In living Color
- Thread starter Ruu
- Start date
I stopped in there last week. They are expecting to open around December 15 and be fully cycled and in full operation by sometime in January.
It is a new owner and it looks like they are pouring a ton of money into it. The room where Aquarium Authority had drygoods will be a showroom, with display tanks and only one wall of drygoods. There is already a cichlid tank set up and a reef tank under the counter.
The saltwater livestock will be on the same floor in the room to the right of the door when you walk in. They have quite a few rows of four-high racks of tanks there now.
Downstairs will be freshwater and pond livestock. I didn't get to see that.
They won't be selling much in the way of drygoods. It will be mostly livestock and they will be doing tank setup and maintenance. From what I understand, the setups were designed and will be managed by a former employee of the Baltimore Aquarium, but I heard that third-hand, so I don't know whether it is true. I also heard that they have a giant MRC skimmer in the basement.
I will keep an eye on the place, since I live nearby. I know that Bill, the owner of Aquarium Discount, can't be happy with this development.
It is a new owner and it looks like they are pouring a ton of money into it. The room where Aquarium Authority had drygoods will be a showroom, with display tanks and only one wall of drygoods. There is already a cichlid tank set up and a reef tank under the counter.
The saltwater livestock will be on the same floor in the room to the right of the door when you walk in. They have quite a few rows of four-high racks of tanks there now.
Downstairs will be freshwater and pond livestock. I didn't get to see that.
They won't be selling much in the way of drygoods. It will be mostly livestock and they will be doing tank setup and maintenance. From what I understand, the setups were designed and will be managed by a former employee of the Baltimore Aquarium, but I heard that third-hand, so I don't know whether it is true. I also heard that they have a giant MRC skimmer in the basement.
I will keep an eye on the place, since I live nearby. I know that Bill, the owner of Aquarium Discount, can't be happy with this development.
maxpower39
New member
i also popped in and heard the same story...dec. 15...
hopefully these guys will be a little more customer friendly...
hopefully these guys will be a little more customer friendly...
I stopped in today and the new owner was there. He gave me the grand tour. They will not be opening until mid-January. It is going to be an incredible setup and they seem committed to customer service. The owner, who sold a business recently, has been a long-time aquarist and has the resources to do this right. He originally contracted with an employee of the Baltimore Aquarium to design the filtration and plumbing systems for the store. Apparently, this evolved into a full-time position with the business.
The room by the entrance will indeed be a showroom with a very open floor plan. There will be tanks built into walls and furniture, which will serve to demonstrate what they can do as part of system design and maintenance, which will be a significant part of the business.
They will have a large number of coral and saltwater fish tanks, all lit with IceCap lighting. Right now, they have a tank with two conspiculatus angels and another with goldflake and scribbled angels. If this is any indication, they should have some pretty nice livestock.
Downstairs will be freshwater and pond fish. The filters, which include two large MRC skimmers and an MRC commercial calcium reactor, are also in the basement. They will be using much of the basement space under the entire shopping center for aquaculturing of corals and storage of drygoods. All very impressive.
The owner is determined to have a more knowledgable, attentive staff than the competition. He spoke vehemently about stores where you can't get help or the staff mishandles the livestock.
This place looks like it will give any store a run for its money. It should be interesting to see it evolve.
The room by the entrance will indeed be a showroom with a very open floor plan. There will be tanks built into walls and furniture, which will serve to demonstrate what they can do as part of system design and maintenance, which will be a significant part of the business.
They will have a large number of coral and saltwater fish tanks, all lit with IceCap lighting. Right now, they have a tank with two conspiculatus angels and another with goldflake and scribbled angels. If this is any indication, they should have some pretty nice livestock.
Downstairs will be freshwater and pond fish. The filters, which include two large MRC skimmers and an MRC commercial calcium reactor, are also in the basement. They will be using much of the basement space under the entire shopping center for aquaculturing of corals and storage of drygoods. All very impressive.
The owner is determined to have a more knowledgable, attentive staff than the competition. He spoke vehemently about stores where you can't get help or the staff mishandles the livestock.
This place looks like it will give any store a run for its money. It should be interesting to see it evolve.
whitesquall
Member
keep us updated will be nice to see another real pro reef shop open up in NJ, other than Absolutely F.
RichT
Moved On
I was there today. WOW!!!!! The kind of store any hobbyist would be proud and excited to walk into. I would put it in the same class as Trop. Met the owners, Ed and Jay. Real nice guys and seemingly very committed to doing things right. Pricing wasn't posted so its tough to comment on that although things I checked were "in line" with most everywhere else. It was an hour and a half trip one way for me and I would say it was well worth it.
I took the family out to see the new store and boy was I impressed. RichT was walking out with the corals I wanted as we walked in. Nicest store that I've seen in the area. The sps tank was a beautiful acrylic tank with water cascading down all four sides into the sump. I didn't have much time to talk to Ed as it was very busy while we were there and he was serving other customers. The tanks were very clean and most of the livestock looked healthy and well cared for. I wish I could have gone in the morning when they opened up as Ed said that most of the choice corals were taken very early in the day. They also said that half of the fish were bought out very early. I may go back in a few days as they are expecting new shipments for the next 3 days.
izmullives
Member
yeah its really nice and the prices are good
FishMaster1000
New member
Wow...Thats some store! Did anyone happen to catch the price of liverock? And what kind was it!!! Gorgeous Store!!
JerseyReef
Premium Member
I went yesterday afternoon. While I thought the store looked nice and has some nice features. I think the store was hyped a bit too much. It didn't have the "wow" factor some were stating.
I thought prices were a bit high and didn't have a good dry good selection.
The help was nice, while I wouldn't say 100% knowledgeable and little pushy on getting you buy things (I guess it's their job). Some time should be invested to see if the hobbyist can actually support the livestock they're pushing.
It appears disease is an issue right now in some of the tanks, as I noticed several fish with fin rot, with visible fungus issues. Several fish were belly up and had not been removed.
Some of the SPS frag's were suffering from tissue loss and there were signs of flatworms in both SPS tanks.
I think it has potential. Some issues have to be addressed and the store has to obtain it's bearing. Once that occurs, the store might be on stable ground.
I'd give it 2 1/2 stars out of 5 for now. That could go up in the future.
I thought prices were a bit high and didn't have a good dry good selection.
The help was nice, while I wouldn't say 100% knowledgeable and little pushy on getting you buy things (I guess it's their job). Some time should be invested to see if the hobbyist can actually support the livestock they're pushing.
It appears disease is an issue right now in some of the tanks, as I noticed several fish with fin rot, with visible fungus issues. Several fish were belly up and had not been removed.
Some of the SPS frag's were suffering from tissue loss and there were signs of flatworms in both SPS tanks.
I think it has potential. Some issues have to be addressed and the store has to obtain it's bearing. Once that occurs, the store might be on stable ground.
I'd give it 2 1/2 stars out of 5 for now. That could go up in the future.
ftnirishfan
New member
FWIW here is the coral I bought....had a hitchhiker crab but I took care of him.
The owner is a very nice guy.
The owner is a very nice guy.
collective21
New member
I went there yesterday. People are very nice. Phosban $29.95:eek1:
ftnirishfan
New member
If an acro crab is hairy w black claws and has blue eyes that look like a demon, then I axed an Acro crab......lol.
I payed $79- It is a very good sized colony though....aboiut 5" tall, hard to tell from this pic, as I mounted it sorta on its side.
It is a Purple Hoeksemai...
similar to this pict of someone elses....
I payed $79- It is a very good sized colony though....aboiut 5" tall, hard to tell from this pic, as I mounted it sorta on its side.
It is a Purple Hoeksemai...
similar to this pict of someone elses....
nice grab - and nice kill :thumbsup:
Similar threads
