Sooooo, where to order from...

[tennesseebob]

I have never ordered livestock before...well, turtles, but thats another story. Where should i order from, my location if nobody guessed is in Tennessee, so preferably on this side of the country for shipping purposes. I do like the LFS, but being an LFS the selection is limited, so when i want something specific id like to know my best bet for ordering, and id also like to here y'alls experiences with ordered fish and inverts.

thanks folks

 

[dendrite]

I've never had a bad experience with Diver's Den. Very nice livestock and great guaranty along with killer customer service. They are located in the midwest. Pricing is more than competitive when you look at the quality

 

[snorvich]

I've never had a bad experience with Diver's Den. Very nice livestock and great guaranty along with killer customer service. They are located in the midwest. Pricing is more than competitive when you look at the quality

I agree.

 

[tennesseebob]

kk thx, ive heard of them, ill bookmark them.

 

[tennesseebob]

kk i googled it, takes me to Dr's F&S, is that the same place? If so it explains why i have heard of them lol.

 

[CStrickland]

Sort of
Divers den is the wysiwyg (what you see is what you get) part of liveaquaria, the fish part of dr foster smith. It's like walking into a store and picking out your stock. They ship from a diff warehouse in like Wisconsin or something instead of CA or wherever lie the rest of LA does, and keep stock in diff conditions. Kinda more high end, there's cool video tours of the facility on YouTube.
Petco just bought DFSso things are changing as that process goes through

I've saved money using dodgier sellers with lower amounts you have to buy to get free shipping, or just cheaper stuff. It's a crapshoot and it sucks when it goes bad. You can read about many vendors on the "vendor feedback" part of the forum, though people are more likely to post when they're mad, obvi

 

[bat21]

Diver's Den is a special operation under the live aquaria umbrella. They only sell the exact fish you see in the photos. Like 25-30 new fish are offered for sale each day at 5pm CT. You gotta be quick if there's something you want.

But without a doubt, they have the best procedures for ensuring every fish is in perfect health when shipped. I try to get all my fish from them.

If you can't find what you want on diver's den (give it a few weeks though, as everything seems to pop up on there) then live aquaria is your next best bet. But you don't get to see the exact fish you are getting, and their health procedures are not quite as good, but are by no means anything to worry about. Just QT either way.

 

[tennesseebob]

Yeah i expect that ppl really only get outspoken on the web when they are angry, so i do take most bad (and good) reviews with a grain of salt. I will be QT'ing everything i order, i love my lfs, but one of the last fish i bought looked healthy, but died in QT after 2 days, the other fish in QT was fine, and water tested good, but the LFS no longer has a saltwater return policy, so i was stuck with it. So imma look online i think, the odds cant be worse than dead right.

 

[bat21]

The big sites, diver's den, live aquaria, blue zoo, all have 14 day guarantees (with some exceptions). It's comforting.

 

[tennesseebob]

The big sites, diver's den, live aquaria, blue zoo, all have 14 day guarantees (with some exceptions). It's comforting.

my LFS used to, now only on FW...its sad, they tried to sell me some blue tangs that were flashing pretty bad, so i guess that is a good reason they would want to drop the warranty. =(

 

[Japsican]

I've had really good luck with blue zoo!

 

[bat21]

I've had really good luck with blue zoo!

I actually just placed my first order with them. They called me the day the fish was supposed to ship and said the shipment that the fish came to them in was delayed almost a day at the airport, so they were not happy and refused to ship me the fish in that state. So they took a full two weeks to make sure the fish returned to health and was eating and are giving me a saturday delivery for no extra charge for the delay.

So I can say good things about blue zoo customer service so far. We'll see how the fish looks when I get it.

 

[coolxborg]

I just bought my first set of fish from my LFS, but for next batch, I will buy from blue zoo.

They have free overnight shipping with any purchase over $140 (which i think is the lowest I've found). Also, you can select which day you want your stock delivered.

I don't have much experience with their customer service. I called them once to ask about a few questions and they were helpful.

 

[Salty Cracker]

Stay away from reefs2go.com and Saltcritter.com!

 

[Sn8kbyt]

I just bought my first set of fish from my LFS, but for next batch, I will buy from blue zoo.

They have free overnight shipping with any purchase over $140 (which i think is the lowest I've found). Also, you can select which day you want your stock delivered.

I don't have much experience with their customer service. I called them once to ask about a few questions and they were helpful.

+1 Very Happy with my first order from them.

 

[scooter31707]

Get all my livestock and corals form vividaquarium.com

 

[reefwiser]

Where in Tennessee? Several good clubs in TN.

 

[Shawn O]

its sad, they tried to sell me some blue tangs that were flashing pretty bad

A good reason not to love them any more if they'd rather unload infected fish than treat them before selling. My local LFS often has ICH problems but they at least make an attempt to treat.

 

[gone fishin]

Along with LA/DD I have ordered from Coral imports as well, Peter also offers a guarantee.

 

[ericarenee]

I also use live aquaria and Dr Fosters.. I order Some Dry goods from Pet Solutions as well
For Fish and Corals I Have also ordered from Saltwaterfish.com. there are a few i have tried but seem very bad or inconsistent at best.
Luckily for me I Live in Louisville Kentucky. We have a Variety of Local pet stores who carry saltwater stuff .Each have there own good and bad. Just Dry goods are way more expensive on a lfs shelf.
If you are down around Nashville there used to be a Very good Place in Bowling green. Not that huge of a drive. Check that they are still there before you go looking for them .