtualbasil said:
But there is no coraline algae at all.

Coraline is not essential to live rock at all its more of an added bonus that shows healthy mature rock imo

Rob.D · Sep 7, 2015

Virtualbasil said:
this is how he is curing the liverock its litterally just a powerhead? can you do it like that?

Is the store selling the rock at full mark up price ($6.99 per lb and up?) or is this a cycle tank? The later would be a holding vat that is used for newly imported rock that comes in so nasty that the store might not want the rock to completely contaminate their holding system. Live rock doesn't come in from across the world in the best of shape, a lot comes in super filthy and covered in dead algae and detritus.

Virtualbasil · Sep 7, 2015

I'm just used to buying live rock that is totally solid purple when I buy it

Virtualbasil · Sep 7, 2015

he is selling it for $5 a pound which to me is cheap I was paying $12 a pound but that was incredible rock. Yes that is the rock he is selling right there.

jared graves · Sep 7, 2015

Rob.D said:
Is the store selling the rock at full mark up price ($6.99 per lb and up?) or is this a cycle tank? The later would be a holding vat that is used for newly imported rock that comes in so nasty that the store might not want the rock to completely contaminate their holding system. Live rock doesn't come in from across the world in the best of shape, a lot comes in super filthy and covered in dead algae and detritus.

I also agree on that. I would ask for a little tour of the back and or ask questions about it just be careful not to be too abrasive in your questions

jared graves · Sep 7, 2015

Virtualbasil said:
he is selling it for $5 a pound which to me is cheap I was paying $12 a pound but that was incredible rock. Yes that is the rock he is selling right there.

At 5$ a pound that's not a bad deal if it really is cycled

kidzaac87 · Sep 7, 2015

Virtualbasil said:
But there is no coraline algae at all.

Not all live rock has coraline algae on it (90% of my live rock did not have it when I brought it), Guess it depends
on where he get his stock from and where it was collected?

I have see one or two lfs that look very high end and most of there fish wern't in the best of health.

bsr2430 · Sep 7, 2015

Heck no don't buy from that guy!! I wouldn't dare do that again! I bought a power blue tang, and it lasted a week in my system and my system is well off. After checking with many, many other people, they said this at Pets N Pals in Staunton VA is a nightmare! Can't keep anything alive and over prices everything!

Cleo642 · Sep 7, 2015

Virtualbasil said:
this is how he is curing the liverock its litterally just a powerhead? can you do it like that?

Looks like dead rock.

Cleo642 · Sep 7, 2015

Virtualbasil said:
I'm just used to buying live rock that is totally solid purple when I buy it

Where did you but the purple rock from?

redfishbluefish · Sep 7, 2015

Live rock does not need light. As a matter of fact a large percentage of bacteria multiply faster in the dark.....so keep your biopellet reactors covered, and your live rock in the dark.

No names mentioned, but I use to frequent an LFS in PA, not too far from Trenton. Although they had excellent prices on some dry goods....especially tanks and salt....all their coral tanks were infested with flat worms. I just wondered how many non-QTing folks purchased frags. I saw this flat worm problem for over two years.

Tahoe61 · Sep 7, 2015

Cleo642 said:
Looks like dead rock.

How can you tell from an image. Live rock simply means the rock is a current medium for the Nitrifying and Denitrifying bacteria, you can not tell from looking at it.
The absence of coralline algae does not dictate the bacterial colonization of the rock.

I have kept rock without coralline in containers with just flow and sw to seed tanks. It's no biggie, now if that rock has only been sitting for a couple weeks with no seeding then yeah I might be concerned. Or is that rock had aiptasia or flatworms and nasty algae than I might be concerned, but you can really not tell anything from that image.

talon · Sep 7, 2015

I live outside of Pottstown pa and have not found a lfs anywhere I trust. I have traveled an hour and a half to get fish that I am now treating for ick and velvet and lost one already. Not sure which store you are talking about but I have had no luck in the area. I am going to go back to ordering online (never had trouble with live aquaria). If you know of anywhere in the area I would love to check them out. Would love to meet new people on here to buy and trade with.