Help!!!!!!

[clairejjj]

I just bought a 26 gallon nano tank from the only pet shop in town. The owner set it up yesterday in my classroom with my students quietly watching. He brought it up the stairs with the water and all animals in it. There were 2 chocolate chip starfish, 2 kronos( ?), 2 clown fish, 1 gramma,1 red scallop, 3 anemones,, a blue-legged crab, some sort of shrimp.

He set it up at 2pm. I asked him if the starfish would eat the scallop, and he laughed at the idea....said that it would close up. In my invertebrate zoology class, I had learned the starfish always wins a match with a bivalve.
When i walked in at 8 a m, the shrimp was feeding on the gramma(?), one starfish had eaten the scallop, and another starfish had eaten the mid sized anemone.

I called him and he said that that community had lived incisent free in his shop for 3 months. He expressed astonishment at what I told him had happened. He said that he thought we should take out one of the starfish to solve the problem.

I bought local, paying $925 for the stand, tank, rocks, animals, and a monthly check-up. I paid this trying to be loyal to the community....I realize I was stupid, stupid, stupid. I was motivated by wanting to do something special for my students.....
The last time we set up a freshwater tank we spent months regulating and testing the water....and it has been perfect for 2 yrs.

I know it would have been a greater gift to do the same thing this time....

But what do I do now?

Desperately seeking advice.

[Shooter7]

Use it as a lesson to your students as what NOT to do. Use this site and experiences from people here to help make the tank better, and show them how doing proper research could save them such waste in the future.

[Shooter7]

Oh, and:


To Reef Central

[BLKTANG]

Wow unreal.

I like what shooter7 said.


To Reef Central

[Shooter7]

And I would now contact this person and demand that he come back and remove this tank, and return your money to you, since what happened in that tank is not your fault and you're very dissatisfied with the deal. This is the first thing I'd try, since you could get your funds back and start over in a better situation if he'll go for it.

[Crimthann]

I'd get your money back. I think me being livid would be an understatement if I paid someone to set up my tank yesterday and everything was dead today. The tank was moved poorly as everything should have been removed to minimize stress to the livestock. I'd like to see a picture but I'm fairly confident the tank was overstocked, as well as a very poor mismatching of livestock. 3 anemones in a tank that small is just crazy. Not to mention the tank is to new for even one, plus who knows what kind of lighting is on it.

Very sorry this happened to you. The best you can do is try and get a refund, live, and learn. Hopefully this doesn't turn you off saltwater tanks. I would do the research myself next time and not rely on someone to maintain the tank. It's really not that hard & I wish one of my teachers had one back when I was in school.

[WinnipegDragon]

I amazed the tank didn't crack if he moved it with water in it. I'm sure it was stressed any way you look at it, and I would not trust it not to leak in the future.

Demand your money back, and if he won't, dispute the charges with your credit card company, if possible.

[cdbias2]

Instant SW tanks just don't happen and money can't buy one. I do applaud you for trying something for your students. Hopefully your a biology/science teacher and the class can learn something from this.
IMO- I can't imagine your going to get a penny back.

[scokill]

yes, unbelievable...did you say he moved in with water in it??

I may be crazy, but it would seem you would need to setup the tank, cycle, then add critters slowly not to shock with bioload....not to mention incompatibility. LFS has new meaning Local F#$%# Stupidity (instead of local fish store)! I am so sorry this happened...

[kzickovich]

Break down the tank and take back to him. If he don't want to refund your money then leave it on the counter and cancle it thru your cc if you put it on one.

[Percula9]

Is there anything wrong with the equipment itself? It just seems that you have incompatible livestock. I would ask the dealer to replace the livestock that is compatible. One anemone and a clown fish to possibly host it would be a good idea. Get rid of the starfish. What ever is left in the tank can be swapped for something else. Get some basic beginner books on salt water tanks and educate your self. It seems a shame to get rid of the whole thing if the equipment itself is okay. If you go to www.Drs foster and smith.com you can get a compatibility chart for marine organisms.

[Lmecher]

Am I missing something? He set it up and the same day he stocked it with all you mentioned? It didn't cycle. Oh man, what survived the masacare will surely be dead soon. You surely have good reason to raise hell.
I want to hear how you resolve this. At least you can come here for support. Good Luck : (

[suzimcmullen]

This story doesn't even sound real. I'm not calling you a liar. I'm just saying it sounds so far fetched! I think you need to get all the kids and parents to write letters if they refuse. Do what you can to try and get the money back and definitely use this for a learning experience. The kids can also learn about the better business bureau and maybe even small claims court.

Suzi

[baitshopboy]

he must have been pretty strong to carry about +200lbs up the stairs all at the same time........

[SSgtHabanero]

I gotta say, I work part time in my LFS and I would NEVER EVER set up like that. You got took! I'm so sorry to say that but wow. IMO I would ask to see an itemized list of equipment he supplied and do your research! If you got took let him know you know and let him know your going to make sure everyone else knows too! As for the live stock I would make sure to return them even if you decide to keep your setup. I wouldn't expect them to live a week. Research this site for "cycling your tank" and "slow drip acclamation" Also not sure if you know, but as you already found out, saltwater tanks are alot harder to setup and maintain vs. freshwater. But do not give up hang in there and if you have a problem don't just treat the problem, treat the source. Sorry your source is your LFS! Hopefully the guy just didn't know. Tell him to read up on this site Best of Luck

[dc]

I can't imagine any LFS doing this to anyone. Take it all back, and demand your money back. Then read here before jumping into it again.

[super stooge]

firstly wooow, i wish i had a teacher cool enough to set up a fish tank (id even maintain it by myself if i had to )

u now have a few options open to you.

1. call the guy and tell him you are unhappy with the deal and push as hard as u can for a refund. chocolate chip starfish are NOT reef safe and will eat your corals (i think anenomes are included aswell). an anenome should not be in a tank as young as 3 months anyway (asuming he was telling the truth about how long it was set up) let alone 3 of them. i also think the tank was overstocked considering it was only 3 months old. him moving it up the stairs was also a BIIIG risk. the tank could have easily fractured or shattered under its own weight. moving it in this manor also places unnecessary stress on the tanks inhabitants. i hate to say it but he sold you a tank destined to fail . if you do get a refund then start reading and researching about fish until you feel you are prepared to start the tank.

2. remove the anenomes and get them refunded/swaped for credit (your tank should be well established and about a year old before attempting to keep one of these). also remove the starfish if u ever plan on ever adding corals. i would also remove some of the fish and go from there. after uve done this READ AS MUCH AS U CAN!. this site is a wealth of information. chances are any question you can think off sum1 here can answer it. you can even cheat a lil bit and get your students to research different parts of the tank you as homework . ill give u a link that covers a broad spectrum of topics for you to read but i find the best way to learn is through asking clear specific questions and getting a personalized response.

please please please please ask as many questions as u can possibly think of. i would much rather try and answer a thousand questions than have a fish suffer and u loose your money. dont give up, your doing an amazing thing for your students. you'd be surprised how much you can learn from your fish tank.

here is that link i promised you but dont forget to ask questions!
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...hreadid=912378

tell us what you think your going to do and well advise from there

[OceanSpray]

I can't wait to see what he will add to the tank when he does the monthly check up. Its hard to believe a Pet Store did this. Do they keep the mice with the snakes, or the birds with the cats? I doubt it. If I were you, I'd try hard to get a refund quickly. If you wait very long they are bound to be out of business. All of their pets will eat each other. If they try not to refund, tell them your going to turn it over to the school's legal dept. . Even if you don't have a legal department, it may scare them enough to refund your money. Best of luck!!