Stopped by Tropical Aquarium today...

[soaringfalcon2]

Had a great chat with Hector. The playroom was a nice touch, kept our daughter happy while we stared at fish

What kind of BTA does he have in his display tank? The thing is huge, looks happy and was fully extended but it also looks extremely bleached. Is is it some sort of strange color variation.

 

[GSMguy]

its a RBTA that is so bleached that it is see thru

 

[soaringfalcon2]

Thanks!!

He said it was a fluorescent green or something but googling that and searching here brought up nothing so I figured something was up.

Why is it so bleached under MH?

 

[GSMguy]

it probobly came that way as long as he keeps it fed and leaves it under MH it should recover and color back up

 

[ironheads]

iT'S A FROGSPAWN

 

[jake koppen]

where is that shop at? i was out there when he opened, but can't remember how to get there. what's the phone #?

 

[soaringfalcon2]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9160129#post9160129 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ironheads
iT'S A FROGSPAWN

He does have a large frogspawn but this is definitely a BTA. It's right in the middle of the tank.

 

[soaringfalcon2]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9160426#post9160426 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jake koppen
where is that shop at? i was out there when he opened, but can't remember how to get there. what's the phone #?

It's in Brunswick, corner of 303 and Pearl. 1480 Pearl is the exact address. 330-460-4193.

 

[mattyice]

i love that store and he has some high quality live stock, i picked up 4 anthias from him and my sohal and the sohal is getting FAT! very good stuff and i really couldnt be happier with the live stock i got from him

 

[aninjaatemyshoe]

Is the store starting to fill up a little more? I went 2 months ago and it was nice, but it did not have alot (especially in terms of dry goods).

 

[itZme]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9161604#post9161604 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by aninjaatemyshoe
Is the store starting to fill up a little more? I went 2 months ago and it was nice, but it did not have alot (especially in terms of dry goods).

It's getting better but still not geared toward reefers. I see it as more of a fish store than a place to get everything. He has lights and stuff but most are normal output or PC lights. There isn't anything in the way of skimmers or calcium reactors etc...

He has very nice fish and the prices are pretty low (although it seems like every time I go in there things have gone up a bit)
The thing I like about the store is that he shows every fish eating at the store before selling it to you. I was there when he got a new leaf fish to eat krill for the first time... it was pretty neat.

They get shipments of fish on Tuesdays and they do not order huge amounts of them so by around Saturday and Sunday things are getting pretty bare. Check them out on a Wednesday or Thursday.

He has a few tanks with some corals but the lighting isn't optimal and I think his setup is still not matured enough to stock many corals successfully. I do think he will continue to add to the store until it is reefer friendly someday.

When you are trying to find the store look for a school and he is in a plaza directly across from it.

 

[MJAnderson]

He does have some great livestock. I've wanted a spotted Kole Tang since I started my tank but SC couldn't nab one and the only place that consistently stocked them was Vivid Aquarium out of LA for $140 + $30 s/h. Walked into TA and he had a nice fat one for $60.

Here's a pic of my new baby. Worried that he's not eating though. I watched Hector feed him but he's not eating in my tank. Maybe I have enough algae to keep him happy.

http://www.vividaquariums.com/10Expand.asp?ProductCode=01-3931-10

 

[soaringfalcon2]

That fish is a beauty!!! I agree, his livestock is awesome. Most everything looked fat and healthy...actively swimming around. A poor little maroon clown that didn't like he was doing well but obviously there will be some who don't recover from the shipping stress.

I agree that he wouldn't be my go to person for corals but for a good price on quality live stock...he's got it!

On a side note, his dry good prices were pretty good. We needed a new impeller for the filter on our FW and his price was only $1 over the cheapest I could find online and then I would have had to pay shipping.

 

[Willie_6]

I agree with itZme for the most part. Prices are creeping up, which concerns me, since it is one thing that sets Hectors store apart from everyone else.

The coral selection lights or no light are horrible IMO. Very little color and poor vareity. I keep trying to get Hector to frag some of his frogspawn from the front display before they start attacking the other corals. In fact if hector would just carry many of the corals from his front display, that would be better. If I recall he has some nice yellow/orange suns, frogspawn, hammer, clam (which he does sell in the back). His front display is so colorful that always gets me excited to buy some corals. Then I go to the back and I see the lovely selection of brown corals and I quickly go to the fish displays. I have seen some bta's that look pretty rough too.

I also like them feeding the fish before you buy. I have not had that offered at the other stores before.

He needs to improve his ordering. I think he is killing himself. I am willing to bet his sales are fairly strong Tuesdays and Wednesday's, but drop drastically as he goes into the weekends. I have been there on Thursday and have seen over half of his tanks sitting empty. This seems like a bad business move. I wonder how many people leave his store on a weekend and go to Aquatic Technology?

So far I love the store. I do think Hector needs to change somethings as I mentioned. He will need to watch his pricing as well. There is no way he can compete with the selection of Aquatic Technology(his closest competitor), so he needs to be cheaper. That's my $.02.

 

[mattyice]

all of the corals he has in his display were corals he ordered and people didnt buy, so it is most likely the lighting that is making the corals looks so drab, but his store is turning around nicely and i deff. think its worth my 1 hour trip to go out there

 

[Fdfiremedic]

I gotta agree with MattyIce well worth the drive. Hector has gotten any fish I wanted so far without hesitation like other stores that have been asking to get for me. He will feed all his fish before you buy and if they are not eating or look bad he won't recommend you buy it. Honestly which fish store hasn't been creeping up in prices????? Considering I have seen some wholesalers prices, They are all jacking up the prices. I remember being able to buy most Tangs for about $20-$25 now you cant even get a Yellow tang for that price. So far IMO the cheapest fish prices by far is Hector's place and the best Corals/Inverts goes to AT and SC

Just my 2 cents!!!!!

 

[Willie_6]

We all agree then, TA is a good store.

 

[cowcio]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9172112#post9172112 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Willie_6
We all agree then, TA is a good store.

It sounds like a nice place, I'll have to check it out soon.

 

[scottfarcuz]

lol...You guys want near wholesale prices, and complain about the rest of the store not improving? Prices have to go up for Hector to put anything in his pocket let alone improve other sections of the store. I'm sure he is still learning to cover things like DOA, DAA, shipping etc. I know reefers in general want a deal, but Hector has to make a living. He isn't going to be able to do that forever by just holding fish a few days before reselling. His initial plan of low prices to get people in the door, and word of mouth was a good one. That plan isn't going to put food on his table long. Not to mention lights over the coral tanks, or better filtration on all the systems.

I met Hector several years ago at club meetings. He is a very nice guy. No offense to anyone here, but claiming how great his fish is that he held for 3-5 days that comes from the same collector/wholesaler as every other store in the country isn't going to push an experienced hobbyist to visit the store. No matter how many times you repeat how fat he is, or that he eats like a pig...lol

IMO if you have chosen to visit the store are happy with the service, but want to see more selection in other departments then pay the price he is asking without complaining later. Someone has to pay for lighting, filtration, etc for him to make improvements.

I've spent a lot of time reading all I could on the industry behind the hobby, and feel I have a decent grasp on how a good portion of it works. There isn't a huge profit margin a shop can work with in order to make progress, and sell at a significant savings. Anyone can look at a wholesale list, and see retail is a lot higher. You aren't taking the time to consider even part of the cost associated with doing business. Next time you are In SC ask Dan what his electric bill is. I have, and he never has spit out a number. The look on his face is like you just asked him to put his privates on the counter while you swing a hammer at them

Between other retailers, etail, and the yahoo's with a wholesale license trying to make $ selling out of their basement I wouldn't want a dime of my $ tied up in the MO industry.

 

[Willie_6]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9172450#post9172450 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by scottfarcuz
lol...You guys want near wholesale prices, and complain about the rest of the store not improving? Prices have to go up for Hector to put anything in his pocket let alone improve other sections of the store. I'm sure he is still learning to cover things like DOA, DAA, shipping etc. I know reefers in general want a deal, but Hector has to make a living. He isn't going to be able to do that forever by just holding fish a few days before reselling. His initial plan of low prices to get people in the door, and word of mouth was a good one. That plan isn't going to put food on his table long. Not to mention lights over the coral tanks, or better filtration on all the systems.

I met Hector several years ago at club meetings. He is a very nice guy. No offense to anyone here, but claiming how great his fish is that he held for 3-5 days that comes from the same collector/wholesaler as every other store in the country isn't going to push an experienced hobbyist to visit the store. No matter how many times you repeat how fat he is, or that he eats like a pig...lol

IMO if you have chosen to visit the store are happy with the service, but want to see more selection in other departments then pay the price he is asking without complaining later. Someone has to pay for lighting, filtration, etc for him to make improvements.

I've spent a lot of time reading all I could on the industry behind the hobby, and feel I have a decent grasp on how a good portion of it works. There isn't a huge profit margin a shop can work with in order to make progress, and sell at a significant savings. Anyone can look at a wholesale list, and see retail is a lot higher. You aren't taking the time to consider even part of the cost associated with doing business. Next time you are In SC ask Dan what his electric bill is. I have, and he never has spit out a number. The look on his face is like you just asked him to put his privates on the counter while you swing a hammer at them

Between other retailers, etail, and the yahoo's with a wholesale license trying to make $ selling out of their basement I wouldn't want a dime of my $ tied up in the MO industry.

You would think this whole thread was about bashing the store. There is not a single person on here that is saying to not to his store.