LFS up here

[jovreef]

Well I have been meaning to say something about this since I got here but keep forgetting.

I have been to 3 LFS's up here so far (I plan on taking a look at many but back to the story) The first 2 LFS's I went to where a joke! I walked out while one lady was still talking to me! This one was out west alittle more...I forget the name of it. I walked in looking for RO/DI water because my ro was not hooked up yet. AFTER I ask if they sell RO/DI water, that I needed it for my REEF tank the lady began to explain to me that RO/DI water was not needed...just take some tap water and mix it with IO salt...she began to try to explain how to mix the IO salt and give me a sales pitch and I just laughed and left.
I then called a few stores asking if they carried RO/DI water...One store that posted salt/freshwater fish in the add ask "whats RO/DI water?"


I thought to myself "great I leave FL and am going to have crap for stores up here...they are even worse than going to petco!"

Then I went to skiptons pet center! I have nothing but admiration for that store! I walked in and was shown to a SELF SERVE HUGE RO/DI tank, and also told that they have a large tank of pre mixed salt water... I was even mroe amazed to know that they use TROPIC MARIN salt in their pre mixed water! Personally I think being from FL we have some decent LFS's but NONE of them use TM salt for pre mixed water unless you ask for it and pay more for it!

The guy showing me to the water fill station also VERY kindly let me know when I told him I'd be using TM pro not just TM, to be careful switching to pro salt because of the higher concentration of all those goodies found in salt. (I did already know this and my tanks been runing on pro since it came out) But I was amazed that a person working at an LFS knew this and kindly informed me! As I was filling my water I mentioned how cheap it was compaired to the $1-1.50 per gal in FL. The guy then ask if I was Jovreef...HaHa imagine that... he reads the forums.

All in all if you read all my rambling...I'm very pleased with skiptons, Not even if FL do we have any LFS to compair to the service and knowledge I recieved there, the prices on equipment food and dry goods seemed cheap (corals were more ... but very nice pieces so I can see why those prices were asked for the corals he was selling) I will buy all my goods from skiptons from now on!

I hope there are more LFS's here like skiptons

 

[Liam]

Yes Skiptons is a great store and Brendan is very helpful.
-Liam.

 

[Conlius]

i was told that he is the type of guy that won't sell you a fish or coral if he doesn't think you can take care of it....if this is true, we need more people like that in sales

 

[MarkO]

I've found that the lfs's that sponsor here have a clue (at least the ones I've done business with... AA, CRA, FB)

 

[~Flighty~]

I agree, the sponsors that I have been to have been great. Worth the trip for every one so far.

 

[MelodyDurham]

Yeah! We got our mantis from -B- at Skipton's. He's awesome! A bit of a drive for us, but definitly worth the trip.

All the BRS sponsoring LFSs we've been to are excellent. David and I are still very new to reefing (which is a whole other planet from the freshwater fish tanks that we're used to), and we are very careful about doing all our reserch before we jump into something. There's only so much you can read up on, and talking to people with first hand expereince is invaluable. It's very refreshing to have such quality knowledge at the LFSs here.

Glad you found Skipton's!

Melody~

 

[zemuron114]

i was there today (skiptons) and was going to buy a yellow coris wrasse for my reef(i needed some yellow) Brendon showed me one they had and it wouldn't eat and tried to hide the whole time. he told me not to buy it because it wasn't 100%. He also held a female bluethroat for me for a week!!!