I have a rant to share

[CoralCrazy]

I myself help out at a LFS and have many times asked the questions of tank size, how long it has been running, levels, and anything else I can think of. When the fish and other stuff comes in I feel personally responsible for it. Yes I have stupid people that don't listen and wait til I'm not there to come back and purchase the item or items I tell them they are not ready for. On that note I say shame on them. But I personally think that the employees and owners of the stores should atleast have basic knowledge of what they are selling. I have made my stupid purchases just like everyone else but try to stop others from having to go through the same.

[Algae]

I think that to begin in SW it is best and quickest to use basic books such as Fenner or Borneman. There is a real need in reef information that explains the basic quickly and accurately. I believe that in the early stages a book (or even two God forbid) is superior to web cruising. You will learn what questions to ask. Welcome to the site!! you are allowed up to 50 silly questions. I have already used up my quota this week!

 

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[Mitchell]

I think that to begin in SW it is best and quickest to use basic books such as Fenner or Borneman. There is a real need in reef information that explains the basic quickly and accurately. I believe that in the early stages a book (or even two God forbid) is superior to web cruising. You will learn what questions to ask. Welcome to the site!! you are allowed up to 50 silly questions. I have already used up my quota this week!

 

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Before I got my first tank I went to the library and got all the marine aquarium books and read them cover to cover. Fenner's was by far the best.

 

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[Electrokate]

Quite a lot of customers do not read. They state flat out they will not read, or that they only read one book. The "good" one. I told most of them that they should at least look through Conscientious Marine Aquarist and Borneman's Corals and check out the pictures, hoping they would be drawn to read the words regarding the pretty pix.

We had a lady who insisted on getting turbo snails because she read online that they were the best for algae. Came storming back in the next day, all the snails had died immediately on being dumped in the tank (no acclimation done) turns out after her screaming a long time that she had a freshwater tank. If I tried to ask every question in the world about a tank to make sure the customer was ready for the animal, well there are some questions you would not even think of asking and that was one of them. Conversely I heard a guy at a shop tell the customer that saltwater fish can live in freshwater if you acclimate them very slowly and get the ph right. My eyes about popped out of my head. I told the customer later that what he did not say was how long the fish would live!

So many rants so little time.

I agree about the auto body shop comparison, there are a few places that are awful and a few you can trust, most of the rest somewhere in the middle. But it is impossible also for a person working a fish store to know all the things asked of them, especially as we constantly expand our knowledge and technology. But it would be nice if they could cover the basics. Truthfully.

Too bad it is not an industry that pays well enough to keep quality people. Between the odd and long hours on your feet, heavy lifting, lack of breaks and lack of health insurance it's generally not an option for most people to do very long. It is a great job for teens but teens are not so great for it unless very well read.

Kate