Quiet One Lifegard Aquarium Pump, 296-Gallon Per Hour

I have been a manager for a retail petstore for 15 yrs. I have extensive knowledge in aquatic life. Our store has purchased these pumps for commercial use as well as for customer purchase. We will no longer carry lifeguard products due to the lack of quality and lack of customer service. These quiet one pumps are made with plastic shafts instead of stainless steel shafts. When you have a power outage and then the power surge kicks back on the shaft cracks.When you call lifeguard they refuse to correct the problem and tell you to send it back at your own cost. A man named Neil works there and will not even consider any type of compensation for these pumps and also will not hesitate to hang up on you.These pumps will not last you more than a year the shafts will crack.I know because i have many upset customers with these pumps. Be aware that you may give this good ratings when first purchased but you will not be happy in the long run.

Worked great for my reef. It was used as the sump pump for 1 year with no problems. I took it apart a few times to clean it. It kept itself pretty clean and never clogged. It also started right up for a few power failures we had during the year. It was used in a 20g sump/refugium underneath a 29g display, with hang on back overflow. This was perfect for the filtration flow I was looking for in the sump (filter sock, baffles, low flow refugium and roughly 4 feet of head pressure). In the display I still had a little flow from a powerhead and BakPak2 skimmer. I've upgraded (but downsized) to a nanocube. If I ever get a large tank again, I will definitely get another one of these pumps.

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I have owned two of these model pumps and both have died for no apparent reason. I use them to pump water during water changes and they are not on consistently, each time they died after about 3 months of intermittent use. When plugged in they make no noises or attempts to turn. Maybe they work well for people who use them in a different way, but for me personally I'm going to steer clear of Quiet Ones in the future.

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Either I got a defective unit or the description of it's performance is misleading. I wanted to use it as a replacement pump in a fountain. It's described as 6.1' max head height and 296 gph. My fountain is about 4 feet high and uses 1/2 diameter tubing. No water came out the top. Placed the pump in a pail of water fully submerged and had it set to max flow. It only pumped water to a height of about 6 inches. On the Lifegard website more detailed information is given and it says it pumps a max of 175 gph at a height of 4 feet. So I'm unsure what the issue it is, but it fell woefully short of the performance described by the manufacturer and interpreted by me.

On a datasheet on their website another set of figures is given for the 1200. It must be flow rates with head heights converted from metric because feet are listed with fractions of a ft. In any case it says flow rate of 0 (zero) gph at 6.1 ft. That's a lot different than what's printed on the box! But that I can believe, zero gallons at 6.1 feet.

Returning product.

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Great buy Item came on time and is running as told. I would buy lieguard products again as they seem to be in tune with what a reef tank needs.

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Universal Rocks 48-Inch by 24-Inch Ledge Flexible Aquarium Background

Looks good and of good quality, was just cut a tiny bit crooked. Nothing some putty didn't fix. Make sure it fits well in tank so fish do not get stuck behind.

Aquarium Fish Tank Silicone Sea Anemone Ornament SH189 Pu

Purchased this for my Salt Water tank but my Betta had other plans for it. He loves this "Sea Anemone" It's so pretty, soft and sweet. This particular product is an excellent size for your tank or spoil your Betta. Amazon has some really great items to decorate your aquarium.

Aquatics 6" Airstone

Looks just as in the pic, stay at the bottom and the bubbles are quite nice, my aquarium looks better with this air stone.

Not much to say it works like it's supposed too. This type of airstone doesn't last long. For me I usually buy new ones at least annually. If they lasted a couple of years, I would of rated them 5 stars.

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Midwest Tropical 670 Square Aquarium End Table

This table is something that you want to think very long and hard about before buying. I bought this table about a year ago and still enjoy it very much. Some of the positives are that no one i know has ever heard of a fish tank table before, therefore adds class to our home well as a conversation starter. Our was son 6 months old when we bought this table still loves to take naps on the floor by it. The sound of the water movement is pacifying well as he loves to watch the fish and the bubblers in motion. Now some of the negatives. The table being all glass and acrylic glass means everything is very visible. To use a filter and/ or a bubbler in this tank the wires and the filter itself are very noticeable. I strongly dislike that they are noticeable. But the underwater filter supplied with the tank is quiet small. I was thinking of buying a few small mirrors the size of the filter and placing them around the filter to some what make the filter less noticeable. This problem still did not discourage me from loving this table. Another issue is the wires to plug in the under the table light, the filter and the bubblers. If you have hardwood floors you can just buy a throw rug to hide the cords. I, on the other hand have carpeting in my living room. And also rent a half double. My landlord was nice enough to let me cut two little holes in the carpet. One under the tank and one under my couch. There is an outlet behind my couch. I strung the cords under the carpeting. This is very unnoticeable and worked great. The only problem this method posed was that in order to add a new device or get rid of another one i would have to unstring and restring them through the carpet. I do not like the filter that the tank came with because it is very hard to find replacement cartridges for it. I cant get them at a regular pet store, i have to special order them. Another issue is the lighting. The tank comes with a small light that shines one direction. Two are needed for equal lighting. I cannot find this light anywhere online to purchase a second. If i place the light under the middle of the tank, half of the tank is dark while half is perfectly lit. If i place it under the far edge (where i found was best to have it), the tank is all lit but dimmer on the far side. No heater can be used in this tank because it will cause condensation on the lid, the table top itself. that does not look pretty. I have hardy fish like goldfish, guppies, mollies, ect that are doing fine without the heater. Another issue is i am a big fan of bubblers and bubble stones. I love to have many bubblers in my tank. The bubbles pop at the top of the water creating droplets of water on the lid of the tank. After having this water on the inside lid of the tank my lid is now stained. I clean it and clean it and the water mark from where my bubblers are will not go away. To prevent the water droplets on the lid i would not fill the tank as high as it could go. But to me that was less room for my happy fish. In my opinion this tank would be a lovely idea for just water and plants. not a prosperous fish environment. Another issue i cant forget is how easily dirtied the lid gets. Yes i have a baby. And he loves to stick his sticky fingers all over the glass. So if you are an older couple, and the kids are grown up this is a great tank for you. Even will all the negative i have listed, i still enjoy my fish tank table. So think hard about whether or not you want it before spending the huge amount of money. This tank doesnt take a lot to maintain, the only thing is cleaning the glass everyday where my son messes.

Zilla 11840 18-Inch Desert 50 UVB T8 Fluorescent Bulb, 15-Watt

I have a bearded dragon and I use this light for the cool side of his tank. It blew and I bought a replacement at the pet store. It was really expensive. So before I made that mistake I looked online and found this one. It was way cheaper, so I bought it as a replacement. The one I bought at the pet store blew in just a few weeks. So I used this and it has lasted for a few months now.

Price on all the reptile bulbs is insane at the pet stores, thankfully Amazon sells for a more reasonable price.

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 again

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This light was a great purchase. Came in earlier than expected and came at a great price that can't be beat.

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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.

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Simple Solution Washable Cover-Ups, X-Small, Pink/Purple (Pack of 2)

My 10 month old Yorkie just came into heat for the first time. I had disposable dog diapers, but they were too bulky (made for actually urinating in) not just the little bit she bleeds. She couldn't even barely walk in the disposable one's, she more less waddled when she had to walk. Then I ordered an XSmall in these washable cover-ups and they were a bit too small for my almost 6 lb yorkie with an 11" waist. According the the size chart they should have fit her good, but I felt bad because they seemed to tight and didn't leave me room to adjust the velcro any. Therefore, I ordered the size Small and they fit pretty good since they have velcro that you can adjust. I just use the doggie pads or even a human panty liner or pad cut in half if its too big. Works wonderfully!! =) Very happy with these over any kind of disposable diaper! Not to mention she likes to chew on anything she can get her little mouth on and she has yet to chew on these cover-ups and she has been wearing them 6 days now. I would highly recommend these for your dog in heat, I would just be careful on what size you order. Petsmart also has the same one's, but they are more expensive in the store than what they are here on amazon. For instance the size small in Petsmart are $18.99 and on Amazon I got them for $13.68. Just remember the larger size, the more expensive.

I have a little Shi Tzu, she weighs less than albs so I ordered the xs first, it was too tight, probably due to all of her fur I would get this one for a chihuahua or similar short coat dog. I reordered the small which is perfect with room to expand with the velcro. We cut a sanitary napkin in half and place the open side facing toward her tail. It works great with no leaks and much cheaper than the liners and more absorbent. My little dog is trained for pads but leaks when she's excited so these work good. Of course if we forget and leave it on too long she pees in it. This has only happened a couple of times but when it did, no problem, no leaks. Oh what we do for our furry friends!!!!

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Nice price for a two pack of washable dog diapers. However, they are sized way too small. These x-small ones look like they would fit a squirrel! I had to return and order a size larger. They are very thin and flimsy, however, if you use a women's minipad in them, they could do the job. One of my dogs can get them off, so it depends on the dog as to whether they will work for you.

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I like having the washable, reusable doggie diapers rather than throwing money away on disposable. I would suggest skipping the Simple Solutions liners that are sold to go with the diaper and simply buying feminine hygenie pads. Cut them in half and they work perfect and are much more absorbent.

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A seller by the name of Ablackhorse is trying to dissuade me from posting my review of this product that they sold me so I will post my review here. I received NAVY and BLACK, x-small, diapers instead of the pink and purple shown. BOTH X-SMALL DIAPERS WERE TOO SHORT TO FIT COMFORTABLY AND THE SMALL SIZE IS MUCH TOO BIG FOR MY 8 POUND BICHON. The XS size just isn't cut correctly; unrealistic size. Made in China and China has poor quality control. The material is very thin so put a pad in it.

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EHEIM Compact+ Pump 3000 for up to 792 US Gallons (3000L)

I had a Mag5 return pupm for my saltwater sump setup but I needed more power with less noise. I was hesitant on buying an Eheim due to the extra cost but now that I have...I won't be turning back.

This baby is whisper quiet and fully adjustable! I have some ball valves on my sump just in case but the ability to adjust the gph on this pump is amazing. I use this on a 92 gallon bowfront sw tank for the return and just love this product. Strong suction cups and incredibly quiet for pumping so much water an hour.

It's only been a week since I've purchased it but to date I am more than pleased. I'll update my review after a few months but right now I am 100% satisfied!

I had the Lifeguard Quiet 5000 that was noisy from the start and broke down in just 3 months. I was worried about noise so I bought the Eheim 3000, instead of 5000. The pump works silently. I cannot hear it working in my aquarium. It feels quality made, it's not any more expensive than the other brand. Now, I am considering stepping up to the Eheim 5000.

You should know that the connection is 16mm. Not 25mm like most PVC pipes. I just taped the cylinder to make it larger for the mean time. I also ordered on ebay a silicone reduction pipe from 16m to 25mm.

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I bought this Ehiem adjustable pump for my 65 gallon reef aquarium to replace a Mag 700 pump. The Mag 700 was way too loud. Sounded like a dishwasher in my sump. This pump is so completely quiet that I can only hear my air pump for the air stones I have now. This is adjustable too so I can regulate the flow to exactly where I want it. The Mag 700 was only one speed full speed all the time. I am loving this pump right now. Eheim makes great products. The suction cups on the bottom help absorb the vibration too which is why I think it is so quiet. I would definitely recommend. Quiet and adjustable. The opposite of the Mag pumps.

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More than sufficient GPH for my application, actually overkill but may try and use it to plumb both reactor and return. It is also quieter than the pump that came with setup IMO, also fit the tight spot in my sump tank which is a Eshopps RS-75.

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I bought this a while ago and finally got it hooked up. It's in a sump for a saltwater aquarium. There's about four feet of head, and the return line has two 45-degree bends and splits off into two jets; but this pump still has plenty of oomph to create good flow in my 65-gallon display tank plus a little extra to divert some water to a refugium and a GFO reactor. And it's nice and quiet.

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TOM Aquarium Accessories Baby Nursery (live bearer & isolation container)

We bought this nursery when we discovered 7 very tiny orange fish floating in our tank. It works perfectly. I took out all of the dividers and the 7 little fish have more than enough room to grow safely. I put a piece of plant inside the nursery in case they wanted to seek cover. You keep the box about an inch above water so the little fish cannot sneak out. Very pleased with this product.

The product was excellent although I did not use it with the mother giving birth. By the time I ordered the product and installed it, the mother had already had the babies. I simply took out the pieces and used the nursery as a single isolation container inside the main tank to keep the babies in until they are large enough to release.

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The bottom and side vents are too large. I had noticed that before using; but I had a pregnant guppy which is about to give birth and I didn't have time to look for another nursery container. So I used it. The mother gave birth to more than thirty babies. While I was happily watching them, I noticed a baby trying to hide above a big leave at the surface of the aquarium. I caught it and placed it back inside this container. Then I noticed several others are outside. While I was catching and putting them back, smaller babies were falling out from the bottom and side vents. Finally, I transferred all of them to a food storage container. Those that I couldn't catch became live food for some of the adults.

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I've yet to have any fry survive this breeder. I have guppy and platy fry that survive without the use of a breeder tank in 2 of my other tanks, but one of my tanks has too many barbs and other excitable fish that usually eat up all the fry before I even know the mama has given birth. So in this one tank, I had decided to try this breeder box. I've put swordtail mamas and molly mamas in there, and so far none of the fry have survived. Some get their bodies trapped in the slits of the V, and never make it to the bottom of the breeder. The few that do make it to the bottom of the breeder get their bodies torn in half by the fish on the outside of the tank when their tails dangle thru the slits on the bottom of the breeder. So I wake up in the morning to a bunch of fish heads in the breeder. I put java moss in the box and a layer of gravel in the bottom of the breeder so that at least if the fish make it thru the V of the breeder, it might save them from the fish outside the breeder. This last time, I left out the V partition and just have gravel, a ton of java moss, and the insert that has a bunch of slits in it; only I put that in upside down, hoping the babies will at least fit thru the bigger slits. Also, the V insert is VERY hard to get out. After the last mama delivered, and there were a bunch of fry stuck in the top because their heads were too big to drop to bottom of breeder, I tried taking the V insert out while in the tank so that the babies could be in bottom of the tank. I probably killed more fry trying to take the V out. Very difficult. Also, the box does not always stay stuck to the side of the tank, maybe in a tank full of guppies, but not in a tank full of other larger and more active fish. I've found this box dangling halfway down the tank, being jostled about by the airline. Oh, and the lack of instructions for how to put it together is disappointing. For those wanting to try this, it comes together the right way in the box. Just make sure when you take it out of the box, that you remember exactly how it was put together. That was very confusing for me the first time because my excited 8 yr old unpacked it for me. :(

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This product should get an award for clever and functional design. It is made to keep Mama fish from eating her fry by allowing the babies to drift down to a safe zone below their mother's compartment. Attach an air line from your aquarium air pump to the built in filter, and voila, there's a filtered water flow through the nursery. The filter unit easily snaps on and off and fits either side of the nursery to accommodate your aquarium setup. The nursery is manufactured from clear acrylic plastic, which is strong (but probably brittle), but is absolutely see-through clear. The nursery box hangs in a clear plastic frame which attaches to the aquarium glass by suction cups.

This makes taking the nursery box in and out of the aquarium easy by leaving the frame semi-permanently in the fish tank.

As noted in other reviews, the slits in the plastic floor to allow for water flow are just slightly too large. In my Gambusia (mosquito fish) tank, a few of the tiniest fry can escape through these slits. Not a problem in my situation, as the ones who can wiggle through the slits escape into a babies-only compartment in my aquarium.

EcoTech Marine VorTech MP10 ES Propeller Aquarium Pump

I have a 40 gallon reef that has 1 mp10 and 1 Hydor K 750.

Simply put, this pump is awesome. It has five settings to choose from that changes the way the pump moves the water around.

-Constant speed: Puts out a steady constant stream of water

-Lagoon random: Used to simulate a low energy lagoon reef environment

-Reef Crest: Used to simulate a high energy reef crest environment

-Short Pulse

-Long Pulse

A couple of notes:

-The pump motor is attached on the outside of the aquarium to the 'wet side' of the machine that is in the aquarium. **Some reviewers have complained about the pump breaking or making a very loud sound. You MUST make sure the wet and the dry side of the MP10 are lined up properly before you run it full steam. I believe failure to do this will damage your pump. This is pretty straightforward but I spent a few minutes making sure they are properly lined up.

-The difference between the MP10 ES and the MP10 wES is that the wES models are capable of communicating with other MP10s in your tank allowing them to work in harmony together. If you are only planning to have one pump in your tank then I see no reason why you should get the wES model. Also, EcoTech allows you to upgrade anytime to the wES model by purchasing the wES controller from their website.

-The dial on the controller is used to set what level the pump should work at. For example, in reef crest the pump changes its speed constantly and randomly to simulate a reef environment. By turning the dial, you can set a maximum speed that the pump can reach while it is in a mode.

-Cleaning and taking apart the MP10 is a breeze. I simply dump it in vinegar over night and fresh RO/DI water the next day to get any slime off of it. Works well. The Dry side of the pump cannot be taken apart.

-The pump features a night mode that can be activated to operate at 50% speed for 10 hours at the same time every day until the pump loses its power. This is a great way to give your fish some sleep.

-In any of the modes, the main advantage of the pump is that it doesn't create a water tunnel that blows the water directly at an object in the aquarium but instead creates a random movement of water. This is great for corals that need lots of water movement but do not like to be hit with a water currently from one angle (which is what the Hydor does)

For more information make sure to look at the MP10 Manual which can be downloaded from the EcoTech website. I found it helpful to read it prior to making the decision to purchase the MP10.

This is an awesome pump. At first I was skeptical that it wouldn't be worth the price of purchase since it is $200+. However, seeing is believing and I see polyp extension on my LPS corals greater than ever before. I'm running a single MP10 on my 40 gallon mixed reef (LPS and SPS), and use the Lagoon setting at 75%. This pump moves plenty of water to keep the corals happy. My only regret is not buying this sooner.

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I have a 95 gallon salt water coral reef tank. I use this power head to provide water movement that comes close to real varied currents in a reef. Using the Vortex MP 10 set to operate in the EcoSmart NTM (Nutrient Transport Mode) it does just what is says it will do. It moves all the junk in my tank around with a combination of pulses and power moves so that stuff goes out the over flow. For those that have problems with noise.. I can only imagine the didn't have it aligned right, which is as easy as pie. Mine performs PERFECTLY... I just followed the instructions.

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I have owned this pump for a little over a year-about 16 months. I like the fact that this pump has a low profile inside my 25 gal cube reef tank. everything was fine until about a month ago when the motor(the dry side) starting making a loud grinding noise. spoke to customer service at ecotech and was told to send everything back to them. a few days later I was told I had to buy a new dry side motor unit. even though I asked several times as to what happened or caused this failure, I was not given any information. The warranty is 1 year and ecotech stuck to that. Needless to say given the cost of this pump it should have lasted longer than 16 months. at the very least it should have been repaired or replaced for free. I will be going with Koralia pumps and their new controller when this thing breaks again. and I'm sure it will. For the price of one ecotech I can set up two tanks with dual pumps and controllers and still have money left over for dinner! I own a couple of Koralia nanos already and these things just keep going.

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Added to my rsm130d and can't be more pleased. I have not had a chance to play with all the settings but reef crest is working great. Can't go wrong with this pump.

Aqueon 34503 ProFlex Sump Model 4, 120-210-Gallon

Love the design of the pump and was exactly what I was looking for. Unfortunately, there is a lower corner leak in the third chamber. It was a little disheartening as I had my reef tank up and running already. I already hard plumbed the sump to the display with PVC. So, if I had to return it, I would have to dismantel it by cutting the drain pipe and replacing the bulkhead. This would be a lot of time an expense. Then I would have to return the product and wait again for them to ship it back to me. I couldn't afford to wait that long as my tank was already full of water and some livestock.

So, I decided to drain the whole sump and just re-sealed the edges with silicon. It stopped the leak and hopefully it won't open up again. I know the product has a warranty against leaks. Like I said, the sump works fine now, just disappointed I had to deal with the leak.

Once I fixed the leak and Rigged the overflow panel in the first chamber it works great. Not sure if all the parts came or not.

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I was bummed out over this product. Really my fault in buying it It's not that great. I threw out the "filters", they got "gunned" up in one week (expected really). The other area for use as a REFUGIUM is close to worthless. The construction I thought was flimsy way to thin plastic careful here. The tubes the provide will gunk up real fast as they are the ribbed flex tubes. Just by a cheap aquarium with out all the fancy garbage... really nothing added here folks. My bad in buying it.

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If you want to experiment with different sump designs, this is likely a great place to start, especially for the price. However, there are some annoying oddities. I am using it for a ~150 gallon turtle aquarium, so I have a bit of an odd usage as well. As the turtles eat just about every plant except java fern and java moss, I am running a refugium for some fast-growing plants to help with nitrate. However, I also need to run some biomedia (in my case, seachem matrix). This doesn't situation work out so well out of the box, but after some fab work, it's running well.

The Good:

1) Uses standard 4" socks. While the aqueon socks are nice, they are expensive, so it's great to be able to buy standard size socks, unlike other brands who use hard to find square ones or non-standard 3.75" and other craziness. It also lets you change micron size easily, as aqueon only seems to make one. For instance, I can run two 200 micron and one 50 micron for a couple days for some relatively quick water polishing.

2) For lower turnover, nearly dead silent. If you keep the GPH low enough using hard plumbing such that air bubbles don't form, the underwater inlet design is nearly silent. The only thing you will hear is water running from the 2nd to the 3rd chamber if you keep the 3rd chamber reasonably low.

3) Reasonably priced. Yes, the acrylic is thinner than it could be, no flame polished edges, et cetera, but that all keeps the cost down. So far it is only a fit/feel issue and not a functionality issue. If the edges are bonded well it shouldn't leak, but we'll see. I'm hoping the others with leaks were a manufacturing defect and not a design issue.

4) Highly configurable. Let's face it, a fair portion of this hobby is about trying different things or changing your mind. If you don't know what kind of sump you want to run, or change the aquarium and it's inhabitants around, it's great to be able to re-use the sump in different ways.

The Bad:

1) no room for heaters. Most people want to have heaters in the sump rather than the display tank, mounted vertically, and configured in a weir so that they do not go dry when the power to the pumps is off. The only place to do that on this sump is in the first chamber with the filter socks. This is hard to reach, very close to the socks which get tangles in the wires, and not very tall, so most of the common heaters (e.g. ebo-jager, and oddly aqueon's own heaters) do not fit. I ended up using three hydor theo 200's which gets by.

2) The adjustable wall between chamber 1 and 2 is held in place by the water force. Once the water stops, the wall falls. Not a big deal for a wet/dry filter, but if you are using it as a fuge, you suddenly have one big fuge that plants and animals can escape to. If you have a skimmer in #2, the water level change is sure to be frustrating. I ended up trimming some plastic tablecloth hold-down clips to keep it in place. A couple stainless or plastic clips would do wonders here. Perhaps I'm one of the few that turns the water off for feeding, or ever has power failures .

3) The bubble trap's overflow (between the 2nd and 3rd chamber) is too low/non adjustable. Rather than the sponge trap, which is likely nice for skimmers, I used the overflow before the return chamber to hold my biomedia. However, the overflow is non-adjustable and set really low, so most of the water was flowing over the top of the media rather than through it. I suspect the same thing would happen with the bubble trapping sponge, but I haven't tried. I ended up cutting a piece of acrylic to make the overflow taller, yet still shorter than the refugium wall so it won't flood while pumps are off

4) The return area takes up the most space of all the chambers. I suppose this makes sense for the few without an auto top off so that the pumps won't run dry on a daily basis, but I'd rather this area be used to give me more filter/refugium space or a space for heaters/equipment.

5) The inlet water tube noise reducers are sealed. Perhaps a small child could get their hand down there to clean, but no adult could. Since they are sealed, you can't disassemble them either, leaving them to attract sloughed algae, snails, and the like.

6) The incoming water tubes are small. At least for the model 4, 1.5" inlet tubes should be in place to match the flow numbers they have posted. I used hard PVC direct to them, but the reducing coupling slows the water quite a bit and makes for a lot more noise than if they were larger in the first place.

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While this is a great sump there are a few things that create drawbacks to it. One the filter socks are hard to place and remove, let alone are expensive and clog quickly. Two there is no way this can handel 2200gph. I have 1450 exactly running through it and it is maxed out. Im usint two 1.5" lines feeding the sump and the 1" 90's going to it are to restrictive for that kind of flow level. Other than that its worth every penny.

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Laguna Submersible Water Pump, 200-GPH

I bought this pump just under two years ago and it has failed. Since I turn it on only occasionally, I didn't get very many hours out of it. I took it apart and and all the parts look fine, so it must be something electrical. I have a Laguna Max-Flo 2400 that has run continuously for over 5 years so I think this failure may have been a fluke. Anyway, I just purchased another one. It is one of the few low-volume pumps that has enough head for my fountain.

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Aquatic Life Light T5 HO 2-Lamp Link Marine Aquarium Light, 48-Inch

I have been using 2 of these over my 55 gallon reef tank for more than a year now and I can grow anything! The reflectors are great and really focus the light down into the tank. The included bulbs are crap so make sure to replace them with quality ones (ATI, Geissman, etc.) I'm growing SPS corals 18" below the surface with these fixtures.

Decided to add the 2 bulb to my 75 gallon setup. I bought the Aquatic Life Light T5 HO 4-Lamp 4-Lunar Aquarium Light, 48-Inch with Timer for $334.54 and it's a Rock Star of lights. Decided to add the 2 bulb to that awesome 4 bulb fixture thinking I would get the same quality. For the record I also bought their 200GPD RO system which is also incredible.

So I think to myself this 4 bulb unit is an awesome light I should add the 2 bulb to augment it. Looks the same must be the same quality cool.

It's NOT. This 2 bulb fixture is ridiculously cheaply constructed in comparison. You have to take the thing apart to install the feet and the shield. So to clean the shield you have to remove the side cover (4 screws). However, that's not really a problem since the SHIELD won't STAY IN THE FIXTURE. They used such thin aluminum in this light that it is flexible like thin cardboard. There are no midbraces to the center of the light cover and it flexes outwards due to the thinness of the metal and the shield falls out and hangs into the tank.

Legs are cheap, difficult to install also require the removal of the side cover, and the unit is so lightweight that one false move and it's off the tank or horrors in the tank...

the 10k bulb is is very yellow weird almost like a FW plant light.

Aquatic Life should pull this off the market and redesign it into something higher quality and keep the price the same.

However I would recommend this item http://www.amazon.com/Aquatic-Life-4-Lunar-Aquarium-48-Inch/dp/B0030VD4OU/ref=pd_sim_sbs_petsupplies_6

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This isn't a knock on the product, but please be wary when you purchase these kind of light fixtures online two of the last three I've ordered have arrived with at least one shattered bulb, and anything fragile shipped via UPS usually turns into bad news for me. This isn't universal to buying online, when I buy bulbs at my local fish store the first one I inspect is often in pieces, but at least locally you can get a good one before leaving the store.

Despite arriving with a broken bulb, it was packaged better than some of the non-HO T5 units I've had shipped to me. The bulbs were wrapped in plastic, which made it easy to clean up (I didn't have to go fishing to make sure I'd gotten every piece of glass out of there), and the bulbs had a few small pieces of styrofoam wrapped around them for support (better than nothing).

The plastic lens cover as they call it has plastic you have to peel off of it on both sides to protect it, but after doing so I immediately noticed mine was dirty and a bit scratched up anyway. It's also a hair too long, when I re-attach the end cap you have to remove to slide the cover in, it keeps trying to pop out of the fixture.

The power cord is also too short, in my opinion. It's 2 meters (just over 6.5 feet), but fish tanks combined with their stands can be pretty tall, and this unit on my tank sits at over five feet up and I honestly don't like keeping surge protectors that close to my tanks. Obviously this can be solved with an extension cord.

The product also did not come with a manual or any instructions at all how to put it together. You can find one pretty easily at Aquatic Life's website, and this may have just been an oversight, but was definitely a little inconvenient.

Other than that, it's a basic T5 HO unit no timer (have my own anyway) or moonlights. But the thing that's honestly attractive about it is its price.

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I bought this product in April and it's early September. I noticed last week one of the bulbs was not working. Bought the same AquaticLife Bulbs and it still didn't work. We tried them in another fixture and WOW!!! They worked. The light went out in just 6 months. AquaticLife said they have a 12 month warranty. I got ahold of them and this warranty was I pay the shipping there and back plus parts. This came up to what the light was brand new. In conclusion this is a bad choice. You get what you pay for and my livestock and me paid the price. A product that does not last 6 months is not safe for a costly reef setup and it could cause a huge loss of money as it did me. All I can do is tell you what happened to me and wouldn't wish this on anyone.

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Estes Permaglow Yellow 5lb Bag Aquarium Gravel

I never write reviews, but here's one I had to for future buyers. The picture shows a beautiful, consistent yellow gravel. This is not what arrived. Initially I thought they accidentally sent me green but it was what they called yellow. It was light, yellowish green, but definitely green. Also, it was not solidly painted, it was speckled with color that covered most of these rounded pebbles but was not solidly covered which makes it look cheap. I also didn't appreciate having to pull out twigs that counted as part of my 5lbs a bag, they were also poorly painted. I don't recommend this "yellow" or the product itself in any other color based on the quality I received.

I bought these thinking they were yellow.

Guess what? They are green, with a yellowish tint. So if you want yellow don't buy. If you want puke colored, then these are perfect for you!

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Baby biOrb Swap Top Blue - 4 Gallon

It was super easy to put on my baby biOrb and now it has a better look! The only con is that it doesn't stay on which isn't really a problem for me since I don't move my biOrb at all so...

The rings are great. They were easy to use and change out. The bottom one actually just slides over the existing silver one, but the top one you change out completely. This is a well made product and you can't go wrong buying it to help match your room!

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Hamilton Technology Blue LED Aquarium Accent Light Strip

These work great for moonlights. I only paid $40 for mine. Not sure who the heck would pay $310. Maybe a mistake?

These are best used for moonlights or supplement t5. Dont think this will light up the entire tank. Not really designed for that

these things are $37 on other online sites...$310???? Are YOU kidding me???? Noone in their right mind is going to pay that for about what 20 LED's...

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Quiet One Lifegard Aquarium Pump, 1400-Gallon Per Hour

The name Quiet One does not really refer to its operation as it is everything but.. It does raise the temp of the water, for the price I would expect more!! Look at your other choices...

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Fluval FX5 External Canister Filter

I've had my Fluval FX5 since summer of 2008 and have been running it non-stop since then on a 125 gallon freshwater aquarium. In 2009 I added a Coralife Turbo-Twist UV Sterilizer (36 W) and my water has been absolutely crystal clear for months at a time (I highly recommend this addition). The few times I've noticed it get a little murky (when the curtain was open and sunlight enhanced algae growth) it was totally clear within 12 hours.

The Fluval FX5 is a great filter but requires regular cleaning (every 1-3 months full filter clean). However, you don't need to replace all of the media each time you clean the filter (which can get really expensive). Instead, you can use a garden hose or similar very strong spray to clean the main filter sponges (around the edges of the filter) and the blue filter pads. The white polishing pad should be replaced regularly. I rinse the bio media in tank water and dechlorinated fresh water to get rid of any chunks of things.

As others have said, expect a tiny bit of water when you close the valves and remove the hoses to move the filter, which makes sense since there's about 2" between the valve shut off and the filter. I keep a towel wrapped around when I remove the hose and have never had an issue with getting my hardwood floors wet.

The filter, when full of media and water is heavy but not too bad. It weighs around 40-50 lbs like that (depending on your media).

I suggest having tube cleaning brushes on hand to clean out the intake and output tubes (the ones in the filter no need to remove the filter tubes from the filter to the aquarium). Otherwise a sponge will clean the inside of the filter perfectly and a strong spray will clean everything else.

When it's running it is incredibly quiet. And as others have said, it's good to note that when you first turn it on it will run for 2 minutes then shut off for 2 minutes then will run for about 24 hours then shut off for two minutes and turn back on. It will do that every 24 hours to remove air in the system.

A few things to note:

This filter has incredible suction, it's made for a 400 gallon tank. Don't place plants or bubble makers anywhere near it or it will suck the plants against and in and the bubbles up (that will make your filter noisy).

If you are breeding anything in your tank, expect to find babies in the filter. I find Corydora catfish in the filter all the time. They're alive and fine, but need to be moved to the main tank rather quickly so clean the filter every month. Thin skinny fish like loaches may be sucked up into the filter if they can't swim fast enough so you may want to put a breeding basket around it to keep them away but not hinder the filter intake.

The media is expensive, but you can make your own rough filter pads (open hole filled black filter media), and carbon bags much cheaper than buying the premade media. However, the rest you'll want to buy real Fluval parts (search for best prices).

Remember to fill it until it's about 1-1.5" from the top before attaching to to the hoses. You don't want the filter to have to work too hard to finish filling. It is self priming but needs that much help to make it work effectively.

If you hear it struggling after you hook it up (and you added enough water) it's because there's too much air in the system, turn it off, wait about 15 seconds, turn it back on. You'll see a huge mass of bubbles come out then it will work fine.

Remember to open the valves once you have it hooked up to the hoses before plugging it in. Yes I've plugged it in and forgotten to open the valves.

Overall I highly recommend this filter for any tanks 100 gallons and greater.

I've been running the FX5 on a 125 gallon turtle setup for about two months now. Setup is very easy, especially if you have previous experience with canister filters. I saw another review that stated that the filter was noisy, but mine is pretty quiet even when the tank stand's door is open and the filter is exposed to the room. My flowrate has been relatively high, especially considering that it is packed with biomax and polishing pads. It is important to note that unlike other Fluval canisters, this beast actually filters water from top down, so you'll want your finer media like polishing pads in the bottom basket.

I docked a star because I am not a big fan of the design of the internal media baskets, nor do I like the cheap plastic 'T' rods that are used to pull them out. Also, despite the stop valves on the intake and outtake hoses, be ready to clean-up water when detaching for routine cleaning.

Although the Eheim Professional Canister Filters are arguably better for certain purposes, you aren't going to beat the value of the Fluval FX5. The features and specs you get are equivalent to several much more expensive filter options.

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I got one of these from my local F/S, and it works great. It is very large though, which to me is a good thing. More Water volume which is always a plus with saltwater aquariums. It comes with a DVD that tells you how to set it up. You don't really need the DVD, because it is quite simple to set up and get started. It comes with more than enough hose to do the job. I have the hose coiled around in the bottom of my stand it is so long. Every night it shuts off to let the air bubbles escape and then turn back on. You don't have to do anything to start it. So far their have been no leaks or mechanical failures.

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I'll keep it short and to the facts.

The FX5 does everything it is advertised to and is very quiet. I am using it on an 85 gallon freshwater tank stocked with 7 3-4 inch African Cichlids, 10 2 inch clown loaches, 10 tiny convicts, one 6 inch plecostomus, and 2 one inch rays. I only add aquarium salt to the tank and treat the tap water with Aquasafe during 25% water changes once a week; no other chemicals. After running the FX5 for 3 days I tested the water for ammonia (0 ppm), ph (7.5), nitrite (.5 ppm), and nitrate (40 ppm); all within tolerances for an established community tank, albeit a little low for the cichlids.

My conclusion? The FX5 rocks and is well worth the money.

My long journey to this conclusion (in short form)-

I read all of the reviews and ordered an Eheim Pro 3 2180 a couple of months ago. Sent it back immediately because I use salt in the water and that would destroy the internal water heater and subsequently the pump (according to the Eheim technician).

I then ordered an Eheim Pro 3e 2076; it came, it leaked profusely at the pump-to-canister seal (made an incredible mess), tried all of the solutions mentioned in the troubleshooting section of the documentation, called the tech line to no avail, returned the pump for full refund.

I then ordered an Eheim Pro 3e 2078; it came, it leaked profusely at the pump-to-canister seal also, became disgusted at the product quality, returned the unit for a full refund.

I then ordered the Fluval FX5; it came, it worked as stated, I'm very happy!

Hope this helps.

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I really like this pump. It keeps the water in my 150g crystal clear and my fish happy. Recently though I have been having problems with it. Every couple of days the pump quits working. I have to then take the pump off the unit and pull it apart to see what the issue is. I haven't found anything obvious but whenever I do that it seems to do the trick. I thought it was the substrate that I use but it wasn't dirty. I'm kind of clueless on this one. I'm going to email fluval and see what they say. I might just have a defective pump. Like I said earlier when this pump works it's awesome so most likely the one you get will work fine. I just thought that i would spread the word.

UPDATE: NOV 16,2011Pump works great. Had too much media in the system and I was blocking the flow of water basically. I would definitely buy this pump for my aquarium. You can't go wrong with this one.

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TOM Aquarium Ceramic Bio-Cylinders 24oz.

This stuff is awesome. Came in a large mesh bag. I broke that open and used the contents for several add you own media filters and have a lot left over. Plus, there were no broken rings in the bag at all. These ceramic rings seem pretty tuff as I banged them around a bit threading them on nylon string for easy placement and removal from filters. Worth it compared to others.

Tetra Whisper In-Tank Filter 40I with BioScrubber, 20 to 40-Gallon

I own 7 pet turtles. I have two red-eared sliders, four mud turtles and one map turtle. I use the Whisper 40i filters in all my turtle tanks. After trying several different types of filters (ie Zoo Med 501 and Reptofilter) for my turtle tanks, I have found that these work the best and are the easiest to use.

First of all, they do keep the water clean as long as you change the filter media regularly. How often it needs to be changed depends on the type of animal, or in my case turtle, that you own. It also depends on the amount of water in your habitat and other factors. The replacement media is fast to change and more inexpensive than the replacements for other turtle filters I've used.

The filter can be either hung on the side of the tank or completely suction cupped to the side. For functionality, I have found that tanks with shallow water do better with the filter sitting on the bottom of the tank and attached to the wall. Also, pets that are more likely to knock the filter down should have it attached to the wall instead of hung. When it falls in the water, the tank can become very dirty within a matter of hours. My sliders kept knocking one in the water and now the motor does not seem to work as well as it once did.

Make sure that your tank will have at least 4 inches of water in it or this filter will not work for you.

Overall, a solid product!

Had to buy 2 of these within 2 years, they don't hold up long enough for the price you have to pay, motor quit, it should last longer than what it does.

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Purchased 2 units--One each for 30gal. & 20gal. tank. No problem getting oversized units. Only problem occurs when mounting in tank where water level is at top. Used a small piece of wood to mount properly; however, as filter accumulates material, the filter starts to splatter some water. The 40i should have been designed with a cover to prevent this. I have simply placed a small refrigerator storage container over the filter top, and this seems to be the effective solution. Note that the filter is extremely quiet. I am continuing the use of air pumps in those aquaria.

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These pumps appear to work, but they make more noise than my hang-on-back filters.

I put two of these in two side-by-side 20 gallon aquariums. They are in my bedroom and at night, as well as day, I can hear the water gurgling. I fixed the problem by bending the filter cartridge back a little to overlap the water hole. That silenced them enough to live with. They still hum fairly loudly. I may sell one and get another Top-Fin 30 and keep the other as an emergency backup. I won't be buying any more.

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I bought this filter to go into a turtle tank. The design suggested that it would be suitable for this application. I have also had good experiences with other Whisper filters I've owned in the past. I have not been putting up with it for about 1.5-2 months. I loath this filther. First, the suctions cups don't stay on so the filter continuously falls into the tank. There should also be at least 4 suction cups. Having 2 placed in the center of the filter means it rocks back and forth and is not secure. Second, the bracket you can use in place of the top suction cup doesn't fit on the lip of my tank. So again, it keeps falling into the tank. If I can't return it because it's been used I may actually just throw it away. If you're looking for a good internal filter check out Ovation or Fluval. Don't waste your money on this one.

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