Best Local Fish Store in Milwaukee Area

E

ericblaine

New member
I am trying to find some really good Local Fish Stores in the Milwaukee area. I have lived on the north shore of Milwaukee for about 2 years and I haven't been able to find a store I really like. I previously lived in Southern California and Utah with my tank and both places had some really good stores with reasonable prices. So far I have been to Hoffers which I thought had an okay selection but the prices were way too high. Then I've been to Aqua Exhibits which had okay prices but not a very good selection.

So... Can someone local please give me some tips on what are the best local fish stores in the Miwaukee area. I'm just looking for a store with decent prices and a decent selection of fish and corals. I know I can order online or try and trade frags with people, etc.... But its nice to have some local stores to look at stuff and get fish.

Thanks,
~Eric.
 
Well about the only other major store with stuff is Aquatics Unlimited, and they are high priced and seem to be getting a worse and worse selection. Aqua Exhibits used to be, in my opinion, the best choice, but they have slipped a bit lately. Hoffers is higher priced but they have just about anything you want to look at. Also every other Saturday or so they have sales on saltwater, 15% off everything. Your other options in Milwaukee are basically

Fish Factory: Small selection

Pet worlds: over priced, not healthy, bad service

Marineland: Bad neighborhood, small selection

Pets and Things: Decent prices, small selection, but really nice place for freshwater stuff

If I missed anything let me know for sure, cause I think I hit the bigger ones.
 
Aqua Exhibits: Cheap like a bait shot, Unhealthy like a bait shop, service is so so. I mention them because they also get in some of the most exotic stuff from time to time. They get mantis shrimp (like 6" peacocks), octopus, urchins, starfish, and other really hard to find stuff. There corals are in a constant state of dying however. They just dont know how to set up a sustainable reef.

Pet Worlds: depends on which one. The one on S.27th was great for a while, but the owner there is a jack@$$ and has forced all but his dumbest employees to leave. The one out by Westown is still under good care. The thing to remember is that each one is run by a different owner, so each one should be treated seperately. The one on 108th is so so.

Hoffers: Can be a little pricey, but has one of the best kept setups around. If you get in with the workers (not the owners though, they can drive a harder bargain that isnt worth it) you can trade frags and thats where it really gets good. Once I was with cap360 and he traded in a "boulder" with over 100 silver xenia polyps on it, and a few ric frags for a dozen other corals (Xenia is a big seller there)...and the good rare ones like a pagoda, a couple cool brains, and other stuff. The funny thing is that people around milwaukee are cheap, and buy cruddy crap for their tanks cuz they dont want to pay $90 for a sweet flowerpot...but you can come by there with frags of rics and xenia and they will treat you like a king and give you all that stuff at a deal on trade cuz nobody else buys it.

Aquatics Unlimited: The highest price, but the good service, and a good selection...not so much corals as critters and fish that are healthy. Hoffers and these guys are the highest priced, but of the two, Hoffers is the better deal...in fact, unlike their overpriced freshwater crap, Hoffers is pretty reasonable for some of their saltwater.

Really, the best places to go around here are scarce...not like atlanta or california where great reef-only stores are all over. Milwaukee is a cheap blue-collar town where African Cichlids are the hot thing. Get in with the WRS, and your coral needs will be solved, but for fish...its hit&miss. I end up mail ordering half the time.
 
Hey Herbert get a hold of me I still owe you. I hate owing people, and seeing your dead on addition to what I said, reminded me. Send me a pm or something
 
Hey puddingskin. Sorry, Ive been busy lately. Maybe Ill just show up at your work some day or something (have to go there soon)...PM me if you have any ideas (your schedule). Dont worry, its not like Im thinking bad thoughts or anything...lol.

Say, do you guys have any of those 2-spot sand gobies still? How about any nice mandarins? Im looking for those.
 
If you want to find good lfs you have to take a drive south to the Chicago area. There are a number of them down here.
 
I guess I disagree with You Don, in the fact that my experience with the stores in the Chicago area have been the same as Milwaukee. Those stores that have a good selection, are more expensive, and those who are reasonably priced seem to have a small selection. If you have any stores you can think of let me know, if I have not been I surely would like to make the drive. Thanks
 
You are going to the wrong stores. These three in my opinion have the best selection and pricing. These guys specialize in SPS and have great selections. Stuff you can't find at any Milwaukee area store. You need to check out Sea Schorr in Buffalo Grove, Reef Dweller on N. Lincoln in Chicago, and Rod's Reef in DeKalb, IL. I would agree with you that there are many Chicago area stores that are over priced. These stores are not and have great selections of softie, lps, sps, clams, etc.
 
Well, I will admit those are three stores I have yet to visit. Kind of amazing if you had any clue as to the number of stores, I have visited. But thanks another day trip to Chicago is always welcomed.
 
You guys won't need any other stores if you go to these. Unfortunatly these stores are not close to each other. Reef Dweller specialized in SPS, so if you are looking for softies and only have time for one check out Sea Schorr. They all have a great selections of SPS, but Reef Dweller tends not to carry as much in the way of soft corals. These are the hiden gems of the Chicago area stores. These are not your average reef stores, so that is why you guys may have not heard of them. You will have to check the hours for Sea Schorr if you are going during the week, but they have normal hours on Saturday. These guys set up tanks for people and have only recently opened up their coral bins for retail. Rod's reef is must see as well. These are not fancy stores by any means, but have the most knowledgeable owners and the best prices and corals around.

Reef Dweller - 5858 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago, IL - www.reefaholics.com

Sea Schorr - 400 W. Dundee Rd, Buffalo Grove, IL

Rod's Reef - check website for directions - www.rod's-reef.com,
South of Rt 38 by two or three miles on Rt 23 in DeKalb, IL
 
Ahhh, there it is...reefdwellers! Nice stuff.

For corals, I have pretty much been just buying from other WRS members. Gooch, until he got out, and cap360. cap360 is bringing stuff all the time, splitting it up, and selling it off.

I have to go and get some more ORA tort and pink poscillipora from him soon. Oh, and he has soooo many rics and zoos to move its not even funny.
 
Gooch, until he got out, and cap360. cap360 is bringing stuff all the time, splitting it up, and selling it off.
Click to expand...
John I Would say 85%of my sps are from colonies I've raised from frag and propagated.
 
Ah, that must be you cap, new login I see...
C'mon, last spring you had like 20+ new acros alone (mostly frags, yes) in the matter of a month. That may not seem like alot to you considering all you have, but its alot more than anyone is going to find anywhere in the LFS's in Milwaukee.
 
Just wanted to thank everyone who posted to this thread. It was useful info and I checked out Sea Schorr when I was in Buffalo Grove this past weekend. It was a pretty good shop for SPS corals with decent prices. They are in the process of moving to a new facility but I think when they move they will be very good. Nice guys that work there too.

Its really too bad we don't have better stores in Milwaukee. Having lived with a reef tank in southern california and Utah I have to say I was very spoiled. I didn't realize how spoiled I was until I came out here but hopefully we get a new shop someday.
 
I agree Don, i have been to both Rod's reef and Reef Dwellers and both of them have nice selections and at a fair price for what you are getting, i personally like to get frags and let them grow out. that also saves me alot of money.
 
Nothing in WI is any good , over priced and crap. For drygoods on-line at Premium Aquatics or Marine Depot , best return/customer service in the hobby, don't price shop - they will treat you best in long run.

Live rock is an issue now that Harbor Aqautics has closed -its a crap shoot on rock now.

For coral I agree w/ Don and my freind Chad on ReefDweller and Rods Reef both owners are fellow hobbiests and willing to take time to make sure your not taking home something you can't deal with.

Your best bet for coral is from other club members if you know thier tanks - keep in mind all your hard work and $

Phill

keep me interested and I may stay a memeber
 
Great LFS in Wisconsin

Great LFS in Wisconsin

Disclosure: I work at this store.

Aquatic Specialties in Madison just this past summer opened a new store next to where the old one was. We basically quadrupled what we had for saltwater in the old place. There are four reef tanks with coral (1 display, 1 SPS, 1 LPS/zoas and 1 softies/shrooms) as well as close to 4000 gallons of inverts and saltwater fish. Anyway, check it out if you are in town.
 
i will have to check out aquatic speciatlies, and those 3 in chicagoland.

i am underimpressed with anything at the milwaukee stores, besides hoffers, and they are pricey. maybe i will try to do trades when my clown stops beating up my xenia. i swear i saw that mega chunk of xenia that was traded to them. i have been getting my frags form WRS members, and now that i am a member, i will hopefully get more this way. i always felt kinda weird not being a wrs member and getting frags free/cheap....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Brian60077
Great reasonably price light system
Replies
0
Views
68
Brian60077
Brian60077
LJA
Fish addition order
Replies
2
Views
110
OrionN
OrionN
JeannineC
Fish suggestion
Replies
18
Views
160
OrionN
OrionN
AZBigJohn
New Build... I'm back
2
Replies
25
Views
997
Dustin07
D
G
Best of the Best
Replies
7
Views
590
wvned
wvned
Back
Top