Acclimation by LFS

[Lauramichelle]

Acclimation is always mentioned. First u float the bag, then drip acclimate. However, I have been noticing something as I research this hobby. I have been visiting 7 of the Saltwater specialty LFS' in my area. As they receive new fish and coral, none acclimate. Other than floating the bags, they simply put the new items into their various tanks. Whether its a touchy shrimp, a batch of clowns, or a pieces of coral. Again, none drip acclimate nor dip. Only float to temp acclimate. True, I feel some are better shops than others, but ALL follow this practice.
I'm very new, so of course, I take great pains to acclimate. But why go to the trouble if they weren't acclimated by the LFS? I'm confused.

 

[Bige]

You want your investment to last a long time. Lfs only needs to sell it to you.

 

[Sergie]

I don't drip acclimate. I don't really float either. The LFS is literally 15 feet from my back door.

 

[tonedogz]

I've never heard of anyone not acclimating there fish. And any fish store I go to do the same. If you look on line for fish all the web sites have very specific instructions on how they want the fish acclimated. Keep doing it, your doing the right thing.

 

[Gti_Leo]

its not always needed to drip acclimate but it does put less stress on the fish durign an already stressful time. only things i would actually drip longer then one fill are shrimp and stars. they are more sensitive to salinity then fish or other inverts

 

[Lauramichelle]

Believe me. I will continue to acclimate. It just seems so weird that none of the "expert" stores here do it. Ugh! Thank you for the responses.

 

[joy13]

The fish are more likely to die because of the ammonia than not being acclimated. Also the amount of oxygen in the water is probably another factor to make them get the fish out asap.

 

[BallinCrew10]

I don't drip acclimate. I don't really float either. The LFS is literally 15 feet from my back door.

It really doesn't matter how close or far away your LFS is, its the difference in water parameters between their tank and yours that make acclimation necessary.

I personally drip acclimate everything I put in my tank for a few hours. Better safe than sorry.

 

[Sergie]

If their water is really that different than mine then I wouldn't expect inverts and all their fish to be alive. They rarely have any casualties in their tanks. The only thing I'd be concerned about would be temperature difference but with that short of a walk there isn't a big swing. I have never had casualties due to no acclimation. Even the foxface I bought that was on the verge of death in their tank due to damage during shipping got better within days and I didn't acclimate him. But you are right. Better safe than sorry.

 

[BallinCrew10]

Fish that have been caught from the wild or even captive bred, shipped to a vendor, shipped to a LFS, bought by us, brought home, then put in our tanks go through alot of stress in a relatively short time period. It's not that the LFS has poor water parameters or even that you do. Its a sudden swing after all that that can effect them. I can see your point though, and perhaps the parameters are close enough that you won't have any losses, but there are plenty of cases on this site where people don't acclimate and their fish end up in trouble.

Just my $.02 on the subject.

 

[Lauramichelle]

Ok, my faith in my favorite coral shop has been restored. I went in today and specifically asked about acclimation. They were nice enough to take me to their back room and allowed me to see all their fish and coral in quarantine before they would be placed on their public floor. I had thought of getting a peppermint shrimp today. They said they had none. Which was true, on their public area. But in back, they had like 10 in quarantine. They wouldn't allow me to buy them yet. I feel so much better!!!!

 

[tonedogz]

Now thats a really good fish shop

 

[FTMMWS]

Now thats a really good fish shop

+1..
I don't drip acclimate but float and dump(as i like to call it)...I take a 1/4 measuring cup and scoop out from the bag and add from the tank..Do it about 30 x or so over the course of an hour

 

[Lowsdime]

When my lfs gets a shipment there's about 20 buckets next to tanks getting dripped, I can't see inverts lasting long w/ large ph swings by not acclimating, sounds just like that tanked tv show where they just dump the fish into an uncycled tank! What a joke

 

[Rutrag]

I have taken to floating and then dripping on all fish, shrimp, and clams. Corals, anemones, snails and hermit crabs I float and dump. I used to float and add water, but a lot of times stuff would end up out of the bag too soon this way. I stopped dripping the other stuff based on some things I've read here as well as the advice of one of the places I mailorder from. (I can't afford much at the truly local aquarium shops.) In fact, saltwaterfish.com sends their snails and hermit crabs without water. There are also videos I've seen of reefs which are exposed to the air for hours at a time at low tide, so I have to think as long as my water is "right," dunking them isn't going to hurt a thing.