List products of high and low quality - YOU have personally used.

Let's share insight about the past, recent and current Aquarium products/items of quality.

Seachem, Seachem, Seachem. Seriously LOVE, LOVE, LOVE their products.

I haven't really had bad experiences with anything, per se. I don't really like API.

I use Seachem Matrix, Prime, American Cichlid Salt, and Stability. About to get some Purigen as well as some neutral regulator [just in case, but i've never strayed from neutral pH] and cichlid trace.

I wish they made an app for Android rather than JUST iPhone

Or equipment.

Equipment -
Rena canister filters (love them) any and all.... they are very easy to start up... and very easy to take apart, and put back together.... never spill water!
Fluval (dont like so much) clamps are very hard to open, and if you use to much muscle, you break something! also, they are very difficult to start for the first time.... the pumping thing never works properly!

Food -
HBH spirulina super soft pellets - awesome! fish love them, and get all the vitamins they need! there color just gets amazing too. and because they are sinking pellets, the alge graizers like tropheus kinda eat them thru out the day.

Coralife esu compact fixtures....all crap now. 5 years ago they were the best on the market. I have baught 10 of them for client in last year 50% of them fried ballests (not in cramped airtight applications either). I am a recent convert to the t5 glo fixtures( I still think it is a rip off they don't come with bulbs included like every other fixture in the universe...but I guess I'll live) but none have gone bad on me so far. Also unofficially and off the record some of my local shops I deal with selling my fish have noticed the same trend with recent quality of the coralife esu stuff. Most common one bulb on ballasts (double bulb models) just stops working...fried ballast and not warrantied after 90 days( whatever coralife honors). If you ask me they became greedy and outsourced their production and now they are full of cheap Chinese crap parts. Not worth the money. You will agree if you buy a 4 bulb fixture for 350$ and it's fried in 6 months. My older ones are running like champs.... Just the new ones are not the same.
Lilydog

hydro sponges A+

hydro koralia power heads A++++ lots of movement in a gentle flow of water not a jet

Fluval canisters B a little hard to open but just means seals good if not over stuffed spilled one all over the floor once

Fluval FX5 A+++ its a work horse

oh and titanium tube heaters work great and the the temp dial is on the out side of the tank easy adjustments no wet hands

aquaclear HOB: easy to use, filter media can be set at any kind; whether it may be more mechanical, bio or just for carbon usage.
these filters are best with Fluval prefilter sponges that fit around the input nozzle, for much better filtration needs.
i would not elect these HOB filters for higher gallon tanks, such as 100+
about water circlulation, these HOB's do not circulate tank water as it should; seem like the filtered water will be refiltered again, due to the close proximity of both in and output.

rena XP4: quiet, powerful and the filter media options offers a very wide varity of media layout.
plus the 4 trays offer much needed space to maximize the GPH vs tank gallons.
setup and priming is easy.
one of the solid players of the canister catagory.

marineland visi-therm heaters: ease of use and durable, comes with a lifetime guarantee. my favourite unit for heating.

Hydor ETH 300wt In Line Heater.

Love it!
1. Keeps temperature steady all the time, no fluctuations.
2. No more hot glass tube in tank = safer fish, esp. when you keep big bruisers! Also gain some real estate in tank due to giant tube being gone.
3. Convenient - Not having to reach into water to make changes / priceless!

I totally recommend this to anyone with a canister!

Second the Hydor heater! (knock on wood)

Eheim canister filters I hear are the best, though I have one that works great and a friend had one that did until it didn't and started an epic leak.

The Greenleaf rimless tank I have looks great AND holds water.

Aquatic magic rhino diffuser and bubble counter is well-priced and does the trick but the check valves they sell are junk. Better to go stainless if you're running co2.

Coralife has never made a product I particularly liked. I prefer Seachem or DIY.

The BioCube stands are as well-built as Ikea furniture but cost more.

I use a 105 watt sunlite 65k cfl bulb on a pendant for my planted tank. They seem to overheat easily but are rather cheap.

I'm done spending money on fancy substrates. Too much money for what they do.

Marinleand: visi-therm heater.

I'm running 2 300 watts in my big tank; based on their performance, totally reliable and accurate.
I set the heaters at 82, the heaters are running at 78, thus adding room temp for a total of 82.

I've had my Fluval FX5 over 6 years now, and still running like a champ.
I've been running Fluval since day 1 and have come to use them a lot.

The Stealth plastic heaters were great but they discontinued them.

I don't use it enough, but have come to realize that the Gravel plate and air bubbles make the best filtering system, hands down.


Lows:
Filstar Xp3 : leaks, terrible hosing!
Genx -PCX40, 55, LOUD!
Wet Dry Filter, great for filtering water but due to high water flow it stinks up the house!

Lilydog wrote:Coralife esu compact fixtures....all crap now. 5 years ago they were the best on the market. I have baught 10 of them for client in last year 50% of them fried ballests (not in cramped airtight applications either). I am a recent convert to the t5 glo fixtures( I still think it is a rip off they don't come with bulbs included like every other fixture in the universe...but I guess I'll live) but none have gone bad on me so far. Also unofficially and off the record some of my local shops I deal with selling my fish have noticed the same trend with recent quality of the coralife esu stuff. Most common one bulb on ballasts (double bulb models) just stops working...fried ballast and not warrantied after 90 days( whatever coralife honors). If you ask me they became greedy and outsourced their production and now they are full of cheap Chinese crap parts. Not worth the money. You will agree if you buy a 4 bulb fixture for 350$ and it's fried in 6 months. My older ones are running like champs.... Just the new ones are not the same.
Lilydog

thanks, I was thinking of picking one up this weekend.

Acrylic fish tanks.
Easy to move (100+ gallons), no seams to reseal (worry free), and lifetime guarantee (if bought from manufacturer, 30+ years).

AquaClear HOB Filters
These are awesome, plain and simple.

Morton Water Softener Salt (says on website can use for freshwater aquariums)
40 lbs for $5. Haven't looked back since. Great for disease treatment, Quarantine tanks, and nursing fish that had the snot beat outta them.

Love; Aquaclear hang on filters
cascade canisters.
Wound ease by mag float labs, amazing stuff for healing beat up fish
Prime
Flourish excel
Spirulina 20 by zoo med, by far the beast flake food I have ever used and it is very well balanced
New life spectrum is my favorite pellet.

Hate; Fluval canisters, they are a royal pain in the butt
Cascade hang on's, the bio part is nice but the surface turbulence is really lacking

frozen Mysis
Aquaclear HOB's
Marineland Stealth Heaters
PRIME PRIME PRIME
NLS foods
CPR protein skimmers

alexmuw wrote:Acrylic fish tanks.
Easy to move (100+ gallons), no seams to reseal (worry free), and lifetime guarantee (if bought from manufacturer, 30+ years).

AquaClear HOB Filters
These are awesome, plain and simple.

Morton Water Softener Salt (says on website can use for freshwater aquariums)
40 lbs for $5. Haven't looked back since. Great for disease treatment, Quarantine tanks, and nursing fish that had the snot beat outta them.

where can I buy the salt?

protocl wrote:
where can I buy the salt?

Home Depot

Rena XP series canisters - so far, so good. easy to maintain, lots of space for filtration media.
fluval fx5 - work horse of this hobby!
never had a problem with leakage, shotty workmanship nor quality. day after day, these canisters fulfill their duties!

couple a sponge prefilter on these canisters and the water is always clean!