Pier aquatics

[andy75]

Hi guys,

Im going to pier next wednesday finally, i cant wait! just a quick question, Im travelling from swindon and on the way back i dont really know where to hold the fish, would a cool box be ok with heater packs? I know its a bit of a strange question but ive never really travelled a long distance when ive bought fish. Assuming i buy something.

Does anybody have any ideas/tips on the best way to get them home safe and sound? It will be at least a 3 hour drive home.


Andy

[Shane]

Andy,
Three hours is pretty short. On collecting trips we may hold fish for several days and they may spend over 36 hours in transport. Just have Neil bag the fishes really well with a ratio of about 1/3 water to 2/3 oxygen. Place the bagged fish in an ice chest (cooler), secure the lid and they will be fine. Heat is often as much, or more, a problem than cold. You will not need heater packs if the bags are placed in a cooler assuming especially that you will have the heat on in the vehicle.
One word of warning. Do not use pure oxygen with air breathing fishes. They will be just fine with atmospheric air.
-Shane

[wrasse]

Last time I went there I forgot to take a poly box. Neil and co were very generous and gave me 1. They are very helpful. Hope the weather is ok for you..... on the roads.

[MatsP]

I'm going to assume that you WILL buy some fish... I've never managed to have enough self-control to NOT buy something yet...

So far, I've managed to get a poly-box (or two) each time I've been there. Last time I also brought two of my own poly-boxes.

As long as the fish are in passenger compartment of the car [and you don't get completely stuck in traffic for MANY hours with no heating in the car - so don't have a breakdown on the way home], you should be fine with just a poly box - I've never used heat pads in the several long trips I've done with fish I've bought [from Pier twice, Oxford twice, one of which I also stopped off at The Goldfishbow in Oxford, as well as twice from St Albans with snow falling]. If the box isn't quite full, as for a bag of water to fill up the bag - it will act as sort of a heat-pack. I think heat-packs are more meaningful if you are sending fish in ways that are not in human temperatures - for example if you send them by courier and they end up in the back of a van or some such.

--
Mats

[andy75]

There was me thinking 3 hours was a long time, 36 hours, wow!! Well as long as the weather dont let me down ive been trying to go to pier for a long time now.

Im preety sure i will buy something, hopefully some nice plecs in there

Cheers everyone

Andy

[MatsP]

There was me thinking 3 hours was a long time, 36 hours, wow!! Well as long as the weather dont let me down ive been trying to go to pier for a long time now.

When I got my L128 during the CSG conference in March, I picked them up on Saturday as we didn't feel we had time to get them on Sunday [Pier was open late on Saturday, not so on Sunday], and the fish stayed in my hotel-room, then in Jools room for a few more hours after I checked out, until Sunday evening when I went home, and then in my car for 5+ hours, and finally in a new tank after several more hours of acclimatizing. They did get a bit cold when I forgot to plug the heater in when we moved them to Jools room, but otherwise did fine.

Im preety sure i will buy something, hopefully some nice plecs in there

Well, we didn't exactly clean out when we were there last week - I only took 11 plecos home, so there are plenty still there - we listed the most memorable in the "Day out 28th of December" in Speak Easy. So I'm 99% sure that you will find something you like - and I would get some

Orinocodoras eigenmanni

- at £3.95 they are a bargain, and quite an unusual fish - in fact, if you can deal with it, I think Martin S would like some of them - I can help picking them up and getting them over to Reigate if need be - after all, I'm halfway to Swindon already, more or less... There were several Hypancistrus at very reasonable prices, and some L134 for example - one was very nicely marked.

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Mats

[andy75]

I could deal with that, i wouldnt mind picking up fish for you guys, as long as i dont spend all my money up there. Im planning on staying over the wednesday night in a premier inn, as i get them at a very good discount, and returning on the thursday mid afternoon.

Im really hoping they have some hypans in there as round my way its very hard to get hold of them in shops, obvious reasons.

Just so looking forward to going as you guys say such good things about this shop, and for me its experience.

Andy

[MatsP]

They CERTAINLY had

Hypancistrus debilittera

- if you go in and follow the path along the wall where the sand and gravel is, the first tank has them. And some two different "L201" variants [shop label - I'm not sure if they are L201, H. contradens or one of the other similar ones]. Both of these were less than £20 each - the H. debilittera was £10.50.
They also had some H. zebra at £95 each, around 2" in size - which is a pretty decent price.

[andy75]

That is a good price, i would love to get some but i think i might wait a bit before i get some zebras. As for the other hypans, that is exatly the sort of thing i was after, i hope theres some left in there for me to take a few off there hands, definetly 4 or 5 maybe


Andy

[panaque]

I am heading to Manchester tomorrow for a conference and I hope I will have time to nip over to Wigan on Friday before catching the train for the 8hr+ journey back to Cornwall. Leave some L134s for me please... Assuming that any trains will actually run.
Frank

[Richard B]

http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/view ... 5&start=20 is the link to the previous thread which gives SOME of the fish available.

Neil always packs the fish well

I've had well packed fish in the car for nearly 12 hours without any special considerations (in a polybox) with no ill effects at all

Enjoy your trips to Pier - i always do & maybe try & make the next PC day out - always a highlight of the social calendar!!!

[andy75]

Thanks richard, i just hope the weather is going to be ok to go up there, i wont be happy if its still snowing!!!

Well i now know the fish will be ok in a poly box cheers everyone


Andy

[sojapat]

Hi Andy , We have plenty of snow white boxes
Your fish will get home ok ,as Shane said its not unusual for the fishes to be packed over 36 hours.
Just make sure you let me or the person who serves you know where you are going to .
Hope you enjoy the visit there are some nice L400 ,L66 ,L129,L201,L333 maybe some L262
I think the sturisoma that are in at the mo are nice and very breedable there are some good L200 hi fin also.
And And And

[MatsP]

And And And - wasn't that the name suggested before they settled on "The commitments".

Yes, I agree, the Sturisoma were nice - just haven't got a tank for those... ;)

--
Mats

[andy75]

Excellent, cheers sojapat, im glad you have some L333 and L66 just not sure which ones would be better to try and breed?

yeah i will let who ever serves me where im going, just hope i get there now.

Andy

[panaque]

Did you make it Andy?
I made it to M'chester without any problem. Now just hoping I can sneek off early enough tomorrow to make it to Wigan and back...

[andy75]

Its this wednesday im going, and im hoping the weather should be ok, and ive just been paid for working over xmas.

This could be very damaging on the wallet.

Andy

[Richard B]

Its this wednesday im going, and im hoping the weather should be ok, and ive just been paid for working over xmas.This could be very damaging on the wallet. Andy

It can be wallet-fatal , try & restain yourself a little - always remember there'll be something equally as good next time you visit!!!

[andy75]

Ha ha, i will try, and im sure my missus will keep slapping me back into reality!

I cant go too mad, i need more tanks if i do. Hopefully by the end of febuary i will have a futher 2 tanks set up so another trip will be made


Andy

[Bas Pels]

im sure my missus will keep slapping me back
Andy

Not many people have their wifes complimenting them when they spend an awful lot of money on fishes

Congratulations with yours

More seriously, with the current roadquality, it might be wise to take some serious considerations before going home with a lot of fishes

Imagine hitting a tree with 500 pounds worth of fishes - starting to freeze over

[andy75]

I have had to cancel my plans for today, because of the snow! im so gutted, i really wanted to go today as well. Ive had the week off this week and where i live the snow is belted down, i cant even get the car off the drive. Looks like i will be going in febuary when i have more time off work.


Andy

[MatsP]

I understand, but it would be much worse to get halfway home and then get stuck for several hours and loose your fish... So I think you made the right decision.

--
Mats

[andy75]

That preety much what made my decision, i couldnt bear if id just spent alot of money and lost all my fish, oh well i suppose ill have more to spend in feb, and probably have another tank set up by then my missus is going to love me!!!


Andy

[panaque]

I didn't make it either. I was hoping to hop across on the train from Manchester last Friday before travelling home to Cornwall. In the event, lots of trains were delayed or cancelled so I figured I'd better focus on getting home which took me 26hrs in the end... Nothing to do with the weather either, just the usual incompetence of contractors drilling through power cables and things. Better luck next time.