Sharing my enthusiasm with you all. :]

[BeerNinja]

I finally found a great fish store in Seattle. Wouldn't you know it, it's located in the heart of our international district (a rather small China town). Right when you walk in there's two 180 gallon tanks with 3 giant Arowana's! One has these 2 wiskers that hang down from the bottom of his mouth. lol. They are pretty, I fell in love instantly.

I'm still checking stuff out and sponging up knowledge before I make a large tank purchase. Only today I realized exactly how a wet/dry filter works. They seem to do a great job.

Anyway, the guy who runs the place said under-gravel filters get dirty from underneath, like the underside of the filter itself, and can cause rogue health problems later on. He despises them and uses some kinda cube sponge things, hang on backs, and whatnot.

So now I've heard conflicting things about under-gravel filters. What do you guys think?

- beer

 

[William]

Some people love the UGF, some hate it, Some only like it when its in reverse flow.


Its a personal choice, IMHO, I don't like them.

I'd much rather run sponge filters or HOBs or Canisters.


If your thinking about tank size for arowanna, tho.. remember.

They don't swim the whole tank, they just swim around the surface, So you need alot of width and length.

Depth isn't to much of a concern, altho of course you don't want them in 6 inches of water.


Also, be very careful, They are avid and powerful jumpers. IMHO, standard glass hoods stand no change of holding them in, so they need to be weighted down rather heavily.

 

[Sati]

Hey, BeerNinja, I'm in Issaquah I know what store you're talking about. King's Discus, right? It's basically a lot of arrowanas, oscars, flowerhorns, discus, baby turtles, etc? My BF works in the international district, but I found that place on the net. I want to get some discus later on but I thought his prices were a little spendy.

 

[BeerNinja]

Oh I would not consider trying to raise an Arowana unless I had a HUGE tank. Long and wide, like those 180's. Shoot, I wouldn't want to have a setup like that unless I had a house and didn't plan on moving for a very long time. That could be a few years away!

Sati- Yeah that's the place- King's Discus. I don't know what a discus is, ...I don't remember most the names of the fish in there, but yeah my friend was tellin' me he seemed a little pricey.
Anyway, right down the street there's this other fish store too. I think it's called John Lim's. It's in an alley, hard to find. Boy, that joint is shady. And I don't mean the interior illumination! The fish ..seem fine to my inexperienced eye, I guess, albeit a little crammed. But he doesnt keep the place nearly as clean as the guy at Kings discus. Most the stuff in there looks pretty junky, too. Also he has a bunch of betas in little cups and I don't know if it was the lighting or the cup material but they were kinda a yellow tint. Poor things.

-beer

 

[Sati]

Beer, I've been to the place in the alley too! I tried to find it again cause I haven't been there in years but I couldn't remember what street it was on. That place is crammed with fish and chickens and all kinds of stuff. That *store* seriously freaks me out, heh.

My main LFS is Blue Sierra out here in Issaquah. A lot of people like The Fish Store in the U district.

BTW, I just threw my UGF away when I moved my 38g tank. Just think about all the sludge that collects under there... ick.

Anyhow, nice to meed another Seattle person. Myriam posts here quite a bit and is also from the area. I recently joined GSAS a few months ago too.

 

[Sati]

Oh, also if you want to know what discus are check out the large fish in this pic

 

[BeerNinja]

LOL! It freaked me out too! When I saw the chickens I was like Uhhh.. ok?

I know where it is, but erg.. not too good with downtown streets. There's the famous Uwajimia Oriental Market, you probly know where that is. Well.. this alley is just a bit east from there, a little more than half a block up, I think, across the street from Top Gun restaurant. It has a fish wind sock hanging outside in the middle of the alley. At the moment there is some construction scaffolding around it, too. Makes it even harder to see.

I need to check out the U district store, I didnt know it existed. Thanks for the tip.

Glad to hear from someone in the area, also.

 

[Sati]

Yeah, my BF works right across from the new Uwajimaya building and I know where Top Gun is. I don't think I'd ever buy anything from there, but if I did I would quarantine it for a loooong time

 

[BeerNinja]

Oh yeah I was wondering ...
There was a sign in the store that said "We do not sell illegal fish".

Besides like.. endangered species and man eating sharks, what fish would be illegal?????

Come to think of it, I've never seen a piranha before. Those red bellied pacu's look like piranhas but I know they ain't the same thing. Are they illegal simply because they can be dangerous do you think , or is there more to it?

 

[Sati]

lol, yeah I think that's because Asian Arowanas are still illegal in the US. Other reasons fish might be illegal is because they're endangered species or because they could be a threat to native habitat if released here. I don't think piranhas are illegal. I know they weren't in Oregon.

 

[Allivymar]

Actually yeah, piranhas are illegal in Washington; you can find the whole US list here: http://www.kencofish.com/states.htm

 

[Sati]

Thanks, Alli So I was right that they aren't illegal in Oregon. I moved to Washington about 5-6 years ago (I think). I'm not interested in piranha so I didn't know what the laws are in this state.

I'll tell you what really irks me is the tiny, baby pacu I see every time I go to Petsmart. I'd say that's a specialty fish as far as your typical aquarist is concerned, and not something to see at your local chain every time you go.

 

[BeerNinja]

Oh, also if you want to know what discus are check out the large fish in this pic

Oh-my-gosh. That is so awesome..
See, right there is the reason I'm getting so into aquariums. That tank is beautiful. Man, I would love to have something similar one day. It's a living work of art. *nods*