Ok what's the deal?

[snookhunter]

Anyone receive an order lately? This forum has been kinda dead recently.

Although I didn't need rock for a couple of weeks I was told to put my "name on the list" on the order form. The message I received in return sounded like they had rock and it would be ready. Well couple weeks go by, try to call and schedule delivery time andget the machine. Leave another message and get a reply that now they don't have any rock.

Today the phone just rings and rings...no answer..no voicemail message. What gives?:confused:

[jezzeaepi]

uhmm.. my guess is that they are gone for chirstmas?

For the past few weeks they have been saying that the sees are too rough, and that it keeps stirring up the sediment on the bottom so they cant see anything thus no diving.

[santiagh]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6348611#post6348611 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jezzeaepi
uhmm.. my guess is that they are gone for chirstmas?

For the past few weeks they have been saying that the sees are too rough, and that it keeps stirring up the sediment on the bottom so they cant see anything thus no diving.

Pretty much the same thing I was told about 3 or 4 weeks ago when we told Richard we were ready for our 2d part/shipment. I went ahead and put together an ad hoc cleanup crew to handle some of the algae. Sure hope they get 'calmer' seas to allow diving.

Just waiting....;

[bugged]

That maybe what they are saying but I dive the areas where their rock has been palced, last summers red tide still has everything dead no live rock just white no corals, alge, sponges, crabs, urchins, nothing. Although the bait fish are returning so it should recover in about a year.

[jezzeaepi]

They are getting alot of their rock from the keys now. The gulf rock isnt completly wiped out. From what I have read, they are still getting some from the gulf, the bottom four feet were dead, but the top couple of feet survived. They were lucky because they were pretty clsoe to the shore .. or somthing to that effect

[bugged]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6389234#post6389234 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jezzeaepi
They are getting alot of their rock from the keys now. The gulf rock isnt completly wiped out. From what I have read, they are still getting some from the gulf, the bottom four feet were dead, but the top couple of feet survived. They were lucky because they were pretty clsoe to the shore .. or somthing to that effect

Wrong!


We have a 21000 Square mile dead zone. That starts around hudson out to ~ 35 miles south to the Egmont shipping. I have dove all over this area and when I saw everything is white it is white. TBS is not pulling live rock from the gulf.

This area is just now starting to recover bait fish are starting to come back bigger fish will follow.

The ship wrecks are errie no life, no crabs, sponges, corals, snails nothing.

[jezzeaepi]

Ok so I guess tbs is lieing, and bobt2 is lieing about receiving gulf rock as well. You win.

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6401654#post6401654 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jezzeaepi
Ok so I guess tbs is lieing, and bobt2 is lieing about receiving gulf rock as well. You win.


The weather and visibility have kept us from diving all of December. We have had 4 days of good weather in a row, so we are going today to see if there is visibility.

There has been ZERO visibility since Hurricane Wilma.

As soon as we get rock, folks will hear from us, which may be today, if we can see on the bottom.

Our rock survived the red tide, but we were the only ones, as everybody else that was farming was out in federal waters, which experienced a 100% kill of the bottom. We are only 2 miles offshore and the rock on top of the piles survived.

Let me tell you, we want this rock more than you do, try going six months without a paycheck!

Gotta go diving....

TBS

[bugged]

Good luck guys, I was out yesterday looking for some grouper. I could barely see the end of my gun.

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6359224#post6359224 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by santiagh
Pretty much the same thing I was told about 3 or 4 weeks ago when we told Richard we were ready for our 2d part/shipment. I went ahead and put together an ad hoc cleanup crew to handle some of the algae. Sure hope they get 'calmer' seas to allow diving.

Just waiting....;

Anybody waiting on a second half.....we have the critters in stock and can send them asap.....the rock?

Today will tell...hope for some vis!
TBS

[bugged]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6401654#post6401654 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jezzeaepi
Ok so I guess tbs is lieing, and bobt2 is lieing about receiving gulf rock as well. You win.

Well we don't normally dive that close to shore, but I know some freedivers that do and they have the same info as I have already given.

They are still dredging south Tampa bay channels and the ammonia levels are off the charts. I just hope they stop before the water starts warming back up. I measured 61 on the bottom yesterday.

How would bobt2 know where the rock came from anyway other than what he was told.

I spoke with TBS in Nov. they told me they were importing & Pulling rock from the keys.

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6404055#post6404055 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bugged
Well we don't normally dive that close to shore, but I know some freedivers that do and they have the same info as I have already given.

They are still dredging south Tampa bay channels and the ammonia levels are off the charts. I just hope they stop before the water starts warming back up. I measured 61 on the bottom yesterday.

How would bobt2 know where the rock came from anyway other than what he was told.

I spoke with TBS in Nov. they told me they were importing & Pulling rock from the keys.

Well...was a no go...wind picked up to 20 knots.......we did not even launch the boat...


We were getting rock from the Keys until Wilma came by, deposited 4 feet of sand on our site in the Keys......usually takes a year or two for the sand to mitigate away. So between the red tide and hurricanes, we are dead in the water until the weather cooperates here in Tampa.

The vis is usually better the further you go offshore, so most likely it is puked up close if you could not see the end of your gun yesterday.

The weather looks like it may be better in the middle of the week, we shall see...or maybe not see..

TBS

[bugged]

We don't even bother diving the inshore stuff till end of Jan all of Feb and march usually have great vis. but that goes away within days of the start of rainy season.

Double front this week so you looking at next week if it calms down. I can have my guys look in on your area if you like, low vis doesn't bother us that much.

[BlitzK]

The last few days have been nice on the water! I'm sure they were out collecting a lot in the past few days.

[jezzeaepi]

lol I read the weather forecast for the area everyday.. Was wondering if what I was reading meant it was getting nicer down there.. Hope it holds out for a bit.

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6470969#post6470969 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by BlitzK
The last few days have been nice on the water! I'm sure they were out collecting a lot in the past few days.

Still ZERO vis out there, they are dredging the south shipping channel which may be adding to the problem....we are going to try again today!

TBS

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6473361#post6473361 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by liverock
Still ZERO vis out there, they are dredging the south shipping channel which may be adding to the problem....we are going to try again today!

TBS

Well we tried again today, 0 visibility again.

It is not getting any better. Just heard on the news last night that red tide is still offshore, and if it moves in again like last year it will not be good news.

TBS

[snookhunter]

Any luck on diving lately?????

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6515537#post6515537 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by snookhunter
Any luck on diving lately?????

Yes we went out last week before the front with 50 mph gusts hit.....still 0 vis.

Has been small craft warnings the last few days, and another front is to hit us tomorrow.

It is really frustrating, we are going on 66 days now with no rock.
Mother nature needs to give us a break.

TBS

[jezzeaepi]

how many days of low winds do you need before visibility sohuld improve? Was looking at the forecast for next week and it looked like it was oingto be raining bt the winds were settling down.

Take it easy,
Jesse

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6522699#post6522699 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jezzeaepi
how many days of low winds do you need before visibility sohuld improve? Was looking at the forecast for next week and it looked like it was oingto be raining bt the winds were settling down.

Take it easy,
Jesse

Look here

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/tbw/cgi-bin/marine.pl?node=TBW&office=TBW&state=FL&cwfPhrase=853&swrPhrase=SOUTHWEST+FLORIDA&nowPhrase=853

We have had front after front, for months, has not let up.
When it blows that hard the Gulf turns to black and there is no visibility to see on the bottom

It takes a week or two to clear up after such storms, but it never gets a chance too, as along comes another front.

Mother nature has really killed us the last two years, we have not been able to dive for rock now almost 70 days. Our salvation will be summertime as things calm down and we can dive everyday.

But reports of red tide at New Pass this week, is a very bad sign, as if the red tide comes back like it did last year, we are in big trouble. We hope the red tide event of last year was a 100 year fluke, and we do not get hit like that again.

Meanwhile we have all the time in the world to collect the critters in the Keys, so we are fully stocked on them if anybody needs.

Thanks
TBS

[MalibuLou]

Do you guys have live sand?

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6530526#post6530526 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by MalibuLou
Do you guys have live sand?
\
Yes we do!

TBS

[MalibuLou]

I placed an order for a "package", but I don't feel like looking at an empty tank till summer. I'd like to get some live sand and some critters if possible. Thanks Lou
Boatguy6969@yahoo.com

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6536237#post6536237 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by MalibuLou
I placed an order for a "package", but I don't feel like looking at an empty tank till summer. I'd like to get some live sand and some critters if possible. Thanks Lou
Boatguy6969@yahoo.com

Hopefully it will be way before summer we can dive......usually March we start to get some decent weather.....if the visibility would just clear up, we would be able too see on the bottom, but that is not happening as it usually does.

Please fill out order form for what you need, can ship sand and critters asap.

TBS

[bugged]

0-6" of vis all the way out to 80 feet.

[Jfoster33702]

Hello - I am local and need a small amount of rock and sand for a 15 high. Do you have anything at all right now?(rock, critters?) Also, are you open on Saturdays?

Thanks
Jeff

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6548918#post6548918 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bugged
0-6" of vis all the way out to 80 feet.

Yea I know, we have "0" vis on the site, is the strangest thing, has never been like this in 30 years of doing this.

I belive it is a left over product from the year long red tide we had last year, and the channel dredging. Did you see any fish?

All we are seeing are some baitfish on the top over the rock piles, we even tried fishing, not a bite, na-da, no squirrel fish, grunts, grouper nothing, where we used to have many thousands of resident fish, there are none right now.

We are going to try again soon as this front goes by this weekend.

Thanks for the update out deep!
TBS

[Reef_Dweller_69]

So whats the word on clean up crews/critters. Would I be able to get some for a 55gal?

[zoebeaglezoe]

ordered 50 lbs. of liverock 6 months ago very very happy with what I received by far the best liverock i've ever seen or bought from any LFS... I have seen in this thread that your not collecting because of visibility and weather is that in the keys or gulf location or both? also do you still have any mantis shrimp and what types/species. what is red tide?

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6553489#post6553489 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Reef_Dweller_69
So whats the word on clean up crews/critters. Would I be able to get some for a 55gal?

We always have the clean up critters in stock!

TBS

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6555235#post6555235 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by zoebeaglezoe
ordered 50 lbs. of liverock 6 months ago very very happy with what I received by far the best liverock i've ever seen or bought from any LFS... I have seen in this thread that your not collecting because of visibility and weather is that in the keys or gulf location or both? also do you still have any mantis shrimp and what types/species. what is red tide?

Red Tide info....

http://www.tbsaltwater.com/redtide/viewtopic.php?t=2

http://research.myfwc.com/features/view_article.asp?id=25276

http://www.tampatrib.com/MGB41NS2ECE.html

TBS

[zoebeaglezoe]

when was the last time you collected from either one of your sites and did the red tide have any effect on rock and its inhabitants.

[lunner]

Any update on rocks? Been waiting to place an order. :rollface:

[Me No Nemo]

Hi Liverock..., sorry for OT, but I live in Geneva and we are about to be the "lucky" recipients of that radioactive phosphate mess in our landfill from the fertilizer factory there in Tampa. Just curious, could that facility be dumping or have runoff into the Gulf that's causing the Red Tide to proliferate?

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6570083#post6570083 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by zoebeaglezoe
when was the last time you collected from either one of your sites and did the red tide have any effect on rock and its inhabitants.
\
The red tide event of last year was the worst we have ever seen in recorded history.

It killed thousands of square miles of the Gulf, from two to about forty miles out and from Sarasota up to Hudson, Fla.

It basically eliminated the Florida live rock industry, as you will notice many websites of live rock farmers are down.

We were real lucky as our rock site is just two miles offshore where the ebb and flow of the tides kept up the 02 levels up enough to prevent a total wipeout of the rock.

However we are experiencing a visibility problem and have been for 78 days now. There is ZERO vis on the site....is very unusual, and we feel is a by product of the red tide devastation, and the dredging of the shipping channel in Tampa. It has prevented us from harvesting any rock.
If we could see on the bottom we would have plenty of rock. But that is not the case right now.

We had a backup site in the Keys where we would go when we could not dive here, but it along with all the other sites in the Keys was destroyed by Hurricane Wilma, so we are dead in the water until visibility returns here in the Gulf.

Read the links I posted and you will see where billions of gallons of phosphate waste was dumped and continues to be pumped into the Gulf.

Phosphate is fertilizer, and red tide feeds off of it.

We will be going to take a look again soon as this front that we are getting hit with today goes by, but don't hold your breath....

TBS

[wooglin]

I hate what is happening right now. Its a real bummer. I feel lucky to have my TBS rock from several years ago. I sure hope things get better for you soon Richard.

[pasafire]

I emailed about ordering some LR also. I'm here local in the state as soon as some rock is available please let me know.

[jezzeaepi]

So, if there is 0 visibility, then does that mean that 0 light is reaching the rocks? If so, then do you expect there to be many photosynthetic organisms left?

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6596148#post6596148 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jezzeaepi
So, if there is 0 visibility, then does that mean that 0 light is reaching the rocks? If so, then do you expect there to be many photosynthetic organisms left?

We will know that when it clears up enough to dive!
TBS

[3rotorFD]

man! is that bad? Sorry to hear that guys. Its sucks diving in places with 0 vis:( . I need some LR for my new 240............

[Hopestar075]

I feel really bad for TBS b/c I know that it is more fustrating to them not knowing when they are going to be able to obtain rock........I know that I am patiently waiting for rock( it is hard b/c normally I am impatient), but I know it is a hard time right now for the Florida rock farmers.

[dwculp]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6584499#post6584499 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by wooglin
I hate what is happening right now. Its a real bummer. I feel lucky to have my TBS rock from several years ago. I sure hope things get better for you soon Richard.

I agree, I sit here in my classroom looking at my 40 gallon TBS reef and I feel so lucky to have gotten the rock a year and a half ago. I hope things clear up and TBS can dive on a regular basis soon. I have never met a more customer friendly company in my life.

I will be putting together a 110 gallon long for my classroom in about 6 months and it will be a TBS tank!

[jezzeaepi]

looks like another front comin in =\

[pasafire]

Yes once again.... :( We can't seem to get a break down here. I'm really sad that Richard can't go diving. I have never seen TBS rock and will patiently wait on them to get my 54 going. I feel really bad. I was in the nursery business and we had our down season and all of the cold about 3 years ago killed almost my entire stock as we got to the 20s which rarely happens. But at least we knew what was going on. I can't imagine not having any idea :( I hope this weather clears up soon.

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6629529#post6629529 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jezzeaepi
looks like another front comin in =\


Yup

Mother nature is giving us the whammy today again, small craft warnings.......again...............I feel real land locked!

TBS

[patsan]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6630637#post6630637 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by liverock
Yup

Mother nature is giving us the whammy today again, small craft warnings.......again...............I feel real land locked!

TBS

You should feel more than land locked! ;)

[clsanchez77]

Any idea how long the current backorder is. I am picking my tank up next weekend and it will take me about a month to get the electrical, plumbing, sump and all squared away (I am working 200 miles away from home). Looking to order around mid-March and was wondering about current backorder time.

Chris

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6636693#post6636693 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by clsanchez77
Any idea how long the current backorder is. I am picking my tank up next weekend and it will take me about a month to get the electrical, plumbing, sump and all squared away (I am working 200 miles away from home). Looking to order around mid-March and was wondering about current backorder time.

Chris


That should be just about right.....we had bettter have rock by then!

TBS

[mish*99]

Hi Richard, Well I've been waiting patiently since the middle of December for my 2nd shipment. I am really hoping that you'll soon be able to harvest some nice coral rock to go on top of the base rock you sent me in the first shipment. Am still catching those hairy crabs that hitchhiked with the 1st shipment! Maybe the rough waters will have moved them on to someone else's rocks; they are very hard to catch. Good luck with harvesting! M

[wooglin]

I like my hairy crabs, but I have a different reef design philosophy. Its a little more natural. Bad (what we consider bad) goes with good.

The way I deal with it is, if an animal cant survive in my tank/biotope as it is setup, then its the wrong animal for my tank. That being said, I have some very large hairy crabs and they have never been able to harm a fish.

I also have two very large pistol shrimp, and a Mantis. Once a week I just drop about 10-12 sinking pellets to the bottom of my tank in areas where I know the hairy crabs/mantis can get to them, and they seem happy and well fed. The pistols I feed directly, they are not secretive and will feed from my hand.

I also have a 12 gallon nano cube, that is a purely TBS biotope, nothing has been added to that tank, and you would be amazed by what has developed, 1000's of pods, a hairy crab that is large enough to take up my entire palm (it is no secretive, and I can hold it, and the hair is really soft), and much more. There is a large piece of fire coral that is encrusting all over the tank, it is neat. That tank belongs to one of my two twin daughters. They are 7. The other 12 I have is the opposite and it has lots of star polyps, mushrooms, etc. But to be honest I like the pure tbs bio type that has been left alone.

[docklink]

I got to the point where trying to catch things was just a pain and so have taken a similar approach to Wooglin. I don't remove it unless proven destructive to other desirable inhabitants. This has left me with three or four "hairy" crabs that surprisingly have not grown much larger than when they arrived (~3/4") plus my mantis (now approaching 3"). Regular feeding like Wooglin seems to keep balance.

[dwculp]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6648345#post6648345 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by wooglin
I like my hairy crabs, but I have a different reef design philosophy. Its a little more natural. Bad (what we consider bad) goes with good.

The way I deal with it is, if an animal cant survive in my tank/biotope as it is setup, then its the wrong animal for my tank. That being said, I have some very large hairy crabs and they have never been able to harm a fish.

I also have two very large pistol shrimp, and a Mantis. Once a week I just drop about 10-12 sinking pellets to the bottom of my tank in areas where I know the hairy crabs/mantis can get to them, and they seem happy and well fed. The pistols I feed directly, they are not secretive and will feed from my hand.

I also have a 12 gallon nano cube, that is a purely TBS biotope, nothing has been added to that tank, and you would be amazed by what has developed, 1000's of pods, a hairy crab that is large enough to take up my entire palm (it is no secretive, and I can hold it, and the hair is really soft), and much more. There is a large piece of fire coral that is encrusting all over the tank, it is neat. That tank belongs to one of my two twin daughters. They are 7. The other 12 I have is the opposite and it has lots of star polyps, mushrooms, etc. But to be honest I like the pure tbs bio type that has been left alone.

It sounds like we have similar philosophies. I have added very little to my TBS tank and taken very little out. The only time I have tanken anything out is if it was truly causing a problem. I had a "gorilla" crab that grew to pretty large proportions and was tearing up my cleaning crew. I also had a giant "spider" crab that was eating my sponges who now terrorizes a 75 gallon FO tank. He is probably 8 inches tip to tip now. I have added only the following coral:

Green brain
Devils Hand
Kenya Tree
Hammer Coral

I remove something only if it is truly causing a problem and except for a MASSIVE battle with some type of brown sludge stuff (either algae or dinoflagelletes) my tank has been problem free and running extremely well.

In fact, I am inclined to believe that all this talk of saltwater fish being hard is just that......talk.

[ewest99]

Hey Richard,

sorry to hear about all the troubles! Still enjoying the part 1 I received late last fall, looking forward to eventually getting part 2, looks like lots of us on the list, but I can't imagine how frustrating this is for you. Rest assured we're waiting patiently for when you can get it together, we'll be here when you're ready!!

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6707834#post6707834 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ewest99
Hey Richard,

sorry to hear about all the troubles! Still enjoying the part 1 I received late last fall, looking forward to eventually getting part 2, looks like lots of us on the list, but I can't imagine how frustrating this is for you. Rest assured we're waiting patiently for when you can get it together, we'll be here when you're ready!!

Thanks for the support, we really appreciate it.....Pray for good weather and visibility!!

Thanks!
TBS

[jcatblum]

I was interested in ordering some rock for a nano (maybe 15 pounds), how long of a wait should I expect? Now that spring is near, and if mother nature is good to us---

Can I hope for just a month or 2 wait?

[jezzeaepi]

All depends on the weather. This is the site I check every few days:
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/tbw/cgi-bin/marine.pl?node=TBW&office=TBW&state=FL&cwfPhrase=853&swrPhrase=SOUTHWEST+FLORIDA&nowPhrase=853

Looks like things might be calming down there this week(they need about 2 weeks with no big swells I believe).
*crosses fingers*

[jezzeaepi]

double post

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6738442#post6738442 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jezzeaepi
All depends on the weather. This is the site I check every few days:
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/tbw/cgi-bin/marine.pl?node=TBW&office=TBW&state=FL&cwfPhrase=853&swrPhrase=SOUTHWEST+FLORIDA&nowPhrase=853

Looks like things might be calming down there this week(they need about 2 weeks with no big swells I believe).
*crosses fingers*

Correct, but mother nature has not been kind to us....we had 9-12 foot seas yesterday.....which really messes it up for days and days, then here comes another front!

I CANNOT wait for springtime!!

TBS

[jcatblum]

For those of us wanting to order......

Do we order now or wait until rock is available?

Is there a waiting list, so we can be contacted when more rock is available?

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6742796#post6742796 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jcatblum
For those of us wanting to order......

Do we order now or wait until rock is available?

Is there a waiting list, so we can be contacted when more rock is available?

Please submit online order form to get into the pipeline, then when we do get rock we will call everybody!
Thanks
TBS

[ewest99]

Well, it's been a couple weeks, thought I would check and see how the weather has been, saw sun here and the temp reached over 32 degrees outside, spring is on the horizon, hopefully that means calmer seas.....????

[liverock]

We are back at it!

Had 3 days in the water this week, all the corals on the rock are ok, even the bottom of the gulf is coming back, lots of gorgonians, sponges are growing back, I did not think it would happen that fast!

Still no fish around, except a sheeps head and some small snapper......no arrow crabs yet, But I saw decorator crabs yesterday, urchins, some live shells, plants, I am amazed at the rebound of the Gulf.

When the fish come back I will be happy as I miss my resident 200 pound Jewfish that used to live at the site.....

Anybody waiting on a second 1/2 of their Package, now is the time to email me!

Thanks
TBS

[docklink]

Excellent!!! Here's hoping things stay clear and clean for a very long while.

[RunnerFL]

Just out of curiousity what's the backlog on orders right now?

I'm looking at submitting an order for the package for a 30 gallon here in the next couple of weeks. Any approximate wait time?

[liverock]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6880194#post6880194 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by RunnerFL
Just out of curiousity what's the backlog on orders right now?

I'm looking at submitting an order for the package for a 30 gallon here in the next couple of weeks. Any approximate wait time?

None!

[RunnerFL]

Excellent, now all I have to do is figure out where I want to setup the tank, get water going and give you guys a call!