Fish bags, shipping boxes, packing supplies...

Where does everyone get their fish bags?  Styrofoam boxes?  Other packing supplies (heat packs, peanuts)?

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]

So if you guys aren't using fish bags, what are you using??? 

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]

I got my bags from an LFS some time ago. Check Aquatic Eco Systems, they have them in various sizes.

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

Some of my home club members use bags from Big Al's Aquarium Services.  I don't know if they are retailed there or not.  I get the few bags I need at present, from the aquarium clubs' auctions.  I know some of the other breeders(ciclids etc.) buy the bags in bulk, then sell the surplus off in smaller lots at the auctions.

Ken's fish is where I have bought bags and heaters in the past.

As a side note... bags are usually sold in quantities of 1000 and they come in different styles. I didn't know that when I got mine, several years ago. 

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

Thanks for the ideas guys!
 
Tal, yeah I think I'm partway between buying from an LFS and buying in 1000 piece orders.  I use 3 different bag sizes.  Maybe I should quit that.

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]

One other note... Don't buy cheap bags. I received an ebay coral order once and found leaky bags. After closer inspection I noticed small punctures in the bags. When I contacted the seller he checked his supply and found that 1/3 of the bags he had bought had the same holes.

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

I always use the 4mil bags. They just "feel" (mentally and physically) a lot better than the thinner ones. Ken's never carried them so I didn't order one separate from AES but I always wanted the pliers that apply the rubber rings to the bags. I always hated putting the rubber bands manually on bags. Too impatient!

You mean hog castration rings  that's their real use, AES if offering them for another use :lol:

I wasn't going to go there.

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

My first job at a MO livestock wholesaler my boss made me hand band for nearly a year despite us having a manual Tipper Tie.  Its not like I hadn't been banding bags for years prior to that, sigh :lol:

Actually, I'm trying to find a Tipper Tie or something similar.  Not sure which models to look at.  I've used a pneumatic one before and it was the shizz.  No idea what they cost...  those hog rings actually make a good seal?

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]

I use 2-3mil bags and triple bag everything.  When I put the second bag on I flip it or invert it and put inside the other bag.  This removes the corners from the bags where small fish can easily get trapped.  Then I flip one last time and put a 3rd bag on which I do not tie/knot... the outer bag is usually the largest that I use and will hold 2-4 other bags.  Purpose of the 3rd bag/flip is just to get the knot of the first bag right side up.
 
I don't like to use bands or rubberbands of any type... I found them all to be problematic to some degree.  I prefer to twist and knot.  Have never had any issues with this method after shipping weekly (coral and fish) for the last 3 years.

-Rob

mrcobscorals.com

Well, the pneumatics new are around $5 USD IIRC.  The manual ones are around $2K or so new IIRC.
 
Pneumatics need a lot of care and should be serviced a lot.  The manual ones need to be oiled a lot.  Both need a rinsing after use to keep the salt out.
 
Tying knots is a decent way of doing it, but when you are packing out 20, 30, 100 boxes a night, tying knots becomes a hassle.

Oh, and the hog rings suck IME.  Kinda a hassle.

Gresham - That was a 5k above perhaps?

So, before I buy one, are the hog rings not effective or just a pain? Does it get better after a little practice? I don't foresee the need for a machine ever for me but I was hoping the rings were a step above the dang manual rubber bands or knotting.

arg, yeah, $5K
 
I found the rings to be more of a pain then banding.
 
The one thing I will say, I was doing bags much larger then what you guys do.  I was packing out 12" passer angels, etc.  Banding may be easier doing small bags.  I did prefer tying bags when packing out shrimp, especially when we had shrimp/goby pairs that needed to be kept together.

Had the hog pliers, used it for a week then never bothered with it again.
 
Bags (double/triple bagged) and two rubberbands is groovy.
 
And for shipping stuff you can't beat the prices:
 
www.jehmco.com
 
Fast shipping, and they have everything.

+1  Not as good a seal as you might think.  I got my supplies from Aquatic Eco.

We have been using the castrating bands for almost 10 years now.  I have never had an issue using them but they work best on thick material.  We do the twist and put one on and then fold over and place a 2nd one.  Then we double bag and put another on with a twist folded over.  Even on 72 hour shipments that went overseas with the bags laid on their sides, we haven't had issues. The bands and pliers are cheapest from farm supply stores.
Bags can be had from a number of places.  If you know for sure which bags you are going to use, then ordering a box makes sense.  If not, then a handful to try them.  We use mostly square bottom 3 mil bags for seahorses, typically smaller bags.  We have ordered from Florida Tropical Fish Farms Coop store, US Plastics, Gulfstream Plastics and elsewhere. 
Styrofoam has gotten expensive.  Usually best to try to find a source close by as shipping them in can add to the expensive significantly.  In trying to keep dimensional weights down for shipping costs, we have gone to making many of our own boxes.  We can get sheets of 3/4 & 1 1/2 styro and make several boxes for the cost of 1 pre-molded box.  I setup a hotwire cutter like a table saw for nice straight clean cuts.  Packed tightly into a box, they work well. 
Peanuts and some of our cardboard boxes we buy locally to avoid shipping charges. 
For the little guy that doesn't do a lot of shipping, freight costs can be expensive to have this stuff shipped in even though it is very light material.  I have gone in on orders with other companies locally to help cut some of those costs.  If the box sizes match up, many local fish stores toss out there incoming shipment boxes.  These can be had for free or very little cost.
 
Dan

Thanks for all the info everyone!  I was thinking those banding machines would be pricey...I didn't think they would be THAT pricey!  Ouch.  I still have to call the guy from Tipper Tie back when I have some time.  I have my fingers crossed that Gresham is wrong.  Haha!
 
I might give the hog bands a try on some 3 mil bags.
 
I've thought about purchasing flat styrofoam and making my own boxes, but up here in this part of Canada it is often -30C or worse in the winter and the cold air sneaks through any small gaps in the foam.  This night be an option for summer packing though.  It takes 1.5" styrofoam molded boxes, a second layer of  1.5" styro on the bottom, lots of peanuts, and 6 heat packs to keep a box warm in these temps.

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]

i don't ship when it's that cold.
I get fish store boxes, when they are done with them, for free.  When I ship, I ship a lot.  Otherwise I use smaller boxes that I collect from the lab at work.
 
There is a spray insulation, called Great Stuff, or something like that. I wonder if you could seal up the homemade styro boxes with that stuff.  Get the low expanding kind if you want to try it.
 
Pharmacies will sometimes have boxes they need to get rid of, but lately they are recycling them.  I use Quarter size 2 mil square bottom bags from Quality Marine, out of Florida. I've ordered from them twice in the 10 years I 've been in  business, not that I sell that many fish, but that they give you a lot of bags.  These bags have no pockets that fish can nose into  and suffocate.( Many square bottom bags do have pockets, and that's a really bad thing.) One sixth size is a good size as well.  For the quarter bags, I can put 9 really large clownfish, or 18 small ones, with good results. 
I twist and use double and quadrouple rubber bands. I always double bag and then use a big bag to line the whole box. I own a castration device, but found it impractical.
 
 

check out Kathy's Clowns, llc website:
http://kathysclowns.com
Captive bred clownfish and more
(Wholesale to the trade.)

The spray insulation isn't all that structural in terms of a shipping box.  If you did use it, I'd suggest going up in the quality of cardboard used.

Thanks for the ideas Kathy!  I've never tried putting multiple fish to a bag, but I was thinking of putting 4 Ocellaris to a bag.  I use 5x16" for most fish and single pack them.  I imagine 4 Oc would be ok in an 8x16"...?  My fish are usually in the box about 24 hours from packing to unpacking.

Don't let fear and common sense stop you! =]