[crazie.eddie]

Originally Posted by Owen Stubbs

Went to Scott's today for the first time. Both impressive, and unimpressive, all at the same time. Wanted a HOB pre-filter. None. Wanted a brine shrimp net. None. Wanted a Kh/Gh test kit. None. Wanted Hikari crab cuisine. None. Would like to have seen some micro rasboras. None. In fact, nothing spectacular in freshwater fish at all. Curious about substrate. Only Flourish RED and Eco. Would like to have seen some other choices, and discussed comparison. Person I spoke with knew less about this stuff than I, and I have only barely entered this hobby. Tank full of those fluourescent tetras - telltale TB signs in one. Spoke to person at checkout about it. "Huh.. whatcha talking about?"

Prices well higher than anything I have seen elsewhere. Had they been loaded with stuff I simply cannot find elsewhere, I'd be driving there all the time. That was not the case. Nice selection of saltwater fish, not sure they were the healthiest I have seen, but nice selection. Freshwater not much better than what the local PetSmart has... maybe worse. Decent plants though. If I lived around the corner, I would visit more often.... just didn't see prices, selection or variety that warrants visiting anytime soon.

For those of you in the southwest burbs, found a place called Dog Patch in Naperville, on Ogden Avenue (3 blks west of Naper Blvd) that sells bio-spira should you ever need any. Nice group of folks there, albeit, not the most stocked fish joint around. Still - if they have what I need, would rather do business with sincerely nice, laid back locals than one of the local super stores.

It's been awhile since I've been to Dog Patch. Years in fact. I may stop and visit there again. If you want a nice, big store, checkout Aquarium Adventure, by Schaumburg. It's basically Scott's Pets, but more square footage and expensive, of course. Nice place to checkout to see what's new, then go somewhere else to get it cheaper.

I never really liked stuff like Bio-spira. It's claimed to be a bottle of bacteria. But bacteria need oxygen and food. You never know how long the bottle has been sitting on the shelf. Besides, since I keep several tanks, I have my own bacteria starter. Just grab material from an established tank and I've got my bacteria starter. I'll be glad to give you some FREE bacteria starter if your ever in the area. Just bring your own container.