LiveAquaria - Buying Fish? (moved)

gjustinj

gjustinj

In Memoriam
Hey Guys,

I won't be buying fish for a while, dealing with a 'possible' ich issue. But once I get through this I plan to setup an QT and since I have been researching how to do this the best way I have noticed that online fish sales are so much better than any LFS around here. It seems you pay an extra 30.00 to ship a few fish/coral, but if you buy a handful of stuff at the same time it seems worth it.

Do the fish come to your door still alive? I would assume they'd be stressed to hell in back being shipped across the US in a small bag? Anyone have experience with this?

I really see some good deals on blue tangs, yellow tangs, anemone, etc.

I know ill have to introduce both tangs together as a pair when i do add them possibly in December or Jan
 
I have never shipped saltwater fish, but with freshwater, the person boxing them do so (usually) with the utmost care. They do arrive a bit off on color, but with steady acclimation (And slow) they do very well and are usually much healthier than those you would find at your LFS. Mostly due to them coming from better conditions and far less crowding.
 
Think about it this way...

When an LFS buys fish, it gets boxed up and shipped to them. Then they throw them in the tanks and sell them (some do more acclimation than others).

When you buy from liveaquaria, it's just being shipped to you instead of to the LFS.

My next livestock purchase will be from an online retailer.
 
BigDave said:
Think about it this way...

When an LFS buys fish, it gets boxed up and shipped to them. Then they throw them in the tanks and sell them (some do more acclimation than others).

When you buy from liveaquaria, it's just being shipped to you instead of to the LFS.

My next livestock purchase will be from an online retailer.
Click to expand...

Liveaquaria is a retail store, not a wholesaler. They buy their fish from wholesalers just like any other lfs and throw them in their holding tanks until someone orders it online. Pretty much same chain with the added stress of shipping to you. However, they do buy most of their fish from QM (I think) which typically has pretty healthy fish. It all depends on what wholesaler your LFS uses and the conditions of their holding tanks.
 
BigDave said:
Think about it this way...

When an LFS buys fish, it gets boxed up and shipped to them. Then they throw them in the tanks and sell them (some do more acclimation than others).

When you buy from liveaquaria, it's just being shipped to you instead of to the LFS.

My next livestock purchase will be from an online retailer.
Click to expand...

What are some of the best/cheapest sites that do not harm the fish in shipment?
 
gjustinj said:
What are some of the best/cheapest sites that do not harm the fish in shipment?
Click to expand...

I use liveaquaria and never had any issues with fish or coral. Btw what is your tank size, you mentioned blue and yellow tangs, those fish require large tanks. Especially blue tang, which I would not advice to keep in a tank smaller than 6ft long. Also tangs are highly susceptible to ich and other skin parasites.

Lastly I would add any tang last to an aquarium. They are aggressive and territorial. Once established they become jerks and attack any new additions (especially other herbivorous fish). So try to make sure the tang is the last fish you are going to add in a while. There are ways to introduce new fish but most of the time you need to use acclimation boxes or you need to take the tang out and wait for the new fish to establish and than add the tang back (like after a week).
 
Last edited:
Tripod1404 said:
I use liveaquaria and never had any issues with fish or coral. Btw what is your tank size, you mentioned blue and yellow tangs, those fish require large tanks. Especially blue tang, which I would not advice to keep in a tank smaller than 6ft long. Also tangs are highly susceptible to ich and other skin parasites.

Lastly I would add any tang last to an aquarium. They are aggressive and territorial. Once established they become jerks and attack any new additions (especially other herbivorous fish). So try to make sure the tang is the last fish you are going to add in a while. They are ways to introduce new fish but most of the time you need to use acclimation boxes or you need to take the tang out and wait for the new fish to establish and than add the tang back (like after a week).
Click to expand...

125 G 6ft long :) I plan to introduce them both together, and not for like 10-12 months :)
 
A blue tang does not belong in your tank, they need at least an 8 foot tank. It also is not a good idea as they are ich magnets
 
Go to divers den section of liveaquaria. They are probably best fish on the internet . That being said I rarely had problems with liveaquaria itself. The guaranty alone is worth every cent
 
MMacro said:
Liveaquaria is a retail store, not a wholesaler. They buy their fish from wholesalers just like any other lfs and throw them in their holding tanks until someone orders it online...
Click to expand...

Not true...Liveaquaria does not have fish in holding tanks...their orders are filled directly by the wholesaler ... only the fish listed in Divers Den are actually in LA's possession
 
I am from turkey. I want to buy 7 or 8 pieces of fish from the Live Aquarium and some coral. How can I supply it?
Pleased to inform you.
 
MMacro said:
Liveaquaria is a retail store, not a wholesaler. They buy their fish from wholesalers just like any other lfs and throw them in their holding tanks until someone orders it online. Pretty much same chain with the added stress of shipping to you. However, they do buy most of their fish from QM (I think) which typically has pretty healthy fish. It all depends on what wholesaler your LFS uses and the conditions of their holding tanks.
Click to expand...

Fish bought off the standard sight are sent directly from the wholesaler to the buyer. The fish bought on Divers Den are fish that have been in their holding tanks, acclimated and made sure to eat. I think I read somewhere when they take a fish to their brick and mortar facility it's a minimum of a month before they go up for sale because of all the pre-sale care they do.
 
To answer the OP's question. I have bought several fish from them and been happy. I have had one fish arrive DOA and a few die shortly after (no more often than a LFS) but unlike the LFS live aquaria has a 14 day guarantee and they are very easy to deal with. Unlike other online retailers who claim to guarantee their fish and lost fish that couldn't even survive acclimation. You email them and they just disappear.
 
Last week I placed an order with Divers Den for a trio of anthias. I was very impressed with the packaging and quality of the fish. They were eating within hours of being placed in a QT. I also ordered 4 Reef chromis from Live Aquaria at the same time. The packaging was not up to par. on the Live Aquaria order. 3 of the 4 were dead on arrival. Bags had leaked and had little air in them. The surviving one had ich on it's fins. I called live aquaria and they said they were sorry and would reimburse me for the dead ones. In the future I would only order from Divers Den.
 
I prefer to buy fish locally, since I can see them swimming and eating.
However, I used LA once for a delicate butterfly and was glad I did.
As stated above, my LFS has no survival guarantee. LA does.
My fish lasted only 13 days and LA refunded the cost of the fish with no questions.
I will not hestitate to use them again, when I desire a fish I can't source locally.
 
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