How do most of you shop?

Do you guys go to your LFS to get live rock, snails, fish etc. or are there certain critters or equipment that you're better off buying online. My LFS charges 10 buckers per pound for LR. i barely have 20lbs worth of live rock in my 55g because its kinda pricey.

 

I do all my buying online and sometimes on craigslist.

 

I buy predominantly off the internets.

You only need a tiny bit of live rock... you can buy the rest of it as dry base rock for super cheap here: (I recommend it)

ReefCleaners.org | Clean Up Crews and Macro Algae - Home

A handful of things I buy locally... but it's rather rare. My LFS stink.

 

I'd have to say online most of the time.
Clean up crews and rock from reefcleaners.org exclusively
Bulbs and 90% of my equipment from aquacave.com, the other 10% bigalsonline.com or places like glass-holes.com
coral-ebay or trade LFS for frags for stuff I want
fish-trade LFS frags for fish

 

i buy just about everything online. very rarely do i buy at the lfs

 

Mostly online, just had a LFS open up we haven't had one for a while. My purchases will depend on what the LFS can get. Probably will buy equipment online and probably coral. Fish and food at the LFS.

 

You will most likely find the best deals online. However, if you've got a good LFS nearby then I heartily recommend giving them business. Without good local stores, the hobby starts to decline. If my LFS has something that is within 10-15% of the price I can get it for online, I will gladly support my LFS.

Additionally, I tend to buy my rock and livestock from local stores. I like to see/pick what I'm getting. Hardware is much easier to purchase online.

 

Supplies almost exclusively online, including E-bay, with the exception of salt as it is cost prohibitive when you factor in shipping. Fish LFS. Corals from local reef club members.

Good luck.

 

When I had tanks before, I bought almost everything on line except a shrimp or a fish here or there.

This time around, the only thing I've bought online was 15 lbs of live rock to match what I already had (can't find that at an LFS, and every LFS here has aiptasia on their live rock).

We bought the tank on Craig's List, most of our equipment through other local reefers via our one of our local reef club boards and my boyfriend bought some endcaps & bulbs through the internet. Fish, crabs, and shrimp all from local LFSs, 2 free corals and one paid for from other Texas reefers, and the zoas from the same LFS as the fish (great prices there, and healthy livestock). I like seeing that the fish & corals are healthy...plus I like being able to pick a $30 frag that has 3 different zoas with a lot of polyps on it instead of three polyps of one type for the same $$$ LOL.

 

I buy what I can from our LFS like 2in10 just said it just opened up and I am going to try and support them the best I can. Obviously if I find something really cheap online and the LFS can not match it than I will do online. Some things they cant get just depends.