Good LFS in Vancouver??

[Bob I]

When I last lived in Vancouver in 1976 (1330 Harwood ST.) I used to hang around a fish store in Burnaby I think. In those days all we had was airpumps, undergravel filters and eheims. We had no corals. I had an Imperator (and more) in a 20 gallon high. I have pictures still. I still remember we got a coral snake in a shipment from the Philipines. When the bag he came in was opened he moved from tank to tank, and then onto the floor. It scared the H*** out of us, so we swept him under a passing bus. :eek:

[Troy F]

Mason, you are entitled to your opinion but since you posted your experience I think it only fair to post mine.

This past weekend, with a crowded store of paying customers, John took the time to help me with bulkhead that I was having trouble getting sealed on a skimmer he didn't sell me (and if you knew the history on that one you'd be real impressed with John).

[DJ88]

Mason,

I hope you aren't counting that day I was talking to you and Steve as one of the days they ignored you. John and Allan saw I was answering yout lighting questions and figured I wouldn't steer you wrong.

You won't find many stores that will offer a hand as much as they will. Keep in mind they run the store with the two of them for 7 days a week. Come in late at night to unpack fish and corals then work a full day on top of it. As well the store is a very busy and successful mail order company. Tho they may be at the counter there is always a lot going on. They don't have a staff to handle the little things. They do it all. If you want some help go up to them and say hi. That is all it takes.

[Jack]

I hate to poke my head out here (and hopefully I don't get it chopped off ;) but...

J&L Aquatics has got to be my absolute favorite store. I find with the customer service you have to just say hi or ask, as Darren said they are very busy. I mean, you should know what you want and have already done SOME research before you buy... I'm sure they don't have time to sit down and have a cup of tea with EVERYONE. I always talk to John and he is very friendly over the phone when ordering things (my RO/DI, figi rock, etc.)

They don't know how much experience, knowlege, etc you have so they just play it basic and plain tell you if your system is not ready or sufficeint. I like those morals and I find them really respectable. I also like how they don't sell/keep things that should be left in the ocean.

And the prices alone cannot scare you away... that's why people keep comming back time after time.... just like everyone else. I find it funny how some people bad mouth J&L but go back time after time :D Crazy how that works, eh? Must be a "horrible" store then. Haha.

Just my two cents, nothing commented was personal or directed at anyone in particular.

Thanks

[Aquattro]

I have to agree with Darren and Troy. I have had nothing but great service from J&L. Both John and Allen have taken time to answer the stupidest questions and they've always been honest and upfront. They're a 5 star outfit as far as I'm concerned.

[Samw]

Originally posted by Jack:
I hate to poke my head out here (and hopefully I don't get it chopped off ;) but...

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">No problem. Its cool. I hope that I've made it clear that J&L is my favorite shop too and I go there more than anywhere else.

The more discussed issue here probably has more to do with who would be your 2nd source of livestock and equipment. Some people like King Ed as a 2nd source and some people wouldn't step foot in there for various reasons.

[smokinreefer]

mason, sorry to hear about your bad experiences at JL. i suppose 1st impressions are very lasting and weighed upon heavily.

i too, have been in customer service for a long time, and i hold it as a major factor in where i spend my $$.

all i can say is that i have had nothing but good experiences with JL.

King eds...i go there for dog food. and to browse the saltwater section in case they have some thing interesting to buy. plus you can haggle with them. but from my experience, i would not ask them for advice, nor would i listen to what they have to say. if they did have some thing i was interested in, i wouldnt buy it until i've gone home and researched it myself. those guys are like used car salesmen.

aquarium services...a bit pricey...but i have a long history with them. sometimes you can get some nice deals there. most of the staff are newbies...tho there are a few people there who actually know stuff. if you see grant...talk to him...he knows his stuff.

perkys...uh...umm...nice display...they were starting to stock nice corals and stuff, but the last time i went there it looked like he doesnt have the clientelle needed to justify stocking what he was. perhaps he was trying to compete with JL. dont think it worked.

[Achilles]

One must also think of who they are supporting when they make purchases for their little slices of ocean. Many stores around town, such as King Ed and Big Al's, DO NOT make a conscious effort to avoid bringing in livestock that are unsuitible for aquarium life. Many of the fish they bring in have been proven many, many times to not succeed in captivity. It is a different story if fish happen to have been thrown into the shipment by the supplier of course.

We all want to be responsible reef and fish only keepers right? We must purchase responsibly in order to do so.

How do I know this? Well anyone can look at the tanks and see what they contain. Nudibranchs at Kind Ed, certain Parrotfish... Moorish Idol's at Big Al's. Oh and how about how the companies treat the fish while they have them. I have seen JL aquatics adding Selcon to the food they add many times, and doing extensive drips to the fish when they come in.

I never saw Big Al's do that (enriching their food) even while I worked there! [img]tongue.gif[/img]

Just my 0.02

Cheers!

[ 23 May 2002, 20:47: Message edited by: Achilles ]

[Troy F]

Damn Trigger, that post is cold. I didn't take it as a flame but the backstabbing kind of stuff is way offside.

Store gives good advice: important.

Store has good pricing: important.

Store carries quality product: important.

Store shows ethics when dealing with livestock: important.

Store operator takes you into confidence and you spread it on the internet: cheese, cheese, cheese.

[Son Of Skyline]

Originally posted by smokinreefer:
mason, sorry to hear about your bad experiences at JL. i suppose 1st impressions are very lasting and weighed upon heavily.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">True, but unfortunately I'm not speaking on first impressions alone. Like I said, I've been going there often over the past few months and it has ALWAYS been the same. I never leave there feeling good about giving them my money. They're not mean and nasty, but they just don't seem to give a damn that I'm there, and they don't have the time to help me with anything. I don't think they've ever stopped for more than 10 seconds to answer any of my questions. They're alright when I'm paying for my stuff and they have no choice but to talk to me, and the lady there even said hi to me once...yes, once, but overall you all know how I feel.

Yes, I understand what everyone is saying about ethics, quality, knowledge..etc. J&L is great with all of that, but that's not what my concern is. It's customer service. Something they don't have. I used to work for Pet Habitat and I've actually seen people fired for showing the kind of poor service that all of the people do at J&L.