Here are some tips on the Colorado Aquarium Society’s bi-annual, Spring and Fall Auctions. The next one is coming up soon, April 20th at a new location, Hope United Methodist Church, 5101 S Dayton St, Greenwood Village, CO 80111. It is just east of I-25 at the Belleview exit. Only members get the 80% split when selling. Non-members get 50%. Memberships will be available at check in or online. It is free to attend the auction, but all sellers AND buyers must register using MyFishAuction.com. To see what has been posted so far, even without registering, click Live at the top, view all items, and select the auction.
The quicksale is like a yard sale, where members list items for sale and anyone with a bidder number can purchase. Starting at noon, or maybe a bit before the prices drop by increments listed in the auction rules, starting at 10% down to 50% off by 3pm. Sellers can remove their items any time if they don’t want to sell for that discount. My suggestion here is mark your items with the discount in mind, if it sells early, great, if not, you still get what you wanted. There is the risk of it not selling at all though and in this case the CAS gets it, and you get nothing. So, if you follow this strategy, be sure to reclaim your item before the end of the auction. The other approach is to price your items to sell quickly like in a yard sale. Which is really what CAS is all about, assisting our fellow aquarists and the hobby overall. Plants are in high demand usually, as are nice equipment, live foods, and hardscape with low prices. Tanks go dirt cheap; I would never sell my aquariums here unless I was willing to give them away. Speaking of giving things away, any item can be marked as a donation to CAS. This event is their fund raiser, so it is good to remember we are here to help our fellow aquarists and keep our hobby going. Old used items that are worn or dirty will not sell for much, but some do sell at the right price. All items are as is and if you ask the item can be plugged in to see that it works. All items are checked at the desk before you can exit the quicksale area. Proof of ownership or bidder number will be required. The way it works is you check your quicksale items at the desk each time you leave the area. The item is added to your bidder # and you pay only when you are ready to leave the auction at the main check out desk. Once you have checked out returning to the auction requires that you get a new bidder number. There will be signs on the quicksale tables listing the discount times, so you can schedule your purchases. There will be no taking items without adding them to your bidder # as has occurred in the past. If you don’t intend to purchase an item, then please do not pick it up. Looking at the item is encouraged, just not walking away with it. If you open a box, please put things back as you find them.
The auction will be in the room where we have been having our meetings of late, registration is required for all sellers and bidders. It is highly encouraged to have this done in advance. There will be a few people to help with those who need it at the check in desk. Have your password, alias, and bidder number with you. Arrive early at 8am for sellers and buyers arrive at 9am. To view the items you are interested in, peruse the tables and take notes on the back of your bidder card. There will be 10 tables of auction items, tables 0-9. Items are placed on the tables by the last number of the item number. So, for example, item XYZ – 06 will be on table 6, Item ABC – 44 will be on table 4. The first 3 letters are the alias, and the number is the item number in the order the items are input to the computer when the seller lists them. Please do not move items from the table where they are placed. They auction only the most desirable items which includes fish, live invertebrates, coral, and select plants with roots, in a pot, or on driftwood/rock. There is a list in the auction rules as to which plants belong on the quicksale table and which can be put in the auction. If in doubt just ask someone at the desk or a Board of Director member.
Back to tips for the auction. If you need to leave and the item you want has not come up, you can take it to the front and give it to the person behind the table arranging the items for auction. There is a $2 fee for moving items up. The other thing to notice is the tables are auctioned off randomly by the entire table. So, table 5 may go first and then table 2, 7, etc. in no particular order. This is done to keep you at the auction. The other thing which is especially relevant to keep us around till the end is the door prizes which are awarded by random pick of a bidder number and at random times throughout the auction. Saving the best items till last of course. They will have nice aquarium supply items donated to the CAS by various vendors and LFS. The CAS brings in fish to sell, so we are not relying on what the sellers have to offer. In my opinion, this really kicks up the quality of the auction. There will be some nice fish available!
The next tip is to bring your children and have them volunteer to be a runner. When an item is sold, the runner will bring the item to the buyer who take possession of it from that point on. Upon check out the buyer may need to show what they have. If you plan on buying fish, I recommend bringing a cooler, bucket with a lid, or a nice tote bag, so your fish will have a safe place to wait till you are done. Remember that when fish are shipped either to the wholesaler or to a retail store they go for several days in a bag. So, keeping your fish till the end of the auction is not a big deal. On this topic though, I recommend reading the bagging guide on the CAS auction website page. All fish are to be double bagged. Plants need not have much water, but if they do, please double bag. If you don’t have bags and wish to sell, go visit your LFS and have them sell you some. Don’t forget the rubber bands, as they are very hard to find in regular stores. The bagging station at the auction is a backup only for those who did not bag their fish correctly or if a bag leaks. During the auction if you bid on items be sure to hold your bidder # high so it can be seen. Carry your bidder # with you just in case you wish to get a quicksale item or see an auction item you want come up while on the way to the restroom or whatever. There will be food for sale at very reasonable prices all during the auction. I am not sure what it will be this year, though it usually is very good and very affordable. I will not go over all the auction rules as this blog is already a bit long. Please read the auction rules before attending the auction. If you need help with anything, just ask. Use the CAS website contact page or the one on this blog.
Sequoia Elisabeth
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