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34K views 52 replies 27 participants last post by  M930mike 
#1 ·
Well...I wanted to start a thread where people can chime in with some of the LFS's in their area. Good ones. Bad ones. What makes them good or bad. Just a general Local Fish Store review column.

Think this will be very usefull to any new-comers to the area who might want to know where to go (and more importantly, where NOT to go):

For those in the West MD, N. Va, DC, or other surrounding area's, please feel free to use this thread to share info on any LFS you love/hate:
 
#27 ·
update on The Pet Loft

Hey I just wanted to update everyone about the petloft in mt airy maryland.
They now have a tank set up (i think around 50g) that has a little bit of live rock, and some corals frags. There were only 4 in there today the had a plate coral, a brain coral, a open trumpet(i think) and something else. They were all around $40-$80 but i guess its a start. Hopefully sometime they will get some cheaper corals and maybe some soft corals, as thats what i need right now.
 
#34 ·
Congressional Aquarium (Rockville) - was my favorite LFS. Lately, however, has changed. I only do business with Steve (the short guy, manager) because he's helped me throughout my startup three years ago from the FW to the Reef. Although the merch is overpriced in the store, they do have one of the cheapest Instant Ocean salt bags in town at $9.99 per sack.

Aquatic Creations (Ijamsville) - The owner is very mild mannered, helpful, respectful, and cheerful. Although he does not give credit for fish, he gave me full credit on a porcupine puffer I "donated" once just to establish a connection with me, the consumer. Their stock of Merch is quite good. The corals he sell are healthy and thriving; going on 2 1/2 years now in my tank (and growing).

Tropical Fish World (Gaithersburg, MD - on Shady Grove and 355 http://www.tropicalfishworld.com/ ) - a pretty decent selection of exotic FW cichlids (can't find them anywhere in Montgomery County). They have just opened their reef room. Currently, they have a 60G or so frag tank displayed in the main room. Their reef room is developing. There aren't much corals yet but am sure will soon populate the tanks. Prices are median to upper median. People are friendly. The owners (look for the guy in the bull cap - his name is Mark, I think) sells corals at decent prices; sometimes below invoice just to capture a consumer-come-back. My favorite LFS so far. They just had a 3-day sale (Fri: 10% off, Sat: 20% off, Sun: 30% off); then 20% off with flier until 3/16.

Rick's Fish and Pet - Hit or miss store. In terms of Merch, they price decently. If you deal with Rick, most of the time he is straight forward. I bought Orbit lights from him at about $30 more than an LFS in VA and he said "You should've bought the lights there, it's cheaper. Did you want a return?". Ofcourse I said NO because if I drive to VA again, that would be $30! I've had instances of bad service. But Rick will not sell you any coral that would not appear to survive with your current setup. Very ethical hobbyist. Coral stock is pretty diverse but expensive. I would only drive up there if I run out of options. But not a bad LFS.
 
#35 ·
Thanks for the input!!

Yeah...just turned in a bunch of corals to help stock the new "Reef Room" at Tropical Fish World. Mark's a pretty good guy. Lately, this store has become my new favorite for this area. Dry goods selection could use some work...but I think Mark's REALLY trying to get into the reefing side of things...so he's been asking me a lot of questions. Hopefully I'm helping.

I just dropped off probably the largest green start polyp you'll ever see! hahaa

It's the size of a rugby ball! hahaa

gotta drop off some more stuff this coming weekend.
 
#38 ·
Thanks for the input!!

Yeah...just turned in a bunch of corals to help stock the new "Reef Room" at Tropical Fish World. Mark's a pretty good guy. Lately, this store has become my new favorite for this area. Dry goods selection could use some work...but I think Mark's REALLY trying to get into the reefing side of things...so he's been asking me a lot of questions. Hopefully I'm helping.

I just dropped off probably the largest green start polyp you'll ever see! hahaa

It's the size of a rugby ball! hahaa

gotta drop off some more stuff this coming weekend.
If that's the case, I am almost 100% sure that most of my zoos and GSP used to sit in your tank. Awesome stuff! Very healthy and the zoos take over rockwork in a jiffy. Keep the frags coming! Or maybe we can all plan a multi-house tank tour of some sort one of these days since the weather is extra beautiful lately.
 
#36 ·
Man, let me tell you....

Okay everybody The Aquarium Center off Liberty Road in Randallstown, MD recently changed their name to the Aquarium Depot. It still has a sign that reads Aquarium Center. Yesterday was the grand opening. Today I went there and there was a sign on the door that said cash only for today. The credit/debit card machine was not ready for business yet. I tell you nothing has changed in that store other than the relocation of some reptile tanks and the removal of some larger tanks. The store was a mess. The staff did not know the prices of many of the tanks. The store has and still maintains a very poor selection of dry goods. It's been almost two years since I have last been. My initial startup for the aquarium began in that store and I tell you nothing has changed in my opinion. The biggest skimmer they offered two years ago was that &^%$% Seaclone 150 skimmer.

The livestock. I have no good words. They are heading down the path of Neptune's Den. And that path leads to going out of business. There corals looked dirty. Their tanks in my opinion looked foul. The substrate was mess. They advertised discounts for damaged open brain corals that were in tanks with healthier specimens. If you ever buy a fish from them be prepared to QT for at least six months. These are just my opinions of the store. If you are ever in the area feel free to check them out.
 
#37 ·
Aquarium One, Rockville, MD - Found this one through you guys. I am very happy. The former owners of the (used to be) Customer Satisfaction-driven Congressional Aquarium has had this one open for about six months now.

It is inside the Wintergreen Plaza on 355 (Look for the plaza where both Dunkin Donuts AND Starbucks is at). They are in that plaza.

They have a very good selection of soft corals and a few lps's. Their prices are pretty reasonable. they have a good amount of cheap cleanup crew that are healthy. They have a pretty ok selection of saltwater and freshwater fish.

Customer Service is my favorite of all. I enjoyed my stay there and will be another one of my favorite LFS in lower Montgomery County. They are not yet in the yellow pages so here is the info:

Aquarium One (for all your aquarium needs)
835-I Rockville Pike
Wintergreen Plaza
Rockville, MD 20852
(301) 294-3474

email: AquariumOne@verizon.net
 
#39 ·
Sea Save - Glen Burnie, MD

Sea Save
7362 - B & A Blvd.
Glen Burnie, MD 21061
Phone: 410-766-8888
Fax: 410-766-8883
seasaveemail@msn.com
www.seasave.net

Tucked way back in a business park near House of Tropicals, this is anything but your ordinary store. My visit today was wonderful. Not a large shop, not huge on dry goods, but extremely knowledgeable staff/owners. Very pleasant in a "This is my living room and these are my tanks" kind of way. Tanks are immaculate all animals inbound are QT'd on the premises. All tanks are separate filtration. Awesome variety of healthy macro algae.

The use of wading pools as coral farms is very fun. They are only "open" on Saturdays between 9-6, but they are there during the week and a simple call will have them opening up for you.

Prices are not on the tanks, but all the ones I asked were reasonable. There philosophy is quality, not quantity, so they don't have to add into the prices for those animals that didn't survive.

Well worth the trip if you are heading to HOT. Not far off the Baltimore Beltway either.
 
#40 ·
i know it is a bit south of the area but if you are ever in the richmond area you MUST check out atlantis aquatics on the west side of richmond. absolutely spectacular. they carry mostly high end equipment, deltec etc. i thought when i walked in i would be looked down upon because i was newly back into the hobby and was really outdated on my reef knowledge. boy was i as wrong as i could be. they talked to me for a good two hours about any and everything under the sun regarding reefs, and never once trying to push their wares on me. they basically said we let our systems do the talking. if you like it buy it, if not not a problem.
i give it two thumbs way up!

AG
 
#41 ·
I have been to a lot of fish stores in the Baltimore/Washington area. Here is my opinion (for what it is worth).

The Aquarium Center/Aquarium Depot - has good prices and great selection on dry goods. The tanks aren't the cleanest, I won't buy livestock, and if you go there on a Sat. prepare to wait. I once spent almost an hour waiting for someone the help me after repeatedly asking sales assosciates for help. During the week you can't find a saltwater person anywhere! So I just go there for my dry goods.

Exotic Aquatics - I really like this store, but I don't care for the people in it. The owner acts as though he is too important to deal with your petty questions. If you are new to the hobby don't go here. The prices are high and like I said the staff can be a little snooty. I had one guy laugh in my face when I asked him a question. If you have a little money to burn and don't need help...this is your place. The tanks look really clean and they have a lot to chose from. I shop here simply because the tanks look good and it is on my way home from work (closest to my house also).

SeaSave - I love this place! They are a specialty store so you won't find a lot of dry goods but their service is great and the tanks are fantastic. This is where I will be buying all of my livestock. Prices are reasonable and the staff is very knowledgeable. They are also the most environmentally focused "store" I have ever had the pleasure of shopping. Not just in it to make a buck, but really want to educate.

Roozen's Nursery - This place has a lot of fish for sale. However, the tanks are dirty, dirty, dirty. I went there once and only purchased live rock because I was so disappointed with the condition of the tanks. The sales people are helpful. But I would be leary about adding fish to my tank from this place.

The House of Tropicals - I have only been to this place twice. I have bought nothing either time. The prices are good, but the tanks sometimes aren't the cleanest. The people are real nice, but nothing has really wowed me when I go there.

I think that is it! Just one man's opinion
 
#42 ·
I have to give another vote for SeaSave.
My son and I went there for the first time 1 week ago.
I have found my new LFS!
Great people, good prices, plus they really care about the fish they are selling.
I really like the fact that they have a couch you can sit on, and read fish magazines.
Displaying the corals in those pools is really neat.
 
#43 ·
I finally made it there this weekend. I picked up a pink/purple bird's nest and green milli for $40 total. Not as much selection as I thought I'd find but the guy in there said if I need anything special to let him know. they have the most unique setup I've ever seen. They have three kiddie pools setup for stock and kiddie pools for sumps. i was very surprised to see them using wet/drys though.

Overall, I give them a B+. The only A I've seen in Maryland so far is still Pacific East Aquaculture. I'll have to get back into surfing OC again this summer ;)
 
#44 ·
I am personally a huge fan of roozens. The tanks are "dirty" but it is only algea. The water is actually prestine which is rare for a fish store. Roozens doesn't make much money running a saltwater front, they don't advertise it, they don't need to. Roozens sends fish off in large quantities to fish stores around the country. That is why they have so many rare and exotic fish. If you are looking to see beautiful displays, pass them up, if you want healthy and/or rare livestock, you HAVE to stop by at least once. I find their prices to be reasonable and they wont sell you a fish if you have to ask "whats that one?" They really, really know their stuff and they stock large predrilled tanks. If you are looking for them, you will probably take a couple trips down allentown road before you even see them, it litterally is a plant nursery with a saltwater distribution center in the back. Because of that, they don't need show quality tanks. I have been there 50+ times and have never seen a dead fish or coral in the tanks.
 
#45 ·
So far, I've been to three different stores in the Baltimore area, and that fishplace, and so far my favorite has been Exotic Aquatics. Best service is on the weekends in my experience, the people have been wonderful, answering all my newbie questions.

Marine Dreams it depends on who works there. The one guy always made me feel like I was intruding on his time, the other was wonderful, answering my questions, giving me hints and help.

Then went to the one in Randallstown, and everything i bought was dead within a week. . .so I won't be going back there. Hard to get service too.

And tried that fish place, was not as impressed as I was with Exotic Aquatics.
 
#46 ·
Exotic Aquatics is my personal favorite. I've been in the hobby now for a little over six months and continue to go their just about every other day or so during lunch. Awesome selection of fish, corals, invertabrates, or anything else for that matter.

8870 Waltham Woods Rd
Parkville, MD 21234
410-668-1200
 
#47 ·
Upon your recommendation, I drove about 2 hours north to Exotic Aquatics. Well worth the drive! They have 25% all livestock (including corals) every weekend. I picked up 7 starter pieces. The guy who helped me (Mark) was very friendly and took me around each tank to show me what to get started with. Thanks for the recommendation, I am sure I will be going back again.
 
#48 ·
Neptune's Attic in Hancock Md. I'm not quite sure of the address, but Hancock is small enough that it would be quite easy to find. It's right along Main Street. It's a relatively new store, but quite nice. The owner is very knowledgeable and is always willing to help you out. The prices are also very good, all are competitive, even with online stores! Also, if they do not have something in stock, or if there's something special that you would like to get, they always do their best to get it in for you! (including fish and other live stock) And at a fair price! Definitely worth checking out if you're near the area!
 
#50 ·
That Fish Place in Lancaster PA....I started my saltwater carrier hear as I live only 25min away. I guess I lucked out, this place is huge and the prices are good. I checked out one time and a thermometer and reef putty didn't make it into the bag. I called and they did some investigating. They called me later in the day, informed me they had found the items and credited my money back $8. Small things like this make customers happy....
 
#52 ·
..Oh, and stay away from the local pet shop by the Lutherville light rail/kohls. That place is a nightmare!!!!! Ive seen better conditions in a walmart. Every time I go there, either theres a bunch of belly ups, or some showing sings of being on the way. Its tragic that some of these places get away with not maintaining the stock properly, and "buyer beware" is the warranty format of our hobby.
 
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