My LFS (Local Fish Store)

[PheonixKingZ]

This.....is.....my.....LFS!!!

I’m so excited to share it with you today! It has a lot of tanks (Pretty well balanced between saltwater, and freshwater), and they keep very good care of their fish. The always a huge supply of betta fish (They are each in about 0.5 gallon tanks), that always warm my heart! (There are some fish I don’t know the name of, so feel free to index them for me!)

Saltwater

Here is a huge reef tank they have setup near the back...

Lion Fish....(My fav.!)

Yellow Tang....(I don’t know for sure.....)

Super cool “Blotched” Clown Fish....

Live Coral “farm”....

Live Coral tank....

No clue whatsoever, on what this fish is.....

FreshWater

Male Plakat Betta, staring at a Male Black Orchard betta....

Some sort of catfish...?

A hole shelf of Liquid ferts, medicine, substrate, etc....

This has been my LFS, and I hope you enjoy!!

(If you have a cool picture from your LFS, then please post it below, thanks!]

 

[Fishmanic]

I was wondering how expensive live coral is. I know saltwater fish are for the most part much more expensive than freshwater fish.

 

[Fishmanic]

Here is a video from a fish store that is just 15 miles from me. They have literally hundreds of tanks.. You can spend a good hour or more in there looking at all their tanks. It is a huge store.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Wow! That is a huge store! Mine is pretty Small, but it sure has a ton of tanks!!

And yes, a Clown Fish literally cost around $60-$80!!!

The owner is very knowledgeable in pretty much everything fish related, and has everything from baby Clownfish, to freshwater eels!!

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Here is are some more pictures.....

Arowana Tank, with some Green Terrors, and some other USA (Unidentified Swimming Object, not the country! ).

A cool Saltwater Shrimp.....

Super cool looking Cory Cats....

This bad boy is so cool! It is a FLUVAL 15 gallon FLEX tank. It is only $130.99 (If you buy it new, it’s around $200). A super good deal, but....I don’t have the funds.

 

[Colin_T]

The small white marine fish with the black polkadots is called a polkadot grouper (Cromileptes altivelis). They grow to a couple of feet long and do not belong in aquariums. They are also being hunted to extinction in the wild as a food fish.

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Corals range in price from about $10 to $100+. Small corals are generally cheaper than larger bits, and some species are harder to get. And unusual colours command higher prices.

A lot of marine fish are no more expensive than a Betta or large angelfish.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

A lot of marine fish are no more expensive than a Betta or large angelfish.

I don’t know why people think that Saltwater, is more expensive than Freshwater! It just, seems that what, you know what I mean?

 

[Essjay]

Super cool looking Cory Cats....

The fish on the bottom in the foreground aren't cories, they're one of the Synodontis species. The two out of focus fish right at the back could be cories but i can't see them properly.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Thank you! They just looked so cool, and I was wondering what they where!

 

[Back in the fold]

Marine tanks, saltwater fish and everything connected with them is way more expensive than freshwater . Also more complicated and fussy requiring daily fiddling and tinkering. Not my cup of tea.

 

[Colin_T]

My marine tanks aren't like that. I don't test anything and only top up with fresh water. Once a month I do a 90% water change using natural sea water. My tanks had a corner sponge filter, some sand, live rock, marine algae (Caulerpa and Halimeda) and anemones or shrimp in.

 

[Back in the fold]

My marine tanks aren't like that. I don't test anything and only top up with fresh water. Once a month I do a 90% water change using natural sea water. My tanks had a corner sponge filter, some sand, live rock, marine algae (Caulerpa and Halimeda) and anemones or shrimp in.

Well, people that really do know are able to figure things out. And I assume you live close to an ocean and know these things well, but in land locked Montana USA where I live, I see expensive salt mix and specialized equipment like protein skimmers and calcium dosers and super duty lighting systems. Then I see fish ranging in price from 20 to over 100 dollars. Testing water with a salinity gauge and fussing over corals and live rock. I don't know man. Sure seems expensive and complicated to me. Not really interested either. I'll stick with freshwater. I understand it and besides, I'm too old a dog to learn new tricks.

 

[Colin_T]

Unfortunately artificial marine salts can get costly, which is why I use natural sea water.

Protein Skimmers aren't essential and Calcium Reactors are only used for coral tanks or if you don't do water changes. You can also buy calcium supplements to add to the tank instead of getting a reactor.

Lighting is more for corals and it depends on how tall the tank is. If you have a tall tank you need bright lights like metal halides, but the same thing happens in a freshwater plant tank. All my corals and anemones were under fluorescent globes.

Hydrometers (salt measuring devices) are available in different styles including a glass floating one, a plastic chamber and a refractometer. I used a plastic chamber type, which you fill with water and see where the plastic needle points to. It's simple and quick.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

So would you say it would be more expensive to setup a saltwater tank, than a freshwater tank?

 

[Fishmanic]

If u consider the cost of fish and corals... yes it is more expensive... also add the cost of protein skimmer and lighting and salt