Customer feedback.....

[mmaxe2]

Part 2

Part 2

Received Part 2 of the package last Wednesday and all I can say is wow. Great looking rock and all of the cuc in great shape. But the extras, that's amazing. Richard sent along 4 nice sponges(orange, red and yellow), a purple gorgonian, huge decorator crab, a flower anemone and a Royal Gramma! All of which made the trip just fine and have acclimated nicely. Know it will be hard to keep the sponges but look great for now. The gorgonian polyps are open everyday and and it looks awesome. The Gramma is doing fine and eating like a horse! TBS pretty much sends you you own little piece of ocean! Almost forgot about hitchhikers, for at least 6-8 crabs, mostly red porcelain and mythrax but did have a couple gorilla which never made it into tank. Plus lots of nice sponges, little feather dusters, macro algae and a couple small anemones! You find something new every time you look close. Since the rock has been in the tank I also have found 2 more decorator crabs - one bright red!

Even after adding all the new rock and critters tank levels have stayed steady. This is the only way to start a tank!

Thanks again for you great product and awesome service. Wanted to post some pictures but it doesn't seem to want to let. I'll figure it out and post them soon.

 

[liverock]

And a customer this week from Madison Wi.

And a customer this week from Madison Wi.

Richard,

Thanks so much for hooking me up with such incredible live rock. I really appreciate that you hand-picked the pieces to fit perfectly into my Reefer Nano. I'm very happy with the assortment of sizes and shapes you chose, especially the amazing large piece that I was able to place vertically on the right to give my rock structure good height. All the pieces are gnarled shapes and filled with nooks and crannies. I can't believe the amount of life I'm seeing. Everything survived the plane ride. I didn't find one dead critter in the bottom of the box which probably has everything to do with how well it was packed and how quickly you got it here.

Thanks again,

Jason

 

[liverock]

And from Raleigh North Carolina....this week...snow and all!

And from Raleigh North Carolina....this week...snow and all!

Richard,
I got the package from Southwest, no problems!!! Just got the sand and rock in the tank and can't wait until it clears up enough that I can start to arrange it. The pieces of rock are gorgeous and the shapes you sent are going to make a beautiful arrangement.

I am beyond well pleased and my family and I really enjoyed the un-packaging. Thank you so much! It was like Christmas in February!

Thank you,
Colen

 

[liverock]

From this week..customer in the outback of Oklahoma!

From this week..customer in the outback of Oklahoma!

Richard,
I got the package from Southwest, no problems!!! Just got the sand and rock in the tank and can't wait until it clears up enough that I can start to arrange it. The pieces of rock are gorgeous and the shapes you sent are going to make a beautiful arrangement.

I am beyond well pleased and my family and I really enjoyed the un-packaging. Thank you so much! It was like Christmas in February!

Thank you,
Colen

Richard,
When we were putting live rock in our tank we found a brittle star! Tonight while watching TV we saw something swimming around!!!!! I got the camera and video camera out and it is either some type of Hawkfish. We are almost sure or b we are a blenny. I have some people IDing for me online and will try and get a good still image of it tomorrow when lights are on. We've never seen on like him in a LFS but thats not saying much"¦.
I'll keep you updated.

 

[liverock]

And from Little Rock this week

And from Little Rock this week

The packages arrived in great condition. So far the ammonia has not gone over .25, in fact it is very close to 0 still, after almost 24 hours in the tank. This is the best base rock ever! I once got what Live Aquaria called premium live rock, their best. It smelled really rank upon arrival and was still cycling a month later. This is a real treat to get a new tank started with quality live rock. When I opened the bags it smelled just like the ocean. I am from Florida and miss that smell so much! How pleasant to have a bit of ocean in the Ozarks!

I found only one gorilla crab and removed him. I absolutely love the hermit crab you included! There are a couple mithrax crabs and a decorator crab and a curlycue anemone. Lots of feather dusters!

Now to business! My tank is a 40 gallon breeder tank with a the largest size backpack CPR refugium, which I think is about 4 gallon capacity. So I really have 44 gallons. I ordered the 30 gallon package because of budget restrictions but I really think I want to get the amount of rock I need to do the reef the best I can. Since I last talked to you about the order and my budget, I have been notified that I had a substantial rewards balance from a credit card and it has been credited back to the account. That allows me enough on the card to cover the extra rock. However, I would like to get it all together in the final shipment.

I also want to know if it is possible to send a few pieces small enough for the refugium that have some macroalgae on them.

Also, my LED lighting is made for reef tanks and will support anemones and most corals. I have a separate lighting system that is made by CPR for the refugium as well. I think anything on the rocks will do well. This is not my first reef tank but very well be my best, with all the life in your awesome package. My last tank was a 28 gallon nano cube, so the 40 gallon breeder tank feels like double the space, because it is not so deep but lots of floor space. That's why I want to upgrade my package.

I also wanted to ask if it is possible to make a request, kind of like some folks do with a wish list. I really love gorgonians and had wanted a rock flower anemone but hesitated in my other tank because of tight space. I can have one in this reef! I am sure I will be delighted with whatever you include though. Please let me know how much it will cost to include the extra 20 pounds of rock and the rest of what comes with the 40 gallon package. I paid for the 30 gallon package.

 

[reefergranny]

I thought it time to update the report on my new reef since a week has passed since adding part two of the "package". I could not be more pleased! The ammonia rose to 1 ppm the first day and I monitered and did two partial water changes. By day three it has leveled at .5 ppm and by day four was down to .25 with no further water changes. By day five it was 0 ppm. I added a lawnmower blenny on day five.

Everything is springing to life! There are abundant tunicates and sponges in many colors, feather dusters, several small anemones and the two beauties that were included with my package, lots of varieties of macroalgae and some amazingly gorgeous gorgonians that were part of my package. I am feeding the reef with plankton and evrything comes to life seconds after adding the plankton to the tank.

I am so amazed at the amount of life on my rock that I have decided to keep the reef a Florida species reef. For now I don't need to add anything more. It will be an adventure just watching what crawls out of the rock as well as what grows on it. So far there are at least half a dozen varieties of little crabs including a couple tiny gorilla crabs that are too small and too fast to catch. I have removed a number of small whelks as well but no mantis has made an appearance. A tiny black urchin has appeared that is about 1/4 inch diameter. He is so cute but has disappeared into the rock pile again.

I was really impressed with how well the rocks fit together too. There were even some smaller rocks included with macroalgae on them that were just the right size for my HOB refugium. They are showing lots of new growth too. My reef is amazing!

Can anyone help me with what species of fish are Florida natives that would be small enough to make a home in a 40 gallon reef?

Thanks to Tampa Bay Saltwater for the best reef of my life!

 

[reefergranny]

Pictures after 1 week

Pictures after 1 week