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OnlyGenusCaps
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On 9/22/2021 at 9:37 AM, OnlyGenusCaps said:

Thanks for adding this, @DSH OUTDOORS!  Can you remind me, the buyer has to be able to pick up locally in Bloomington, MN on October 9th, correct?  There is no option for shipping or holding until a later date?  I honestly can't recall 100% right now, but thought that would be good to add here if it is the case. 

That was correct at one point...

This month has moved back and forth a bit.

In person pick up only is scheduled for Saturday October 2nd at the Bloomington Location (Lutheran Church of the Redemption Gymnasium).

There is no club organized way to hold or ship items.  I know on my items if someone reached out I could hold or ship to winning bidders so that would have to be done outside of club organization.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I live in Buffalo (Minnesota) and am looking for a nice piece of driftwood to put in my 60 gal tank. Any suggestions for the best  LFS (or online) to look?  We have nothing out here except Petsmart. They actually have a few nice pieces, but nothing that will work for me.  I have kind of an odd shaped tank-front to back 12"x 48" wide and 24" tall. I'm looking for something about 8" front to back and at least 12" high, width is negotiable since I could get two pieces. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

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On 10/2/2021 at 4:50 PM, dmurray407 said:

Any suggestions for the best  LFS (or online) to look?

The nearest LFS I feel is decent to you, and here "near" is a relative term, would be Sea Level.  However, if you look back in this thread you'll see there were set to move by yesterday at their current location and didn't know where they were headed.  I'd suggest to give them a call before you make the 45ish minute drive down.  On general principle just to see if they have a decent stock in at the moment, but particularly in light of the last information I had about them.  Good luck with your search!  Let us know what you find out.

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On 10/2/2021 at 4:50 PM, dmurray407 said:

I live in Buffalo (Minnesota) and am looking for a nice piece of driftwood to put in my 60 gal tank. Any suggestions for the best  LFS (or online) to look?  We have nothing out here except Petsmart. They actually have a few nice pieces, but nothing that will work for me.  I have kind of an odd shaped tank-front to back 12"x 48" wide and 24" tall. I'm looking for something about 8" front to back and at least 12" high, width is negotiable since I could get two pieces. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

be a bit of a haul, but the fish store in circle pines (cant remember the name right at the moment) always has racks of various wood. not exactly inexpensive, but they have it.

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On 10/2/2021 at 6:56 PM, OnlyGenusCaps said:

The nearest LFS I feel is decent to you, and here "near" is a relative term, would be Sea Level.  However, if you look back in this thread you'll see there were set to move by yesterday at their current location and didn't know where they were headed.  I'd suggest to give them a call before you make the 45ish minute drive down.  On general principle just to see if they have a decent stock in at the moment, but particularly in light of the last information I had about them.  Good luck with your search!  Let us know what you find out.

I used to work at Methodist Hospital-about a mile or two away from Sea Level and I used to enjoy browsing through there on my "on call" weekends when I had to stay close to work. I was surprised to see that they were moving-I hope they found somewhere to go and don't just close up. The Twin Cities is running out of "fish stores".

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OK, my Minnesota fishy friends. I got my GH/KH test kit yesterday and checked my water today during my regular water test. My GH is 20 and my KH is 16. I'm pretty sure this is normal for this area (I'm just a little NW of Minneapolis). What kind of numbers do you all get? I'm choosing to "embrace" the hardness and make it work.  What do you all do?

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I am lazy.  I have chosen to fully embrace my water (which is much the same as yours it seems) as you may have recently observed on the hard water thread.  I tried to do battle with my local Nereids for a few years and then I gave in.  Running everything though a RO system and attempting to keep the water parameters stable was loads of work, and wasted so much water.  Now I can have an auto-water change (AWC) system right off my well (after I pull some of the iron out, which I have plenty of) and life is far easier.  The AWC uses as much water weekly as the RO wasted every week, and keeps my nitrates at near zero levels with fresh, clean water sent to my captive critters.  They seem happier for it, and I know I am. 

I don't know for sure, but @DSH OUTDOORS might have other thoughts.  I suspect, strongly, he keeps far more types of fish than I do.  Hopefully, he'll chime in when he has a chance and let you know what I've gotten it all wrong.  🙃

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Just FYI, I just saw a message on Facebook that SeaLevel aquarium shop (just closed in Hopkins last week) has found a new location in Minnetonka: 10928 Greenbrier Rd. They aren't exactly sure when they will reopen due to lots of remodeling and set up stuff, but at least they aren't closing for good 🙂

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Mark your calendars, the next Minnesota Aquarium Society (MAS) meeting is this Thursday, October 7th at 7PM Central.  If you've ever wanted to selectively breed livebearers this is for you!  The presentation will be by Karl Trochu of Miami Swordtails and the title is: "Breeding and Maintenance of Fancy Strains of Xiphophorus: Technics and Methods".

The meeting will be held on Zoom and is open to everyone (i.e. you don't have to be a member of MAS).  I would encourage everyone with interest to please feel free to register on this link.  It is a good group and nice way to sit back at home and get your nerm on. 

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On 10/5/2021 at 2:36 PM, dmurray407 said:

Minnetonka: 10928 Greenbrier Rd.

So, I just looked at the space on Google street view.  It looks like quite an improvement for them!  I'm really very happy they have made this move.  Here is hoping they have a long and successful stint there!  🥃 Cheers to SeaLevel!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I swung by Twin Cities Guppies for the first time today (I think I can link them here as they link to Aquarium Coop for supplies).  They are in the Maplewood Mall, which is...  How to put this tactfully...?  A dump.  That said, the shop itself is quite nice!  If you are in the east Metro, they have blackworms and daphnia as starter cultures.  For me it's a great find so I don't have to drive so far. 

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On 10/20/2021 at 6:43 PM, OnlyGenusCaps said:

I swung by Twin Cities Guppies for the first time today (I think I can link them here as they link to Aquarium Coop for supplies).  They are in the Maplewood Mall, which is...  How to put this tactfully...?  A dump.  That said, the shop itself is quite nice!  If you are in the east Metro, they have blackworms and daphnia as starter cultures.  For me it's a great find so I don't have to drive so far. 

how's the  guppy selection in the store?

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On 10/20/2021 at 6:50 PM, lefty o said:

how's the  guppy selection in the store?

I'm not a guppy fanatic, so take this with a grain of salt.  There seemed to be a lot of tanks with guppies though.  And they were different colors.  So more than other places...?  I think the owner is breeding them in another stall somewhere in the mall.  His water is pretty hard too, which should make acclimation easier for those of us on a well around here.  Not as helpful of an answer as you had hoped, I imagine.  But that's all I've got.  Sorry.  I'm sure I'll be back for supplies though, so I could do a more thorough check. 

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On 10/20/2021 at 7:26 PM, OnlyGenusCaps said:

I'm not a guppy fanatic, so take this with a grain of salt.  There seemed to be a lot of tanks with guppies though.  And they were different colors.  So more than other places...?  I think the owner is breeding them in another stall somewhere in the mall.  His water is pretty hard too, which should make acclimation easier for those of us on a well around here.  Not as helpful of an answer as you had hoped, I imagine.  But that's all I've got.  Sorry.  I'm sure I'll be back for supplies though, so I could do a more thorough check. 

thats ok. one of these days when im extra bored i plan on making a drive to check it out.

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On 10/20/2021 at 6:50 PM, lefty o said:

how's the  guppy selection in the store?

I messaged them a few weeks ago to see if they had Endlers and they said "not yet" but they answered right away and seemed very nice. Maplewood is a bit of a trek for me (from Buffalo), but eventually I'll probably go check it out.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Just a quick reminder for those who wish to attend, the Minnesota Aquarium Society is meeting tomorrow.  It will be a hybrid meeting both in person and online - for those who don't wish to, or cannot attend in person.  The venue has microphones throughout so online attendees will be able to fully participate and hear audience questions, as well as pose questions via Zoom.  Full details can be found on the events page, but below is the teaser to get you interested.  You do not have to be a member of MAS or in Minnesota to attend in person or online.  All are welcome.

Farm to Tank

Thu, Nov 04, 2021   7:00 pm

 
Farm to Tank

60 years ago, Segrest Inc. started with sixteen tanks; we now ship over one million fish each week. We have grown a little bit over the past six decades, but not without experiencing one heck of a journey along the way. Digging in the mud to build ponds, traveling to remote places to source new fish species, and supporting legislation on Capitol Hill for our hobby, are just a few pieces of what got us here today. There is a lot more to your aquarium fish than you may know, and you as aquarists, can directly impact the future of the industry. Join the president of Segrest Inc. Sandy Moore as we take you through a little hobby history, explore the supply chain and see just what it takes to bring our farm to your tank.

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  • 4 weeks later...

So, I have kind of failed on my Minnesota updates.  For those interested in these things, please forgive me. 

For a start the MAS auction is active.  Like right now!  Here is the link to the auction.  It ends on Dec 1st at 10pm Central Time.

Next bit of news, the next MAS meeting is happening this Thursday starting at 7pm Central Time.  It is going to be hybrid with the speaker there in person (or at least planned to be in person - if you attended the last meeting you'll know it didn't work out that way thanks to airline delays).  The speaker is going to be Rusty Wessel who will be talking about his recent trips collecting livebearers and cichlids in Central America, and how these fish interact in the wild.  Sorry to editorialize here, but it sounds really cool!

Here is the link for information about the meeting.

And here is the link if you'd like to register to attend online rather than in person.  Remember MAS meeting are open to all, and you do not need to be a member to attend, so I am hoping folks who find the topic interesting will feel encouraged to attend online. 

 

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On 11/29/2021 at 11:41 AM, OnlyGenusCaps said:

the next MAS meeting is happening this Thursday

Sounds like an interesting presentation-thanks!

On 11/29/2021 at 11:41 AM, OnlyGenusCaps said:

the MAS auction is active

OK, I joined up. I want to bid on some stuff, but am wondering about the pick up on Saturday-is it crazy or is it pretty organized?

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On 11/29/2021 at 7:37 PM, dmurray407 said:

OK, I joined up.

Great to have you!

On 11/29/2021 at 7:37 PM, dmurray407 said:

the pick up on Saturday-is it crazy or is it pretty organized?

It's been pretty easy for me to get in and out.  I'd say it is solidly organized from my experience. 

Good luck with your bids!

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I just want to say that I just picked up my stuff from my first Minnesota Aquarium Society auction. I really had fun with this. Kind of like eBay for fish. The bidding was fun, everyone was nice and I really enjoyed the entire process. I got some shrimp and plants. I picked my stuff up today and could not believe how well organized everything was. There were even a few freebies (food samples) in the bag. I highly recommend trying this out if you haven't done it. You have to be a member, but it's very reasonable to join. I think the next auction will be at the end of January or so (I couldn't find an exact date)

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