
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Petco Power Filter 5 Replacement Filter Cartridges

Aqueon Day LED Aquarium Lamp, Size 48, White

Repair Kit for Tetratec AP50 and AP80 Air Pumps

Lifegard Aquatics ARP440447 Pond All in One Bio Filter Media

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Sicce Green Reset 25 Pressurized Pond Filter with UV

The filter out of the box seemed very solid, I was impressed by well it seemed to be made.
I hooked it up in minutes and had it working. However the UV was not working, I figured it just came lose during shipping so I un-screwed 3 screws and sure enough it did. The best thing is there is a clear peep hole at the top you just look at the top of the filter to see if its working, great idea. After reseating it I have not had an issue.
Now after about 5 days my pond has cleared up, and I am very impressed, the water flow from my 800Gal pump is great, the ease of use and cleaning I am glad I spent the extra money on this, as it was well worth it.
Update...The UV light for what ever reason burned out after about 3 to 4 weeks since I had it running, (good thing
they had this nice "peep" hole so you can see it. I contacted the vendor and with in a couple hours they already indicated they would get me another one. This vendor is outstanding, for thier support and product.
By the way, even though the light was out for a bit of time, this pond still remains clear and the best its look since I dug it quite a few years back. The filter is outstanding, the service is outstanding. This makes me and my life very happy :).
Hydor Flo Rotating Deflector Wave Maker
Mardel Quick-Cure Aquarium Treatment, 4-Ounce

I like that this product is not as harsh a treatment as the wide-spectrum antibiotic preparations that people too often use for fish diseases. While it seems natural to reach for strong microbials when your fish are sick, it can stress out your fish even more, making things worse. QuICK Cure cures ich without resorting to antibiotics.
As with all ich treatment regimes, this works better if you raise the aquarium temperatures and keep the hood lights off. That will help speed along the ich parasite's life cycle and keep your fish in a quiet healing state.
Other caveats you have to remove the carbon from your aquarium filters before adding the treatment drops, or it won't work at all.
You will need to use the smaller recommended dose with tetras. Thin-skinned fishes, like the catfishes, botias and loaches must actually be removed, since the malachite green in the medication is too readily absorbed and becomes toxic to them.
QuICK Cure comes in a small dropper squeezy container. A 4 oz bottle treats thousands of gallons, which is a lot of ich. In other words, this one product should last your lifetime! Remember not to over-treat; use only the amount recommended per gallon. This product will turn your water blue and will dye anything else it touches. Be careful not to let this stuff touch you too much, since formalin is a cancer-causing agent.
If you have a big ich infestation, I recommend using this medication. Make sure to use it correctly, of course! For a small ich outbreak, you might want to just try high temps, no lights and massive water changes first.This product KILLED my Betta OVERNIGHT.
I bought this my Betta who was suffering from Ich. I read all the instructions and warnings, and followed them to the letter. My poor fish seemed happier when I put him in the new, treated water, and after a few hours (I went to the grocery store) it seemed that the parasites were in fact coming off. As I went to bed, I noticed his fins were a little black at the edges, and thought that maybe it was fin rot, in which case I would buy more medication for him the next day. This morning I woke to find my Betta completely chemically burned. His fins were entirely black, and I wasn't able to save him. The chemical burn was so bad, that it continued to burn him after I put him in fresh water. He died within 15 hours of using this product.
I did some online searching, turns out, Formalin (#1 ingredient in this product), is highly toxic to Bettas, and I should have only let him be in the solution for a max of 1 hour. Wish that had been on the warning label (It says "Do not use on Baby Whales, Elephant Nose, Shrimps, Snails, living rocks or invertebrates.")
Don't buy this for your Betta. It is a slow and miserable deterioration. I am sure that this product works well for other fish, and customer service was very nice, but please, don't kill you Betta.
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I am by no means an aquarium expert. When my son noticed our Oscar fish was covered with little white dots, I simply googled "little white dots on fish", I came to the diagnosis of Ick. I went to my local pet store and asked them what's best for ick, and they told me they use Quick Cure in their own tanks.Within 1 week of use, my fish are clear of all signs of ick. Needless to say we're very happy, and I would definitely recommend this product. It's cheap, easy, and it works.
Read Best Reviews of Mardel Quick-Cure Aquarium Treatment, 4-Ounce Here
After reading the other review saying it killed the reviewer's betta fish overnight, I decided not to try this product and instead use the heat and salt method. However, after a couple of days without improvement and more research, I found that this formula malachite green and formalin is actually very commonly recommended for use with betta fish. I went ahead and bought this product, and now, six days later, my betta fish is completely healed! I decided to treat the maximum length of time because I waited so long to start treatment, but I probably could have stopped treating after three days. I just wanted to be extra sure that there would be no re-infection, and so far, so good!Unfortunately, I think there must have been another issue with the other reviewer's betta fish, as mine has reacted very well to the treatment. I can highly recommend this medicine to knock out ich quickly!
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I have platy fish that I love very much and was very upset to see they were suffering from ich with pieces of their tail fins actually missing. I have a young platy in my aquarium and was very scared to treat her but this product didn't harm her and healed my fish in three days and three treatments. Treatment is easy, there is no difficult mixing or measuring involved. My fish are now ich free and I am happy! Definitely buy this product, it will work!Zilla 11840 18-Inch Desert 50 UVB T8 Fluorescent Bulb, 15-Watt

Manufacturer of these bulbs ought to be ashamed of the price they charge for these bulbs, it's a light bulb for crying out loud. Think of the amount of electronics that go into this, it's low tech.. they ought to be about $5 each max.
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just as in the store,, and the price is more in line with my budget thanks will do business againRead Best Reviews of Zilla 11840 18-Inch Desert 50 UVB T8 Fluorescent Bulb, 15-Watt Here
This light was a great purchase. Came in earlier than expected and came at a great price that can't be beat.Want Zilla 11840 18-Inch Desert 50 UVB T8 Fluorescent Bulb, 15-Watt Discount?
I've purchased two of these bulbs in the last year for our desert tortoise. The last one burned out after a month so I replaced the fixture thinking it was probably the hardware and not the bulb. Got this one, dead a month later. Never buying a single thing from Zilla again.Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Boyd Chemi-Pure Elite 11.74 oz

If you've never used Chemi-Pure before, you need to determine how many bags you need. I had a Marineland Magnum canister that required 2 bags to fill the carbon canister (it was a tight fit though).
I am a huge fan of using multiple filters with different filter media in them. This enables you to clean one out while leaving the other one undisturbed so as not to harm the good bacteria the tank needs. No matter how good your chemical media is, you need to stock properly, feed judiciously, and perform your tank maintenance. Chemi-Pure is good, but it won't make up for neglect.
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I love this stuff, at least as much as you can love bags of charcoal and ion exchange resins. I'd only suggest it if you have a canister filter. I use an Eheim 2211 and it works great.I bought this because it absorbs nitrates and phosphates. I don't want to mess with live plants. I have a 10 gallon with three fish at about 70% bioload. My nitrates stay at a constant 10 ppm. They don't go up, they don't go down. I've had my aquarium up and running for a few months and still haven't had to do a water change. Apparently, I should only have to change this once every six months.
I'll never go back to just activated carbon again.This media does a great job at filtering the water, and does leave a slight blue tint to it that makes the tank highly attractive to the eyes!Crystal clear water when using this product. You will have to add trace minerals to tank every now and then.
JBJ Automatic Top Off Water Level Controller for Aquarium

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I bought this because I was planning on going on vacation in few months and I needed something to auto-top off my tank while I'm gone. I did a few reviews on this and it works great, I'm happy I purchased it for my aquarium. When the water level drops the sensor kicks on and turns the pump on to fill the tank of lost waterRead Best Reviews of JBJ Automatic Top Off Water Level Controller for Aquarium Here
Best product out there for the price. Simple, not a lot to program two options that it). Not too crazy about the way that you set up the floaters but with some tweaking you can secure better with suction cups or even zip tie, but then again I am paranoid and I have never heard of anyone having serious issues with the floaters, oh yeah floaters are the devices that measure the eater level.....forward 1 year, found out that device is not as water proof as it should be.Want JBJ Automatic Top Off Water Level Controller for Aquarium Discount?
Bought two of these for different tanks and both are working great. The only reason i didn't give it 5 stars is because the wires for the sensors need to be longer.Hagen Marina Background Solution, 1-Ounce

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This product works as its intended, however I was hoping for a better dispensing solution. I was attempting to apply it straight to the fish tank since my backing kept rolling up and prevented me from applying according to the directions. But overall, once applied liberally, it worked perfectly for adhering the background to the tank.Read Best Reviews of Hagen Marina Background Solution, 1-Ounce Here
You could use this goop or some sort of vaseline based solution for your aquarium background. It was a messy, messy job as I spread the solution evenly over the background. I must not have done that great of a job because my background started bubbling and I eventually took it off. Maybe it's a user error, not the product. I wouldn't buy this stuff again because it's super messy and now I'm stuck with trying to wipe if off the back of my aquarium, yuk.I heard mineral oil works similar as this background solution. But I hoped this may work better, Everything was good at the beginning, but now after 6 month, about 15% of the area dried out and I have to apply the solution again.Medicated Food For Aquarium Fish - 14 Oz

Fortunately, I was able to buy some here, and it has saved all but one of my little loaches (the poor little guy was just too far gone). Now they are thriving, thanks to this excellent product. I'm just glad that I was still able to get some before it was all gone.
Use the feeding schedule on the package, but for best results mash the food into a powder and mix it with small amounts of other foods that your fish are already accustomed to, and shut off all filtration before adding the food mix to the tank and for a while after feeding (1/2 hour is usually sufficient).After receiving an empty box,I am so disappointed,however, after contacting their customer service, they corrected the mistake through 2 day air ship, Now I am able to treat the Koi fish.
* Now is one month after I feeding the koi fish with this medicine and most of them are get back to normal. I am happy with the product and would recommend it.
Fish Mate 24 Watt UV Lamp
Amphibian or Reptile Tank, 20 Gal

Chemi-Pure Elite - 46.98 oz.

We have a 150 gal with eheim classic canister filter and we put it in the filter and it makes the water crystal clear and sparkle.
The fish are showing better color using this. Highly recommend it!I placed it in my 125G tank (The box says its for 175-220G) and the next day the water was crystal clear. My fish are very healthy and I don't have any issues so far.
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I decided to switch into elite and after a month my tank started to smell. This usually means i need to change my carbon again. I only have 50 gallon tank and this should be more then enough for 1 month.Was told by the local store about this product. So far the Aquarium is going great with new growth every day.Seachem Laboratories Clarity - 500mL

The clumping worked as described, however the clumps got caught in the gills of our 6 inch Red Blood. I spent several hours including purchasing a new heavy duty Rena Xp3 Filter to finally remove Seachem Clarity out of the tank. $140 the tank is clean.
I called Seachem and left several urgent messages today and they did not return the call.
Lucking he survived due to several hours of TLC on our part.
I DO NOT RECOMMEND IF YOU HAVE A RED BLOOD.
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I have been dealing with cloudy water in my tank for 5 months now, nothing seemed to work, water changes, filter media changes. Other "clarifiers" didn't do the trick, but in 2 hours with this stuff, my water is crystal clear and I can see my fish now. Would recommend this to others, just read the directions first.Read Best Reviews of Seachem Laboratories Clarity - 500mL Here
My saltwater tank looked like peasoup! After using a low quality fish food, I had an overgrowth of green algae which blooms had clouded my tank water to the extreme that I could not see my clownfish. I tried other water clarifiers that would not even make a dent in the cloudiness. This clarifier worked almost immediately and my tank stays crystal clear!Want Seachem Laboratories Clarity - 500mL Discount?
I have been battling a cloudy tank for 3 months. It has particles and some green in the water. I can't see the fish in the back of the tank or if I look from the side. I tried doing both more frequent and infrequent H2O changes. I tried an algae fix and an algae destroyer, I tried these really good polyfilter pads that usually clear anything, I tried accurel-F and something else like that, nothing worked at all. Then I went to my PetSmart store and young guy suggested the Seachem clarity. He actually advised me not to also purchase an algae remedy, he didn't want me to spend money if I didn't have to.I went home, skeptical. I put in 1.5 capfuls. My tank instantly filled with what looked like a cloud of smoke. I was warned this would happen. I walked away. 3 hours later my tank was clearer than it had been in months. The next morning my daughter came in and said, "Mom, the tank is diamond clear!" And it was, HOORAY!!!!!!!!
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
Fish Mate 3000PUV Pressurized UV+Bio Pond Filter

Previously I had tried using a 200 gallon gravity filter, media filtration, and a skimmer/pump combo. In all cases there was little improvement on algae blossoms, mosquito larvae, and water quality. After talking to a local shop, I sought out this specific filter because they had a lot of success with a showcase koi pond located behind the store.
After reading the relatively detailed instructions and following the advice of pond enthusiasts, installation took about 4 hours due to the rocky soil (it doesn't have to be in the soil but can sit flush). Since filtration efforts had been miserable failures prior to this, my hopes were high but my expectations sat far lower, so I plugged it in and went about my business.
Two weeks to the day, my pond is clear enough to make out fine details along the bottom; including areas where green frogs have burrowed into the muck. Not only is the pond clear enough to make out fine details, I finally discovered where a slow leak was coming from (liner is sinking). As a final reward, of sorts anyway, there was also a revelation in finding two long forgotten lawn ornaments, a bunch of toys tossed in long ago by my daughter or her friends, and the skeletal remains of a cat.
I will have to wait until spring and summer to see how well the UV works on controlling algae at peak levels of sunshine and mosquito larvae but with the rapid development of clarity I am feeling confident that we'll be able to maintain good water quality. Highly recommend this filter!This device does keep the water clean. However, it is made of cheap, brittle plastic that is prone to failure. In one year, I've had three different "Tanks" which have all failed in various ways (a crack, another crack, and a complete 0-ring seal surface failure). The clean-out valve has also failed, resulting in most of the pond water being pumped out. The manufacturer has so far replaced the parts, but their customer support staff treats you like a criminal when you call, implying that you have done something wrong with the product. What is there to do wrong? It is backwashed every week. The pump can not supply enough pressure to exceed the rating of the device.
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Look, a person can go broke by owning a pond with all the chemicals and media filtration and more chemicals. All the pond places recommend these expensive "mercedes benz" units (that cost $1000 more than this fishmate) to do the job of this fishmate. I have learned to get the advice of other water gardeners on Daves Garden and quite a few of them were already using this and highly recommended it! Some of these people owned other units prior that cost A LOT more but weren't as easy to clean.I bought this Fishmate because I was having a lot of health problems with my koi. I have an extensive waterfall filtration system and a turnover rate in my 2000 gallon pond of 2.5 times an hour yet my fish were always sick with something or another. I was also struggling with suspended algae. The UV light cleared the water within 24 hours. My pond wasn't as dirty as the other reviewer with the toys and dead cat in his pond... (?) but it wasn't crystal clear like it is now. Also, I am happy to say the fish are healthier!!!
It took me about 35 minutes to assemble it. That is only because I had to measure tubes and trim them and read the instructions. It really was a no brainer! If I had to set one up now after doing the first it would probably take me 10 minutes.
Another great tip I recvd from other water gardeners is to dig a hole in the ground and fit it with a large enough bucket or similar walled container with the bottom cut out. Place the Fishmate into the hole and landscape. I used a bucket and it works great! The reason for the bucket is to keep the walls of the ground from caving in on the canister. You can drain the muck our right into this bottomless muck pit.
BTW: I bought my Fishmate 3 months ago. Buy all the hoses and clips all at the same time and you can get it up and running ASAP.
Read Best Reviews of Fish Mate 3000PUV Pressurized UV+Bio Pond Filter Here
Forget the chemicals. I could have purchased two of these units with the money I spent on algae kill in the last three years. My water (2500 gallons) is crystal clear even in the hot summer with full sun and several fish. Even the smell of dead, rotting algae is gone. The unit was easy to install and there have not been any leaks or problems. Even my fish are happier. I don't think they ever liked those chemicals. After adding chemicals they wouldn't eat for several days.Want Fish Mate 3000PUV Pressurized UV+Bio Pond Filter Discount?
We have had one of these filters for about 6 yrs now. Our first one died last year and we were waiting till spring to replace it. We waited just a few weeks too long before we had a full algae bloom. I ordered the filter on Thursday and when we came home from work on Friday, our pond looked like green pea soup. The filter came on Saturday and I was afraid that the algae had already gotten out of control and it would take weeks to get the water clean again. We installed the filter late Saturday afternoon and when we got up Sunday morning there was such a big improvement already. Within 24 hrs the water is almost crystal clear and the fish seem happy that no chemicals were used. I highly recommend this product.Petco Incandescent Aquatic Light Bulb
TOM Aquarium Maintenance Mr. Cleaner Battery Operated Gravel Siphon

This was tested out on a 20 gallon long bare-bottom tank with tons of detritus that my siphon never seemed to remove. At first, the thing takes a little help to get suction. I had to tilt it over into the water right up to the "Water Line" indication. Once I had the water level to where it had suction, I began to move the gravel washer head around. It seemed to pick up better when the detritus was already afloat not laying on the bottom of the tank.
I was not too terribly impressed with the suction UNTIL I removed the gravel washer head. It is totally unnecessary and decreases the efficiency of this vacuum. I had to stop to rinse the net out twice, and to fiddle with the impeller to remove dead snail shells. (puffer tank) To avoid pulling things into the impeller I placed a brine shrimp net over the intake pipe. This also helped me "steer" the intake pipe around the tank because the vacuum is a little oddly balanced.
Be aware that this does not put the water back into the tank internally. Water is pulled up through the pipe, towards the impeller, and into the waste collection net, then back into the tank on the OUTSIDE of the pipe it just went up. You will have to pay attention so that you don't move the vacuum too close to the edge of your tank thus holding the collection net over the edge of your tank and siphoning sediment free water onto your floor.
****mine came with an algae scraper head, which I have yet to use
****mine came with a hose adapter, for use in siphoning water, which I have not used
In summary for $16 this product did great (without the gravel washer head)This vacuum is the best thing since sliced bread. It goes together easily, has great pick-up suction, the tubing is long enough to reach the back corners of a 20 inch tall tank and does not lose power. The on/off switch at the top if convenent and easy to get to. I have dropped the entire vaccum in the tank, dried off the batteries and continued cleaning.
The only issue this vacuum has is the "sock" for catching debris. I replaced that with a knee-high nylon, you know the womens sock for pants and dress shoes, held it on with a rubber band and clean without debris that someone else complained of.
This vacuum makes tank maintenance so easy and I tend to "tidy up" almost daily. Thank you Tom Aquarium Supply and give a raise to whoever came up with this idea.
Kathryn
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The company that I purchased this from, Strictly Pet Supplies, sent the item very quickly and it was packaged well as well.The siphon works great and is easy to use. When it touches the bottom it won't pick up the aquatic soil or rocks, but it will pick up all the crap and fish excriment that has accumulated there. The tube has an adjustable length so I can use it in my tall and short aquariums. You can also purchase replacement filter bags.
Some other reviewers on other sites complained that the item is fragile and can break. This is true. Some parts looks like they're made from thin plastic and can break if you drop it. But its not the manufacturers fault, you just have to be careful when using it.
Read Best Reviews of TOM Aquarium Maintenance Mr. Cleaner Battery Operated Gravel Siphon Here
This device actually has decent suction. It had no problem picking up all the debris off the bottom of my fish tank and depositing them in to the 'sock'. But unfortunately the fine particles of debris blew right through the cloth sock and back into the water. After a minute of vacuuming, my whole fish tank was clouded. The debris in my tank consisted of mostly goldfish poo, which tends to break apart easily. If you are picking up courser debris, it might work better, but I feel that the 'sock' filter bag really does not provide adequate filtration. Not recommended.Want TOM Aquarium Maintenance Mr. Cleaner Battery Operated Gravel Siphon Discount?
Putting it together was easy, albeit there were no directions other than a diagram on the back of the package, but it is very obvious from looking at the picture how to put it together. There was one thing the diagram doesn't mention, and that is this: there is a small black piece that is on top of the piece where you have to put the piece with the little "sock" on it. The piece with the "sock" will NOT go on if you don't take off the little black piece first. I believe that was the issue that one of the reviewers here had and ended up breaking it trying to get the sock piece on without taking off the black piece first. So just make sure you remove the black piece and it will be as easy as eating pie. :)Also, at first I thought it didn't work because it wasn't creating any suction. I read a few reviews here and saw a mention to tip it to help create suction. As I went back to try it again, I noticed it has a "water line" on it and the water was not reaching that line, hence no suction could be created. When I put it into the tank again and angled it so it was under the water at the water line, the suction started up no problem. So if you are having issues, just make sure you have enough water and angle it until the unit has water up to the water line and it will work like a charm! Also, once it has suction it will keep suction until water reaches the portion on the gravel foot where air can get under it or until you lift it up to the point where air gets in there. It has REALLY good suction, and I even moved it around in the water to suck up old food particles still hanging around. It took care of them very easily as well.
I used this for cleaning the gravel at the bottom of my 30 gallon tank and IT WORKED WONDERFULLY. Anyone who says otherwise wasn't using it correctly. I even used it to do a water change in my tank, all the while my fish were HAPPY. They even came to check it out and went right up to it with no stress. I used to dread water changes because catching the fish in the nets and putting them in a bucket completely traumatized them, but now I don't have to do that ever again. Just make sure when you are using it to remove water or put water in, that you have a bowl nearby to catch the water as it first comes out (especially if you have to tip it to start it up) so water doesn't get all over the place as you are trying to move it over to where you want the water to go.
I also added an extra "sock" on as mentioned in another review (used the foot end of a knee high) and this helped to catch the finer particles that were making it through the original sock and back into the water. I used a rubber band off a bunch of broccoli and put the pantyhose sock on with it and then put the original sock over it, so I had double filtration.
Overall it is a STEAL for the price and works really, really well once you get used to it. If you follow the tips here, you should have a great experience with it. I know the tips helped me, and I hope they help you! :)
Jardin Plastic Aquarium Fish Tank Plant Ornament with Base, Green Red

Azoo Replacement Pad for Mignon 60-Power Filter

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It came with 4 pack, handy and low price and it does the job. It works with Mignon 60 filter which is a mini and very quiet for even 1 gal tank.Read Best Reviews of Azoo Replacement Pad for Mignon 60-Power Filter Here
The pads fit perfectly are easy to change however the price is a little to high. I will use a cut down to size filter pad which will be more cost effective, a cut to size Boyd chemi-mat filter pad would give better filtration for less money.Want Azoo Replacement Pad for Mignon 60-Power Filter Discount?