Should I make a negative comment?

Here is my question. I posted a thread on this forum asking the question.... "What would be the proper size of a canister filter that I would need for a 90 gallon tank?" I was given sound advice from the forum from quite a few folks that I feel confident who have the knowledge to guide me in the proper direction. I was told 5 X the gallon size..or 450gph. We discussed Aquatop, Sunsun and Fluval cannisters. I decided to purchase..after choking over the price...a Fluval FX6 which has a flow rate of 563 gph. I didn't want to mess with having two canisters, I also read a few posts on lighting, LED lights in particular. There was some great info on lighting as well as suggestions. I was interested in the Fluval Aqua Sky..and using it on a planted tank. I was not sure if it would reach the bottom effectively with enough intensity to stimulate growth in my plants if I should decide to go that way. LED's are a lot newer than tube lighting, so I'm sure that there is not AS MUCH info on them as there is on tube lighting. BUT..there is STILL a lot of info if you Google "LED lights for aquariums with plants!" You tube...web sites...forums...etc. There are a lot of professional tank people giving sound advice...mixed in with those who have not got a clue. You just have to read a lot to figure out who is more knowledgeable.

Hence...my beef!!

In the county that I live, the only fish stores that are NICE are Petco and Petsmart. Good people in there! At least in my area they are. If they don't know something..they refer the question to someone else with more experience for the proper answer. I respect that!!!

I needed to go to Miami for business this weekend. I had all day Friday to get there..so I thought I'd stop at this fish store that had pretty good reviews. I won't mention the name at this time. I saw a 90 gallon tank with a good looking stand and canopy. It was "reasonably..somewhat" priced..and I decided to get it. I asked about canister filters and the owners son...who was helping me..suggested a Aquatop canister that showed a maximum rating of a 90 gallon tank. I asked if the canister had enough power and flow for a 90 gallon tank! I mentioned to him that I heard that having a little bigger filter was good and asked him if he had a bigger one. He did not have a bigger filter...and assured me that the one he had was PERFECT and very efficient. It had a 317 gph rating! I put a deposit on the set up and told them I'd be back from my trip Sunday afternoon, and I would pick it up. Saturday night..I'm checking out this forum and find that he's apparently full of donkey dung.

Fast forward...today. I go in to pick up tank and stand and tell them that I don't want the filter. He asks why! I tell him that it's not big enough. I need a larger flow rate. He states that the filter is completely PERFECT for the tank. I ask him..."Whats the flow rate?" He didn't know! He sure knew that it was perfect for my tank..but he did not know the flow rate. I did not buy his canister. First fabrication! Strike 1 - store

I ask about LED lighting. I told him that I wanted to possibly go with live plants if I don't do African cichlids. He states..."NO LED LIGHTING WILL WORK WITH PLANTS!" Well...I know by reading the forums that LED lighting CAN and DOES work if it's the proper one! He also states that the LED lighting is only about 5 years old and there is NO INFO out yet on the effectiveness of the LED's with plants. I look at him with a confused look on my face and say..."In 5 years..no one has given any feedback?" He says NO! I suggested that maybe he look at getting on the computer and listening to a few videos from professional aquarium services that post their findings as well as asking some of his manufacturers reps for some literature or info on the products they sell! "There is a TON of info on LED lighting! "
I also mentioned that even ME as a complete and useless novice was able to grow some plants with a lowly Aqua Sky LED on a 29 gallon tank! After he finally figured out that I actually had done a little research...He says..."well...I actually specialize in live coral and invertebrates. " So I say..politely..."and...that means what?" He finally admits that he doesn't really know JACK about lighting. 'He says.."Well... it's because it's a freshwater tank!!' I guess he cannot be bothered with those scummy cheapo freshwater customers.

I guess what bothers me is that these guys..that work at a pretty nice store...are dealing out HORRIBLE advice! In my profession...I guess I could misrepresent the truth to people about the products I represent..or hide the fact that I'm not that well versed in a particular phase of my job...but all that does it makes me look stupid! I would NEVER get repeat customers if I did that! I would be bankrupt! I hate liars! I despise guys or gals making up stuff when they are representing a product to LOOK like they know what they are talking about. I HIGHLY RESPECT someone for ADMITTING that they don't know an answer to a question and directing it to someone that does! It evokes TRUST!!! Trust is what brings us back to any given retailer. I thought I had been to heaven when I walked into that store. Tons of product..tons of fish..nice layout! HORRIBLE customer service. I wanted to leave a Google review...but actually..I don't want to totally alienate myself until I fill that tank up with water and make sure it doesn't leak! OH...another thing! 90 gallon tank...full canopy...and a base stand. He asks me to help him put it on a rolling flatbed. No problem. We roll it out to my truck....I pull the tailgate down...he's gone! Leaves me there to do it myself.

I go to Allpets Emporium in Pembroke Pines while down in Miami. Great store...Great advice! Great service! Superb selection of all phases of the aquarium hobby. Heck...I liked them so much that I'd drive 250 miles just to visit them for the day and buy a bunch of plants and accessories! ...and I ain't kidding! It was a great store!

I feel like I should give a heads up via Google review for the store in Sarasota...but I'm going to wait until the tank is tested. Then...I think I just might. I know this...as obsessed as I have become in such a short time...I have given a lot of my hard earned dollars to fish stores. This I can assure you of...that store will not get any!!!

Sorry for being so windy! Had to get it off my chest!

 

Honestly, that's why your alway suppose to do research before buying anything. Some petstores don't care they just want to sell you things. You could leave a bad review if you want but not that many people check reviews. Btw I can't believe I just read all that. Can even pay attention in class lol.

 

Unfortunately that type of experience is reminiscent of many stores throughout the country. I'm fortunate enough to have two stores near me with people who have some decent knowledge, though I no longer will buy fish from either of them. I do go there for supplies, and one of them is an amazing source of emergency meds, but I would never ask them for advice on treating my fish (because their job is to sell me stuff, not find the best way to get my fish better).

I'm glad you'd done your research before that guy sold you things you don't want or need

 

Honestly, that's why your alway suppose to do research before buying anything. Some petstores don't care they just want to sell you things. You could leave a bad review if you want but not that many people check reviews. Btw I can't believe I just read all that. Can even pay attention in class lol.

I have 1st hand experience that many stores ask their relatives and friends to make up and leave a good review just to boost their ratings on Google and Yahoo. People Do read that stuff. If you look at them with a discerning view...you can figure out which ones are real. I've read reviews on products and made decisions based on solely the reviews and ratings of that product or service. That's why eBay has feedback scores! Believe me....people look and buy based on score many times.

You're right! Research is everything! Wouldn't it be nice to be able to trust the people at the store you are buying from? Dispensing bad advice is only one of the reasons that internet sales are killing so many Mom & Pop stores. Price being #1 reason. If the stores displayed proper knowledge and advice, I'd gladly pay a bit more just because they had a brick and mortar shop and they had earned it based on their performance.

 

I stopped relying on advice from stores decades ago. I ask them for advice often but I take it with a grain of salt every time. I learned early that I have to do my own research before buying. Sure I regret a lot of bad purchases I keep making but I accept that I only have myself to blame. Most often when I go to a store I already know what I'm going to buy. But I do browse around for what's new and cool. It is a fun pastime after all. If I end up buying something I did not plan on buying I usually end up regretting it later when it's too late to return it.

 

I stopped relying on advice from stores decades ago. I ask them for advice often but I take it with a grain of salt every time. I learned early that I have to do my own research before buying. Sure I regret a lot of bad purchases I keep making but I accept that I only have myself to blame. Most often when I go to a store I already know what I'm going to buy. But I do browse around for what's new and cool. It is a fun pastime after all. If I end up buying something I did not plan on buying I usually end up regretting it later when it's too late to return it.

WOW!! Other than the decades of experience....you sound like me!!

 

WOW!! Other than the decades of experience....you sound like me!!

LOL, my first learning experience was back in the early 90s buying RAM chips. My friends and I were buying and selling computer parts to supplement our allowances. I asked the wholesaler what the wait state value or their RAM chips were. She just gave me an annoyed and puzzled look and told me she didn't know anything about it. Back in the day when we didn't have our current DDR technology, wait states measured in nanoseconds were the performance benchmark of RAM speed. It's critical that she knew that since we're looking to buy the fastest RAM chips to offer to our customers for rock bottom prices.

 

I stopped relying on advice from stores decades ago. I ask them for advice often but I take it with a grain of salt every time. I learned early that I have to do my own research before buying. Sure I regret a lot of bad purchases I keep making but I accept that I only have myself to blame. Most often when I go to a store I already know what I'm going to buy. But I do browse around for what's new and cool. It is a fun pastime after all. If I end up buying something I did not plan on buying I usually end up regretting it later when it's too late to return it.

I have found that this is very sage adivce and do not trust store adivce on any of my hobbies or purchases even for something like an electric skillet.

 

LOL, my first learning experience was back in the early 90s buying RAM chips. My friends and I were buying and selling computer parts to supplement our allowances. I asked the wholesaler what the wait state value or their RAM chips were. She just gave me an annoyed and puzzled look and told me she didn't know anything about it. Back in the day when we didn't have our current DDR technology, wait states measured in nanoseconds were the performance benchmark of RAM speed. It's critical that she knew that since we're looking to buy the fastest RAM chips to offer to our customers for rock bottom prices.

You lost me at the NANO!! Waaayyyy past me!! I was getting that deer in the headlights look! :;rudolph
I did get the message however!

Nano??

 

I have found that this is very sage adivce and do not trust store adivce on any of my hobbies or purchases even for something like an electric skillet.

You think buying fish stuff is bad....you ought to buy golf equipment!! Geez!! They see you coming and going!

 

You lost me at the NANO!! Waaayyyy past me!! I was getting that deer in the headlights look! :;rudolph
I did get the message however!

Nano??

LOL I don't blame you. A nanosecond is a billionth of a second. A wait state is a delay experienced by a computer processor when accessing external memory or another device that is slow to respond. Now you'll ask yourself why should a nanosecond matter? When microprocessors process information in Teraflops per second (trillion floating point operations), imaging the lag time produced by that nanosecond mutiplied by a teraflop. Believe me you'll notice.

 

LOL I don't blame you. A nanosecond is a billionth of a second. A wait state is a delay experienced by a computer processor when accessing external memory or another device that is slow to respond. Now you'll ask yourself why should a nanosecond matter? When microprocessors process information in Teraflops per second (trillion floating point operations), imaging the lag time produced by that nanosecond mutiplied by a teraflop. Believe me you'll notice.

OH!! Wow!! It all makes TOTAL sense to me now!!! I'm surprised that I didn't get it the first time! Clear as a bell!!

Again - :;rudolph