Ordering from Tampa Bay Saltwater

[Newms118]

I plan on ordering some live rock from tampa bay saltwater.  I understand that you have to pick it up from the airport, and I plan on having it delivered to Reagan National.  Does anyone have any experience ordering from TBS and picking it up from this airport?  Im not sure where the freight pick up is and want to know a bit more before i go through with the order.

[AlanM]

I don't have advice on the airport, but I'm really interesting in reading about your experiences with it. I seriously considered getting rock from them with the CUC included and ultimately didn't do it because of the cost.

 

Sometimes I still regret not doing it when I go back and read d2mini's tank threads on reef central and see his beauties which were stock with rock, sand, critters, sponges, gorgonians and stuff from Richard down at TBS.

[YHSublime]

So no first hand experience, but I am so jealous! I wish I could spring for one of those packages. D2Mini on reef central has started all his tanks that way (same guy that used his tank for echotech's vortech advertisements.) If you read through his build, I'm it will give you some great insight into how it works. In his second build (linked at the end of this one) he actually dives for his rock with the owner, but I'll just link you to it. Post #289. Dennis must be getting his stuff for free, if not close to it at this stage.

[AlanM]

haha, we both post about d2mini

[YHSublime]

haha, we both post about d2mini

 

I was in the process of writing that huge post and linking all the builds. There is a lot of good information in there about the tampa bay packages, directly linked. Those builds are also a really good way to get lost in an entire morning, and then feel like you have to find some way to clean up your mixing station, or sump.

 

I would be interested to hear if anybody on WAMAS has some experience with the packages/rock as well!

[howaboutme]

haha, one of you guys posted a link to d2mini's thread a few weeks ago and I got caught up in it for the entire morning at work. it was very addicting to browse through. i love all of the "freebies" (though I agree that he may be getting a lot for free in exchange for his write ups) like gorgs, sponges and sea stars he got. i'd love to start a tank w/ it...except...it costs way too much for my liking.

 

OP...i believe the freight at DCA is on the right side. so instead of turning left after you cross the bridge over rte 1 to the passenger terminals, you go right...small airport, shouldn't be too hard. definitely post up your experiences w/ picts!

[YHSublime]

OP...i believe the freight at DCA is on the right side. so instead of turning left after you cross the bridge over rte 1 to the passenger terminals, you go right...small airport, shouldn't be too hard. definitely post up your experiences w/ picts!

 

I am very interested in the experience, and live close to Reagan National, if you go through with the order and need assistance, send me a PM. What size tank are you looking to start?

[Origami]

I ordered from them years ago but delivered to Dulles, not National. Call or ask in their forum on RC (I assume that they're still there) to see which air freight carrier they will use and give that airline a call.

 

Sent from my LG-V510 using Tapatalk

 

 

[davelin315]

Like their stuff a lot but they get you on freight since it is shipped in water. Haven't gotten their stuff in at least 10 years if not long I am thinking...

 

For freight, I can't remember which airport is better, Reagan or BWI. One of them has pickup in about 30 minutes while the other you have to wait for a couple of hours after arrival.

[zygote2k]

I bought a package from them about 5 years ago that consisted of 200# of sand and all of the critters that live in it plus 400# of rock. Rock came in 2 sep shipments and second batch contained 2) Tiger Gobies living in the rock. Tons of sponges and other cool stuff came encrusted on the rock. There were also about a dozen hairy crabs and 4 mantis shrimps.

Getting fresh live rock with all of the unwanted hitchhikers is still a hundred times better than using sterilized rock.

[lutz123]

No advice but I am looking forward to following along. That's why I have been holding on setting up my 75 - saving up for the package! I started following d2mini's thread several months ago - it's addictive. I agree with just calling and asking questions - both the airline and TBS. From what I understand it's not as bad as you would think.

[rrbigdog]

I didn't use TBS but I started my tank with dry and 20# of live rock from floridaliverock.com.  Ships from the TB area.  Since I was just starting I just did the 2 day delivery that came fedex that he included in the purchase.  He lists on Ebay also. 

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Aquarium-live-rock-for-marine-tanks-20-lbs-Florida-live-rock-/151225682385?pt=Coral_and_Live_Rock&hash=item2335c0c9d1

 

 

 I did loose some clams etc. but I have still been happy with the rock compared with what you get locally.  

 

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/108501626/pics/20140212_114736.jpg  Huge encrusted clams of some sort..and what I think is a scallop.

 

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/108501626/pics/ClamsRocks.jpg  More clams.....even survived my cycle.

 

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/108501626/pics/20131022_193359.jpg  Coral - survived transit and cycle.

Edited February 19, 2014 by rrbigdog

[MBVette]

I used TB Saltwater for my old tank that burnt down.  The rock is absolutly amazing, but as Rob said you will get some unwanted hitchhikers that you will have to pull out of there.  I would recommend them highly just look the rock over before you put it in the tank.

[londonloco]

Funny you started this thread, I have a Nuvo16 leak testing right now that I'm going to order live rock from KB Aquatics.  All three vendors, livegulfrock, KB and TBS have rave reviews over at nano-reef.  I've emailed Philip at KP, he quoted $145 incl delivery for 15lbs and 180$ incl delivery for 20lbs of live uncured rock, shipped overnight FedX.   

Edited February 19, 2014 by londonloco

[Origami]

The only downside to TBS rock, as I recall, was it was very dense and kind of blocky - not a light, holey or branching kind of rock. I didn't find fish, like Rob, but there are plenty of examples where people did. There were numerous gorilla crabs, four mantis shrimp, a pistol shrimp or two, various snails (including whelks), barnacles (pretty cool to watch them filter the water for food) and lots of sponges of various types and macro algae (mostly caulerpa).  Richard tossed in a few bags of other live critters, too, with the order.  If you're willing to deal with the pests (which can take a little time), it's nice rock overall.

[jaddc]

Hey,

 

I used TB Saltwater and loved it. Great deal. If you look at my video and pics (below -- they are old, but you'll get the point) you can see the rock.

 

To your question, it was easy. You get two shipments -- the sand and rock in the first, creatures in the second. Richard sends you all the flight info. I tracked it online (like I was tracking a friends flight) and when the flight landed, I gave it an hour to allow for unload time. I opted to have it ship to BWI because it was cheaper than DCA at the time -- Richard knows best so follow his advice. Then you go to the cargo center which is set up like a UPS or FEDEX depot. Just go to the desk and they will find a manifest for you to sign. Someone brings out the boxes and off you go. The boxes are heavy because of the water. OH and since the airlines play soccer with the box, it may  be leaking. So bring a towel or tarp to protect your car. Richard packs well, so your stuff is fine even if the box is soaked through.

 

It is a great way to have an instant aquarium that is full of life. I was finding a bunch of new stuff everyday. Richard is very very generous. Also there is not much of a cycle, which is nice.

 

I think they are best for FOWLR tanks. My experience is similar to what Tom said above. In fact, I received my order in 1/2011 and i JUST now caught and killed my last gorilla crab. He was a smart sucker -- he lost the game, but I respect that he was playing to win. The gorilla crabs are nasty SOBs that will decimate your snail and hermit populations. I also received two mantis shrimp. Very cool creatures but they love to eat everything. Whelks are in the mix, so you may want to pull them out before they eat your other mollusks. I did find a free cute tiger goby hiding in the rock -- that was a bonus. Also a baby urchin was tucked into a crevice. It was cool seeing it grow up. He also tossed in an anemone -- that was a gorgeous creature.

 

I would consider these negatives in the decision.

 

1) The rock is dense. I mean it is a chunk of limestone. I tried shaping it with a dremel and I might as well be cutting through concrete. 

2) Since I was new to the hobby, having instant life meant instant gratification. But battling all the hitchhikers was a pain. Be prepared to pull all of the rock out of tank in order to track down and evict the bad guys. There are traps and stuff but I found it easiest to pull out the rock and go after the crabs, pistol shrimp (you rarely see them -- just hear them) and mantis on my turf. 

3) The generosity of Richard leaves little room for frags and coral. My tank was packed to the gills with everything I received.

 

That said, like everything in this hobby, it depends on what you want your tank to be. You can easily buy TBSaltwater and then put in your favorite fish and call it a day. Instant beautiful tank.

 

Cheers

Edited February 19, 2014 by jaddc

[sen5241b]

The gulf water where they seed their rock is rather cold. The rock may come in with stuff that will die in a tank's warm water. But overall I've heard a lot of good things about TBS.

[londonloco]

The gulf water where they seed their rock is rather cold. The rock may come in with stuff that will die in a tank's warm water. But overall I've heard a lot of good things about TBS.

I thought all 3 vendors have seeded their rock in the same area...anyone know for sure?

[jaddc]

The gulf water where they seed their rock is rather cold. The rock may come in with stuff that will die in a tank's warm water. But overall I've heard a lot of good things about TBS.

 

It think that is generally true. But if you have a FOWLR tank then the temp can be on the cooler side of the temp range. The encrusting life on my rocks did eventually recede and die.

[Newms118]

Wow, didn't think i would get this big of a response on this topic.  Ill be sure to post picks of what i get and about the whole shipping procedure from Reagan national.

 

I am very interested in the experience, and live close to Reagan National, if you go through with the order and need assistance, send me a PM. What size tank are you looking to start?

 

Thanks, the tank is a 65 gallon with a 30 gallon sump.  So far I've gotten some dry fiji, pukani, and complex tonga from BFS.  Ive also gone around and picked up a small live rock from congressional aquariums and tropical lagoon aquariums, with tropical being far superior.  darn shame aquarium one still isn't open other wise i would have gone their to get a few pieces of live rock.  Im only getting a small amount of live rock from TBS, say the package for about a 25 gallon tank, that way to minimize the unwanted hitch hikers and add more variety to the tank when its fully started.  

[s2nhle]

live rock is a great way to start cycling your tank.

[lutz123]

If you are looking for more local good live rock,I have gotten all of mine from Marine Scene and been very pleased. No bad hitchhikers, and beautifully shaped pieces with purple and turquoise coralline. But I would still love to see your order from TBS.

[sen5241b]

Let us know how it goes.

[Newms118]

So I went through the first phase of the package, and picking up the boxes wasn't bad at all.  I placed my order on last Wednesday and picked them up Saturday morning at the warehouse location.  Heres the link for those interested:http://www.deltacargo.com/WorldwideFacilities/DCA.aspx . I ended up going to the DASH office first but was told to pick up the packages at the warehouse.  The warehouse actually called me to tell me the package was there for pick up.  If you know where the economy parking is at Reagan national, the warehouse is pretty close to that, and there are signs that say economy parking and air cargo to help direct you.  

 

For the boxes, they handled the trip pretty well.  Only the box that had the live sand was leaking a bit so bringing a tarp to protect the inside of my SUV was a good idea.  After opening it all up I can say I am beyond pleased with the first shipment.  The live sand came with a small pincushion sea urchin, a large brittle star, some sort of shrimp that loves to hide, some type of sea slug that has since begun burrowing into on my pukani rocks, and a few snails.  The rocks themselves were covered with purple coralline algae, a few sponges ( i think), lots of filter feeders (little barnacles and tube worms). I love watching these guys go and I've since bought some microvert to begin feeding them in about a week.  On the down side i didn't find at least 3 gorilla crabs that i managed to get off the rocks by doing a high salinity dip before putting the rocks in the tank.  I think two porcelain crabs came too so i put those back, but I've seen at least two gorilla crabs in the tank now. So now begins the trapping phase!  Ive also heard popping sounds which I'm assuming can be either a mantis or pistol shrimp, but this guy didn't come out from the high salinity dips, so hopefully the traps will get him too.  Currently the rocks is covered in some sort of brown algae which may be diatoms, but I'm hoping will cleanup in a few days.  

 

Before i added the TBS live rock i had the tank cycling (by ammonia dosing) and was in the high nitrite phase (5+ ppm).  After adding the live rock, my ammonia is holding steady at  about 0.2 ppm, with nitrite at around 0.1 ppm and nitrates up to 80 ppm.  I went ahead and did some water changes to try dropping the nitrate levels so that the critters that came with the first shipment didn't die.  Looking forward to getting my second batch with all the other critters.

 

Heres some picks of the tank and the TBS live rock:

[Newms118]

Btw, for the first image, the TBS live rock is in the front.  The dry rock (pukani, fiji, and tonga complex branch) is in the back.  The big purple live rock on the top is from tropical lagoon aquarium in silver spring.