R2 Dual Extreme Aquarium Moonlight

I have a 55gal freshwater tank with a lot of rare fish that are entirely nocturnal, so I ordered this set in order to watch them at night. The light output on them is surprisingly good for only having a total of 10 LED's (I think its either 5 or 6 in each) and it give the water a nice shimmer (note you can only get shimmer if the surface of the water is disturbed, in my case by my power heads and filters). They are easy to install as well. The two problems I have that kept me from giving these a full five stars are:

1. For the price, I really feel like these should come with reflectors. The LEDs are simply on a circuit board floating in glass, so that you get a significant amount of light going to the sides and top. I originally used aluminum foil to counter this, but it kept falling off when I opened the glass and I finally just gave up. I have a hood so that you can't tell that the light is leaking, but it wastes some of the luminosity, and if you don't have a hood you will see blue light all over the place.

2. Another gripe with the price, this time compared to other similar products. After buying these, I discovered ecoxotic stunner strips, which contain many more LEDs in many different light colors (including this blue and even ultraviolet) for the same price, and they make a strip that will go the whole length of my tank for approximately double the price of these.

Overall I don't necessarily regret buying these, but I'm not sure I would again after finding ecoxotic's strips.

These LED's are great.

I have a 80 gallon Cichlid tank (5' long) with 3 of these installed. 2 just didn't quite have enough effect for me.

The look of it is very impressive if you have water surface agitation, as it will shimmer on the bottom.

I've had these for a few months and they're good so far. They will work with a timer if you want.

All my fish are more active at night now, and 2 of them mated for the first time only days after I put these lights in.

My freshwater lobster also started coming out at night and exploring.

It's nice to see the aquarium life at night, and everybody in the tank seems happier now.

Apparently having moonlight is a much more vital part of aquarium life than most of us think.

If you are thinking of getting these, DO NOT HESITATE.

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I have recently changed my lighting system on my 76 gallon Oceanic half round saltwater tank. The light I am using is LED and it has great coverage. However there was not separate plugs for the day and night lights. This caused problems because I have been on a timer for years, and trying to remember to turn off and on the lights everyday was next to impossible. I purchased these lights to use for my moon effect. The R2 Dual Extreme lights have been the perfect compliment to my tank. I am now able to have both light systems on a timer for worry free lighting. The lighting output is just right for my size tank. I highly recommend these lights.

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I have a 90 gallon aquarium with glass tops and a double flourescent tube fixture. These lights (2) mounted perfectly between the tubes on the reflector and provide good side to side coverage for a four foot wide area. Mine is 24 inches high and the more height gives it a wider coverage area than a shallow tank would. At 24" high they probably cover 5-6' wide on the bottom. The aquarium is 18" deep so it doesn't cover that. But that wasn't my intention which was to provide a nice glow to the tank whenever the main light it off. Actually I just keep the LED's on all the time. I did wrap the electrical tape people mention on the clips to hold the light fixture in the clips. I product works as expected, I just hope the LED longevity is satisfactory.

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Received this product and it was very easy to install. Hooked it up to come on automatically when my day lights went off on a 55 gallon salt water set up. Everything was great and i was very satisfied with them, then last night they just died. I have tried everything and no luck. I am pretty disappointed for 50 bucks I would expect better quality and to last longer then 3 weeks obviously. Now I am stuck looking for an alternate solution.

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Rena Air 50 Air Pump

Bought this along with a whisper 10 to compare.

Whisper 10 won due to more air volume and slightly quieter than the Rena.

This filter is nearly dead silent. As far as I can tell it has no significant sound of it's own. I was ready to move the tank into a closet(or worse;) Tx to Bill at Rena for this great product.

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When my one of my aquariums' air pump (Tetra 77851 Whisper Air Pump, 10-Gallon) started to get noisy (maybe of age), I ordered first the TOM Stellar Air Pump S-20 20gal to 30gal tank, thinking this product may be more quiet than Tetra, based on some reviews. Turned out to be so noisy. So I ordered now this Rena, as again, some reviewers said that this is the most quiet among all for the price. That didn't happen. It was by far as noisy as the other and had become so annoying. I just ordered another Tetra again and now I know among the 3, which one is truly the "whisper" type. Tom and Rena went to garbage instead of me wasting my time and effort for repacking them and return.

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Lixit First Aid Kit for Dogs and Pets

I got my family a bunch of disaster kits for the holidays this year and the last one I made was specifically for our 3 year old, 85 lb. black lab, Wolfgang von Wolfhaus. I purchased the Lixit First Aid Kit and accompanying Lexit Pet Mess Kit, along with a blanket, english setting collar/leash, chew toy, portable water bowl, a notebook with copies of his records, immunizations, tags, and licenses, along with some quickclot and other small do-dads.

Remember to plan for your pets... they can't do it themselves!

Wow! This is a real winner, so handy and portable. Would recommend to any pet owner; a great idea and purchase.

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First day that I had the kit, my dog cut his cheek on something. It had everything I needed to stop the blood and keep the cut clean.

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Great kit, I've used it a few times through my work and I've always found what I needed. Although I added just a few items such as rubber gloves, antiseptic shampoo and Iso Betadine. Otherwise great buy!

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Tug-O-Rope Double Knotted Natural Bone Dog Toy 16"

My three big lugs need tough toys. This rope has lasted through many games of tug-of-war. Good price, and my dogs love getting toys in the mail, although now they think every package is for them.

My dog just loves this toy & its built to take a beating. Good quality & stands up to a tug of war.

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This rope is still going 3 months later! I have a 50 pound dog and usually ropes last about a month. It is a lot cheaper on amazon than you can get at a pet store too.

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gift for animal shelter dog and cats that don't have a forever home yet wanted to bring some joy to their lives since I can't adopt them all.

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This is helping our teething pup. I worry about strings being pulled out, but it seams like when he does rip them off, they come off in small chunks and not long strands.

Iridescent Clear Decorator Marbles 100 Pk

the product is great quality and none were cracked or scratched, the thing that got me was that i thought there was going to be a lot more so if you are filling a vase you may think about buying two or three

Some look at these as regular marbles. I look at them as part of a working piece of art work.

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Como Fish Tank Underwater Decor Arch Bridge Shape Mountain Gray Red

This is an ok product, but it's very small, it fits on top of a credit card. I think the description was a little misleading, because I thought it would be bigger

Hagen Marina Naturals Foreground Silk Plant, Green

This foreground plant is a light green color with darker green on the outside of the leavesvery pretty. It looks really pretty in the water with the aquarium lights shining on it. I like the shapes of the unique leaves; they look real. The colors are vibrant but not so bright as to look fake. I would love to someday have real plants, but until then this is the best choice.

I have a 25 gal freshwater tank which was so boring before I decorated with 12 silk plantssmall, med and large sizes. I arranged the plants around 2 black lava rocks and added a blue background. The colors of the plants look nice with the black rocks and the blue background. The plants fan out from either side of the rocks and sway in the water.

The colors of the plants make the colors of the fish stand out more. Plus the fish seem to feel more secure because they can hide among the plants, like they would in the wild. They search the leaves and under the plants for missed food. There are lots of little areas among the plants for the fish to explore and hide. As a pet owner, I feel like it is my responsibility to provide the most comfortable home I can. My little guys seem relaxed and seem to like having these silk plants in their aquarium.

I am happy with these plants. I like the way they add color and texture to my aquarium and my fish seem to like having a more comfortable home.

The colors are vibrant, but not too bright. I love the shapes of the broad leaves, they look real. The colors on the plants make the colors of the fish stand out, too.

I love these! I bought several for my 10-gallon tank, and ended up putting two of them in the 3-gallon betta tank instead. He loves them! Bettas like to have cover, and two create the perfect amount of hiding place for him, without cluttering up the cylindrical tank. They are also nice and soft, so he will never hurt himself on them. I would highly recommend these.

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WOW very fast shipping. I really looks nice in my 40g freshwater aquarium as a foreground plant. Being silk, it looks just about like the real thing.

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This plant is a nice foreground plant, especially considering the cost. Its color is a brighter green than I prefer, but it's nice and soft for my goldfishes' fins. Also, it doesn't float off easily, as some plants do, and the leaves don't droop, either.

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I love this plant. It is made of silk, which is perfect for my betta's delicate fins. It is also pretty small, which is why it fits perfectly into my 2.5 gallon tank. I now have two plants in there, and my betta still has enough room to swim around. I would recommend this product to any fish owners with a smaller tank.

Aqua Ultraviolet AAV30055 Transformer for Aquarium, 57-watt, Black

Received within stated delivery time. Properly packed and in good condition. Pond water clear within 3 days. Instructions should emphassize that the AC cable clamp needs to be loosened in order to properly position lamp within housing, then tightened again.

At around $100 a pop I am tired of replacing ballasts every year. No matter what I do, (even replaced the purple gasket around the crystal) water seeps into the ballast and shorts the ballast. It's a great business model for this company it seems.....since it sells replacement bulbs and ballasts every year. This year I enclosed the entire ballast in a 3 inch piece of PVC with end caps. I placed it above the water lever and made sure the inside power cables are not connected to the plastic ballast housing so that water does not seep into the black housing rather it will seep into the PVC housing I created. This product is engineered poorly for the customer but engineered perfectly for the manufacturer. If this continues I will simply scrap the product and look for something less frustrating.

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Coral Vue Technology AC20287 Octopus Needle Wheel Skimmer for Aquarium Filter, 6-Inch, 150-Gallon

I replaced a cheap brand "beginner" protein skimmer with this model for my 75 gallon + 30 sump system. The break-in period was shorter than advertised, was already pulling out material in a few days.

Basically for the price point this is the best skimmer you can get until you start throwing down serious dollars on a out-of-sump model. I reviewed a large number of skimmers online and finally picked this one based on those conditions. Spend less than $100 and your skimmer is basically trash.. you won't get a good skimmer until about $300 and >. Since I already had a cheap skimmer I knew the problems.

I've always believed in over-filtering my tank, so I bought the NWB-150 for my 90 Gallon Reef Tank. The benefits of running this larger skimmer exceed the extra money it costs to go to the next size up. Initially, the protein skimmer will not produce much skimmate because of the factory residue that is on the skimmer, but once it kicks in, you will be blown away once you see how much foam this produces and how much stinky green "goop" you'll be pulling out of your water column. The needle wheel impeller is second to none for what you will pay for this skimmer. If you are worried about the collection cup overflowing while you are away, simply remove the rubber plug to the collection cup and run the silicone hose (that comes with the skimmer) into a washed out milk jug!

I've found that if I detach my collection cup weekly and and scrub out the green film that develops on the insides walls, it runs much better. If you run it dirty or if you run your water level too low in the skimmer, you will not allow the foam to climb high enough so that it falls into the collection cup, which results in a slimy build-up in the wrong area of the skimmer.

As far as the construction of the skimmer goes, I am very happy. They use a very high-density plastic so you don't have to worry about accidentaly bumping it and causing a crack.

In terms of noise, I give this one an A+. This particular unit comes with a baffle that controls the airflow to the impeller and ALSO blocks off any noise that you might be used to hearing from your old skimmer. It is virtually undetectable when running, so that is a huge plus. The gate valve on the skimmer also makes it very easy to control the water level within the skimmer, and if you don't like to hear splashing from the return section of the skimmer, simply turn the return pipe until the water is falling against something that muffles the sound! The motor of the unit is also very efficient and silent, so you don't have to worry about hearing any "hums" from it.

All-in-all, this is a great skimmer that will keep your aquarium healthy and free of excessive protein build-up. It is a must have for any saltwater aquarium, so go with the next size up if you plan on upgrading to a larger tank in the future or plan on having a lot of fish in your tank.

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Have had this skimmer for several months now and it works great. Took a bit to adjust and learned to make sure I set the water level by measuring what the water is at inside the skimmer and not by the sump. Found that the skimmers water level inside when running is usually a couple inches higher than the sump. Point being, when you set the height of your sump according to the water level on the sticker on the skimmer make sure it is the height of the water inside the skimmer while it is running. Love it

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Great looking and perfect design!!! This skimmer is by far the best I've bought and I strongly recommend it to anyone that has had problems with other skimmers in the past.

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This product is great and arrived a week early! This skimmer was easy to set up and started pulling out gunk within 24 hours.

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Tetra 77326 Tetra LifeGuard Treats up to 32-Gallon, 32-Tablet

I bought this size Lifegaurd for my 38 gallon tank. The pet store girl said to drain my tank down to 32 gallons so I could use it.

It turns out she didn't know what she was talking about.

This product is 32 pills, and the instructions say 1 pill for every 5 gallons of tank water. per day.

You don't have to buy any particular size of lifeguard, as long as you get enough pills. The product I bought said 32 gallon, but it was 1 pill for every 5 gallons, and so for a 38 gallon tank I would use 8 pills per day.

In fact, I think most people would want to buy this item: Tetra 77327 Tetra LifeGuard, 150-Tablet its cheaper per dose, and even if you have a 20 gallon tank you might need to use it once a year, or as a preventative when adding new fish.

Anyway I wish that the "1 pill for every 5 gallons" was better represented, I would have bought the 150 count box from the beginning.

As far as performance goes, it worked, my fish are healthy now and that makes me happy. A good product with no-so-good information.

The petco girl said they use "Clout" for Ich, I might try that next time.

If your fish looks sick and not sure what medication to use, I recommend starting with Lifeguard. This product covers a wide range of diseases and works most of the time. I also got Parasite Guard in case this doesn't work, then the fish might have parasites.

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ANGRY!! I've used this product before and it works very well. the only thing I disliked was the fact that after I had placed the order the guy got back to me in an email 2 days Late THEN SAID I CAN'T RETURN IT! He is the one that got back to me 2 days late!!!

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Como 9.1" x 9.1" Green Square Artificial Grass Lawn for Fish Tank

The item looks good. Just like the picture. The only thing that did not please me was there were no weights on it to keep it at the bottom of my pond. It just floats to the top.

Used to protect the little fry and it works well. I would recommend this over the regular breeding grass as you can run it up the wall of your tank.

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Product is in my fry tank and works great to help the fry hide or stay out of the light if they want. I use sand as substrate and I do not embed the product in the sand. I just place enough small stones on it to keep it from floating, that way the fry can get in and out of it easier.

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API Filstar XP-M Replacement Impeller Rena XP2

Filter to my 55 gallon had a death rattle, which this replacement part easily and effectively remedied. I, my tank and all its inhabitants are pleased.

Delivered on time and as promised.

This part saved a entire filter system. It worked great right out of package and made the whole filter work better.

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biOrb Life Aquarium

I bought two biorb aquariums, the Life 60 (16 gallon) and the Life 30 (8 gallon) 4 months ago and haven't had any problems (both are a freshwater setup). They look sharp and everyone notices them right away when they come over. The tanks come with ceramic media, filter, air pump w/ one way valve, air stone, and LED lighting. The amount of ceramic media that came with my tanks seemed low so I purchased more. If you are an experienced aquarists you should have no problems keeping fish in these tanks. I would consider both my tanks to be over stocked and in 4 months still have not lost a single fish. I have found replacement filters and air stones at all my local pet supply stores. The supplied air pumps have big rubber feet and don't make much noise. The LED lighting is amazing and gives you half a dozen setup options. I use the 14 hour day setting, it gives you 12 hours of full day light with an hour sunrise transition and hour sunset transition then 10 hours of moonlight. The top of the tank has two small holes, one is for feeding and I also use it when obtaining water sample with a pipette, the other is a small notch at the back that I use to pass the power cable for my heater and the cable for my digital thermometer through.

UPDATE (1 Year): Just wanted to quickly update my experience with these tanks. It has been a year since I bought them and my fish are healthy and still no loses. I am still using the supplied air pumps with out any noise problems. If you are careful you shouldn't have to worry about scratching the acrylic, my tanks still look as good as the day I bought them. Only drawbacks are the small feeding holes and you can only get one hand/arm through the top of the tanks when setting up and cleaning, this can make it difficult when trying to reach the bottom of the 16 gallon tank because of how tall it is.

I have had this this fish-tank (the 8gal Bio Life) for a few weeks now.

I added the ceramic media, and conditioned the water with Stress Coat and Stress Zyme, Installed the filter which was a breeze! and let it run without fish for over a week so the tank could settle.

I also made sure that the temperature was stable for the fish that I wanted to keep. I live in Jamaica, where it is mostly warm, but we have a air-conditioner in the living room where the tank is so it can get a bit cooler than normal.

All other water parameters were good, meaning Ammonia, PH, Nitrate, and Nitrite Levels were all good.

Now it was time to add the fish, Not to overload the tank, I am starting out with a group of 4 Neon Tetras (I will add 4 more in a month to make it a school). I know they are not the recommended starter fish for a New Tank, but I thought I would give it go seeing that all tested conditions were good.

I have to say I was a bit worried at first with all the information on the Net saying how hard Tetras were, and that you definitely need a heater etc. etc., I has been over a week, and I am glad to say that my fish seem very happy, and tank is doing fine! and without a heater. I even grew some brine shrimp to give them a treat, and they ate them readily!

I really love this tank it is not only beautiful to look at, it is so convenient in every way! Here are my Likes and Dislikes:

Likes:

Beautiful A Work of Art

Convenient Adequate Filter System So Far

Convenient Feeding Hole.

LED Lighting to mimic real light situations and saves energy.

It's Acrylic which is stronger than glass! Also, not many people realize, but Acrylic does not Conduct the Outside Temperature to the Water inside the tank very readily because Acrylic is a poor heat/cold conductor. So it keeps your water at a more stable temperature than a glass one. (see for yourself, place ice inside a glass, and place some in a plastic cup which one can you feel more cold on the outside? The Glass of course.

Comes Complete with almost everything that you will need to start (You will still need a Net, a fish tank water changer/cleaner, and more fish food and water conditioners, and replacement media)

Note: To save on buying replacement filters, buy just one more Replacement Bio-filter, and some Bulk Activated Carbon Pellets, and Some Diamond Blend or other Ammonia Removing Product. So when you need to change the filter you can, rinse the sponge filter in some of the tank water removed (not to kill the good bacteria), and replace the carbon and ammonia stones with what you bought, and you can vary the amount of each depending on your tank conditions.

Dislikes:

LED Light should have a 24HR Moonlight setting

Could have a diverter air valve inside so that you can connect other air stones, etc, without having to push an air line through the top.

Overall I really like this tank, and thinking of buying the 16gal.

I will followup this review, as I have the tank longer if anything out of the ordinary happens.

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After purchasing the biUbe 9 gallon aquarium for a bedroom (and loving it) here on amazon.com, we decided to get the biOrb Life 60 for our living room. I would say it's an in between tank (better than those little Sponge Bob tanks but not as good as a regular 20 or more gallon tank with optional filtration). The upright design makes it a perfect addition due to limited amount of space. We set it up as a small freshwater tropical tank for some Glofish. It fits nicely in the corner and is the first thing you notice when you walk into the room.

The tank comes with everything you need to set it up. If done correctly, it makes a beautiful aquarium for our small tropical fish. I like the upright design of the tank and the fact that it is flat (as opposed to the biUbe which is round and distorts my fish) so you can see the fish clearly.

Pros:

Nice upright design for those looking to save space and can't fit a long rectangular aquarium.

Comes with everything you need to get started. Directions are clear to follow.

The light is nice and bright just like the fluorescents you see in those nice big tanks.

Cons:

Overpriced. I brought mine on sale, and though I love the look of the tank, I think they are way overpriced.

The air pump that comes with the tank makes a buzzing noise and doesn't last long. I use mine as a spare and purchase a Rena 100.

It's acrylic which maybe stronger than glass, but scratches very easily, so be careful when maintaining.

There is a limited amount and types of fish you can keep in these.

So basically, if you have the room to fit a big tank in your house, than get a bigger cheaper one (the bigger the tank, the easier it is to maintain). But if you are like me and don't have a lot of space and would like to keep a small amount of fish in a designer aquarium, than the biOrb Life is right for you.

UPDATE: After having the tank for a couple of months I wanted to update my experience with this tank. The one complaint I have is the top of the tank. The opening is a bit small which makes it a little hard to do regular maintenance and leaves little room for any added filters and such (the little opening in the light fixture is just big enough to fit the cord from the heater). I added an internal filter for some extra filtration because I like to over filter my tanks, so my light fixture doesn't fit perfectly in the opening due to the extra cord coming out of the tank (no big deal though). Also, because of how deep the tank is, I find siphoning the bottom to be somewhat difficult. This is something I can deal with. Other than that, so far so good.

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PLEASE DO NOT BUY THIS TANK. Save yourself some grief. We lost so many of our beloved fish in this tank and we're experienced fish keepers.

This review is for the 16 gallon tank but, I'm pretty sure it applies to the other sizes.

Pros:

Great looking tank. That's it.

Cons:

Inadequate filter system

Inadequate lighting system

No additional filters, lighting or feeders in the market that are made specifically for this type of tank

Very difficult to balance the tank due to all of the above

Our experience:

Plants wither and die.

Fish are unhappy and we lost a lot of fish due to difficulty in balancing tank.

We bought a standard tank and transferred the other fish and they are thriving in that tank. The standard tank has been low maintenance and the fish and plants are thriving.

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I bought the 12 gallon BioOrb Tank in Feb from Amazon. After 1 month, the fish tank exploded and the water, rocks, and fish ended up on my living room floor. I have pictures.

Worst tank ever. Don't be fooled by the slick design, that is if you care about your floorboards and furniture.

Fish & Aquatic Supplies Plain Polyfiber Pad 18X30

This replaced the carbon media on my Aquaclear Filter. I'm a big fan mechanical filter media and combining them. Right now my AquaClear filter has a Sponge, two sheets cut to fit of this polyfyber and the ceramic bio media. I also cut this to size and use them in my lfival Chi Filter instead of the stock fluvan pads. All my tanks are planted, thats why O dont use carbon media except on special circumstances when they arise.

This is a really nice filtration media and does the job well. The only reason why I gave it 4 stars is because having a saltwater tank, it really won't last too long. You can try to rinse it to clean but after 2 washes it becomes very weak. For the price and how many uses I'm getting out of it, it's definitely worth every penny.

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Kent Marine ChromaPlex

My corals are big, bright, and happy. I do target feed with shrimp and scallop bits but when I started using this they almost instantly became brighter and happier. I used to use phyto feast, which IS good, but I now like this better.

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Petco Black Aquarium Sand, 20 lbs.

I have now bought 7 total bags from the actual store and thought id share some words of wisdom. COMPLETLY DISREGARD ANY CLEANING INSTRUCTIONS ON OR NEAR THIS PRODUCT! The best way to clean the sand is in a 5 gallon bucket. Stick a hose in the bottom and let it overflow the bucket pushing all the little particles out. You absolutely have to agitate the gravel while in the bucket.

When adding to a tank there is 2 options.

1) Add it before the water and have lots of it floating at the top. (The air bubbles collect on it and make the little pieces float to the top)This happened with my first experience

2) Add it to a tank that already has water in it and or fish. When you do add it make sure to get a little bit in a container(Tupperware works best) and then slowly fill the container with water in your tank and then bring it to the bottom of the tank and pour like you would a carbonated beverage(SLOWLY) on the bottom. (This works the best for me)

I really do like this product; however ease of use and lack of good directions knocked it down a notch for me.

Love the look of it in the tank. I do not have bottom feeders, so nothing stirs it up, which I have heard can be a problem. Just did a water change and the suction didn't seem to bother it either. I highly recommend.

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This sand looks really nice in my tank but I'm glad that I didn't have any fish in there when I added this. I rinsed and rinsed it and then it took a couple of days for my tank to clear up. Then, I had to change out everything in the filter (everything was black inside of the filter + plastic cups of water from the tank left a black residue in the cup after I dumped the water out of it). After all of that, its fine but I just think that was way too much work for sand, in my opinion.

Read Best Reviews of Petco Black Aquarium Sand, 20 lbs. Here

Some reviews state that there are sand particles that float when you put the sand in..Well, yeah, air can get stuck to some sand particles and float them to the top. Just hit the particles that are floating, to knock the air off so the sand sinks back down, or get a net and scoop them out.. Not hard.

The sand is not as fine as beach sand, which I LOVE. My cichlids do not stir it up every time they play in it. Neither do my plecos and one is over a ft long. The picture makes it look like the grains are big. They are not at all. I went to petco in person and bought this (Same price.) My fish play in this more than they ever did my gravel, or my old white sand. It does not make your tank cloudy AT ALL when it is stirred up. The color is very black and makes my red jewels red color pop. I want to make all my non planted tanks have this sand as their substrate.

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I bought this sand, along with two bags of the PETCO black gravel, for a 46 gallon freshwater tank. This was the first time using sand in an aquarium and I made some beginner mistakes. I did as many suggested, placing a quantity of sand in a bucket and then rinsing it outdoors to remove any sand or lighter particles. So far so good. I then dumped the sand into the empty tank and repeated until both bags of sand were in the tank. Being excited, I treated some water and filled the tank to the top by pouring the water straight into the tank. Big mistake!

I ended up with a very cloudy tank and a large layer of sand floating at the top of the water. The bottom of the tank was filled with what looked like pebbles, but upon closer inspection turned out to be air bubbles with a bunch of sand clumped around it. Anytime I touched the bottom of the tank, a host of bubbles and sand would float to the top. I waited several days but the floating layer of sand and the bubbles at the bottom remained. After some on-line research, I emptied about a third of the tank, then proceeded to slowly kneed the sand by hand, releasing all the air trapped in the sand, both on the top of the sand and buried under it. Once this was done, I knocked all the sand off the top of the water using a flat stick.

In the end, this turned out to be a good purchase. The black sand contrasts nicely with my fish and a few well placed rocks. Overall I was pleased with this purchase.

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Finnex Pure-5 Power Aquarium Filter

I am using these on two Fluval EBI tanks (along with zoo-med 501 canisters). They work well, but because of their small size they need maintenance weekly. I am using the Fluval edge pre-filters zip tied on the intake of these filters to keep them from sucking up baby crystal shrimp.

I am happy with the filters, not happy with the cost of the replacement filter media. I am cutting carbon coated filter floss pad to fit inside them instead of spending over $15 with shipping for 10 filter inserts.

Amazing quality for the price. This filter came with my original 4gal pico tank. I didn't even take the filter out the box for 3 weeks because I've never had a small pump device that I thought was worth a flip. Well now I'm eating crow because this filter runs like a dream sturdy, efficient and wonderfully quiet. I recommend to anyone with a small aquarium setup.

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This product is perfect for nano tanks, small, transparent and quiet. It looks good on my 2.5g & 4g tanks. . .

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this is a very small filter. it moves about the same amount of water as a sponge filter. recommended for 5 gal tanks, and that is an accurate recommendation.

pros:

small, and attractive.

tight construction, the lid fits tight and the filter fits tightly onto the side (or back) of the tank

electric component sits outside the tank, under the filter

cons:

small. low water flow, small filter media area. if you have anything much larger than a 5 gal tank or many fish this will not be enough.

not silent it is very quiet, but it hums a tiny bit.

sponge sits right against filter media, making removing or placing the filter cartridge without disturbing the sponge very difficult.

filter cartridge is flimsy, so it is likely to not last through many cleanings before needing replacement.

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well made

no leaks

works great on my 5gallon pico for excotic

U.P. Aqua Professional (Angle) Tweezers

This is the third pair of tweezer I bought from Amazon that is defective. First one rusted severely, second one was a replacement of first one, except its tips are not aligned, now this one looks nice,feels nice, but rusts. Unless I'm having very bad luck, something is wrong with Amazon's inventory or at least what Amazon is sending me.

The tweezers are excellent quality and very easy to clean. I do wish I could find a slightly longer version though.

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They are as described. Well made and easy to handle! I ordered the scissors too and both products are great

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These U.P. Aqua long tweezers are very useful to keep aquarium plants as well as for other aquarium chores.

Now, some aquarium brands sell tweezers at ridiculous (or outrageous) prices. But, guess where they are from? For example, ADA tweezers are from Pakistan (no offense to Pakistan people, though). And the price is well over $40 or $50. I don't believe the labor costs for Pakistani workers are so high that those tweezers have to be over $40 or %50 dollars per set.

This U.P. Aqua pinsettes show a very good quality. The tips are well matched and accurate. I can work on tiny coral mosses with them.

Some might consider a smaller tweezers. I have a smaller one, but I use this long one so much more frequently although my tanks are lesser than 12 inch deep. I believe if you want only one tweezers, this size would be better.

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this items is well made and I haven't had and problems using it this past week. I would recommend this item.

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Nova Extreme T5 X2 for Freshwater 48Inch

I was expecting a cheaply built light for the price I paid for it but I was very surprised by what I got. The T5 lighting is by far, brighter than the lights that normally come with typical fish tank. I originally had two 24" plastic fixtures on my 55 gallon tank with a single 18" T8 flourescent light in each fixture. At 30 Watts overall output from both lights, that did not suffice to light my tank and supply light to the plants I wanted to grow. The Nova Extreme fixture comes with two 48" T5 flourescent lights putting out an overall 110 Watts. By far a big improvement from what I had. The desired Watts per gallon range for a planted tank is between 2 to 3 Watts per gallon. At 110 Watts, this fixture gives about 2 to 2.5 depending on how many decorations and rocks you have inside a 55 gallon tank.

Quality wise, the fixture is mostly metal with a plexiglass insert infront of the lamps to prevent moisture from damaging the unit. Although, some sites say the 48" Fixture comes with a fan to cool the lights, mine did not. But it only gets warm to the touch and isn't a big concern. The reflector is polished metal and increases the light output pretty well. The only thing that I didn't like was the mounting legs to sit it ontop of the tank. They were made of plastic and feel like they would break if to much force was put on them. Overall, a great light fixture.

I bought this light for my planted aquarium, and it's working very well. It was one of the least expensive options, but it seems well built. Setup was easy. I didn't find anything else that was even comparable at this price. The other fixtures I considered were at least $30 more.

The only negative is that now I want one for my other aquarium. I never realized how dim a typical aquarium canopy light is until I got this light.

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I replaced a Corallife CPF 65 watt x2 fixture. This unit is much more compact also better looking. The light is much brighter and uses less energy.

One negative is that you MUST use both bulbs. I was hoping on just running one bulb to save energy, however it is not possible.

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I bought this to replace an All-Glass T12 twin tube light fixture for a 55 gallon fresh water live plant tank. The T12 twin tube never produced quite enough light for my plants and T5HO's produce maybe up to twice as many lumens. It looks much brighter. I have the Nova sitting directly on Aqueon (All-Glass) twin tube style Versa-Tops. I did not install the legs (docking mounts) as I want all light to enter the aquarium and personally I just don't like the elevated style. This has worked well and the Nova looks really nice when set up this way. The 48" Nova has a single ballast, and despite some website's information and pictures, has no fan, no side bracket, and comes with a 12,000 K tube instead of the listed 10,000 K tube. Dimensions: 47.5" long X 5.5" deep X 2.1" tall.

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The NOVA Extreme is a well built fixture. It does get hot when used under a canopy, but have had no issues. Ballasts are easy to exchange out is well. Only a screwdriver and some patience are required. I highly recommend this fixture. Mine was used in a freshwater setup. When you order, be sure to select the model that comes with the lamps for your setup.

Flourescent Starter FS-22 For All-Glass Aquarium Products

I have bought this to replace the original FS-22 starter in my fish tank lighting. There is not much to say about this product; it just works. If it goes out early, I will change the rating, but it is working great now. I am giving it five stars.

After going to a major brand store, only to be sold the wrong thing, it arrived in two days and was just what I needed. Thank you for having such a relatively obscure item available. I should have come to Amazon first.

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I brought this product, but don't know if It works or not because I realized that the fish tank hood that I bought it for wasn't working. But it did fit. I still kept the product just in case plus I don't like to do returns.

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I've had a fish tank for 11 years! big 50 gallon fish tank. The lights wouldnt work. Ordered new ones. Still wouldnt work. Bought you flourescent starter, and I was amazed at how different my tank looked. Made it look great when the lights worked :) Thanks!

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The quality control on these must be terrible. While one worked (for how long, who knows...) the other rattled like it was full of rocks. Not even close to right.

Caveat emptor.