03-18-2008, 02:36 PM
I dunno about saltwater, but frequently for my freshwater aquariums I use chicken gravel from the feed store. It is a nice natural looking brown gravel about the right size to work with an undergravel filter and it isn't all that expensive, either. Del's has it for the chickens to eat so they can digest stuff in their crops.
Have you tried Aqua & Aviary Hobbiest? He is a nice older Japanese gentleman named George who has a pet shop behind his house in upper Hilo. U'ilani Street, I think. To get there I go up Wainuenue street to Komohana and across upper Hilo on Komohana. Go through the four way stop and the next right turn (mauka) is the street the fish shop is on. About three quarters of the way down the block is a house on the left with pink flamingos in the front flowerbed and sort of a feed store bird cutout on the mailbox. Turn in there and behind his garage is the door marked "Entrance". That's about the only indication from the street that is it a petshop. There are some water lily ponds in the fenced area across the driveway but I don't know if those are his or not. He has some saltwater fish, lots of freshwater fish, birds and the occasional turtle. Better fishes than Stacey's and less expensive, too. George may have saltwater aquarium sand, I've never looked for it so I wouldn't know if he has it in stock or not.
If you decide to continue with freshwater fish, then there is also "Richard the Guppy Guy" but he has even less of a store than George. Really, really nice guppies, though!
Have you tried Aqua & Aviary Hobbiest? He is a nice older Japanese gentleman named George who has a pet shop behind his house in upper Hilo. U'ilani Street, I think. To get there I go up Wainuenue street to Komohana and across upper Hilo on Komohana. Go through the four way stop and the next right turn (mauka) is the street the fish shop is on. About three quarters of the way down the block is a house on the left with pink flamingos in the front flowerbed and sort of a feed store bird cutout on the mailbox. Turn in there and behind his garage is the door marked "Entrance". That's about the only indication from the street that is it a petshop. There are some water lily ponds in the fenced area across the driveway but I don't know if those are his or not. He has some saltwater fish, lots of freshwater fish, birds and the occasional turtle. Better fishes than Stacey's and less expensive, too. George may have saltwater aquarium sand, I've never looked for it so I wouldn't know if he has it in stock or not.
If you decide to continue with freshwater fish, then there is also "Richard the Guppy Guy" but he has even less of a store than George. Really, really nice guppies, though!
Kurt Wilson