Your 2 cents

[FtwayneFish]

Hey everyone, just wanted your 2 cents about some things.
I need a new filter for my 10g. I need 2 new heaters one for my 5g and my 10g. And i might get some small powerheads for co2 or just a bell reactor or something later.

1. What is your favorite brand filter? beside cartridge, in tank. its for above^

2. What is your favorite heater? one sized for the tanks listed above.^

3. What site do you use when ordering online? lfs are expensive.

4. Between the two which one? Big Als or Dr. Foster and Smith.

5. What water treater (lol) is best in your opinion?

6. I seen some remove like everything. Dont you want a lil ite,ate,hardness in your water? like some metals (not copper) in small amounts? I have shrimp?


I thankyou in advance

[jpappy789]

I like AC hobs. I have had no problems with them so far. I do not like my biowheel however

Stealth heaters are by far the best, and most recommended on this site

I always try looking on aquabid first just in case I can get a deal otherwise BigAl's and Drsfosterandsmith are commoly used sites

I have no preference between them, though I use Drsfosterand smith more often, dont know why

[FtwayneFish]

thankyou!

(super off topic, didnt you think that movie on your avatar was just completly awful? unless your watching it with a -b- movie mentality)

keep em' coming please

I thank ya

[jpappy789]

haha I never watched it all the way trough, got bored...but its the theme of the mafia game in GCC

what are you loking for online...it might be best to just compare prices. I have not hear of any other diffference between the two.

[southpaw]

Goto Petsmart.com and print off thier online prices and take them to the store and they will pricematch.....

You can get a 25w Stealth for the 5g and a 50w Stealth for the 10g ...

I bought a 50w one for a 10g I have there last night...took in printoff and they pricematched it...Store price was $27.99 and I got it for $16.99

[jpappy789]

Hey everyone, just wanted your 2 cents about some things.
I need a new filter for my 10g. I need 2 new heaters one for my 5g and my 10g. And i might get some small powerheads for co2 or just a bell reactor or something later.

1. What is your favorite brand filter? beside cartridge, in tank. its for above^

2. What is your favorite heater? one sized for the tanks listed above.^

3. What site do you use when ordering online? lfs are expensive.

4. Between the two which one? Big Als or Dr. Foster and Smith.

5. What water treater (lol) is best in your opinion?

6. I seen some remove like everything. Dont you want a lil ite,ate,hardness in your water? like some metals (not copper) in small amounts? I have shrimp?


I thankyou in advance

I think you are referring to RO water which removes everthing basically. Its not recommended with most FW setups unless you get really delicate fish.

Though remember that you should have 0 nitrite ;)

Yes pricematching is also a good way to get things cheap.

[FtwayneFish]

im looking for the equipment listed above on the first post.

(again super off topic, but since you mentioned it. what the heck is this mafia thing? an aquaria central game? about fish or what? how do you play ect?)


keep em' coming please

I thank ya

[jpappy789]

im looking for the equipment listed above on the first post.

(again super off topic, but since you mentioned it. what the heck is this mafia thing? an aquaria central game? about fish or what? how do you play ect?)


keep em' coming please

I thank ya
look at the GCC section, its a game

do you have a petsmart near you? I dont think you can beat their prices with pricematching and not having to pay for shipping...

[FtwayneFish]

ya i have a petsmart by me! thats great! and no its not RO water. just diffrent conditioners say they remove ite,ate,chlorine (which i get), chlorimine (which i get), and metals ect. didnt know if you wanted that stuff in there or if there was a huge diffrence in what brand folks used on here.

[jpappy789]

All you need to remove is chlorine/chloramine and that can be done with any old brandname dechlorinator. Most however like prime because it does all that while detoxifying ammonia, etc...prime is great to use and has no ill efects.

[NJ Devils Fan]

Aqua clear and Emperor filters are the two best HOB filters on the market right now. Just use the respective media for either one. With the emperor, you have a bit more play in the fact that it comes with a media basket for which you could put some polyfill or something similiar in that will aid in capturing very small particles. Big Al's has the cheapest prices, and they don't only match prices if you find something lower, they will beat it by 5%. Super fast shipping from them as well. As far as heaters, Ebo Jager and Tronic are very popular, can't go wrong with either.

[southpaw]

I did some looking at Big Al's and their prices are far better than Petsmarts....but they didnt offer free shipping like Petsmart (over $50) and with shipping I wasnt going to come out any better price wise...so I just went to Petsmart to pricematch thier online prices... I think some might even pricematch the Big Al prices but I didnt print them out when I went to ask them.

[FtwayneFish]

any one else? what kind of filters and heaters do you like and use on your tanks.

[jpd1821]

For filters, my favorite is the Aquaclears, and for heaters I have never really had a problem with any, right now I have a Tetra submersible but will eventually replace it with a stealth.

[fishieperson321]

My Favorite filters are the Emperor series for large tanks and the Whisper series for smaller tanks than 20 gallons.


My favorite heater is the Visi Therm Deluxe heaters. They seem to be the most accurate that I have used and are very durable.

The only website I have ordered from is Drs. Foster and Smith. They have great sales and almost anything you could imagine along with fast shipping.

I always use AquaSafe water conditioner, but sometimes when I don't get such a good pay check I just buy the $2 bottle of Chlor Out from Wally World.

Daniel

[FtwayneFish]

anyone else?

[FtwayneFish]

bump

[Cory Keeper]

may I reccomend a Rena Smart filter, does a wonderful job filtering a 10g, just not 20g, Heater would be a stealth and conditioner would be prime.

[FtwayneFish]

awesome

[bullseye69]

AC all the way :) just put a AC 70 on my 10G

[jmhart]

A lot of people like Aqua Clear's. I use a Magnum 350 cannister in conjunction with a Penquin 330 HOB on my 46g and I use an Eheim 2026 on my 30g. The Magnum is cool, but in it's OEM setup offers no biological filtration. The Eheim is awesome, but pricey. Eheim makes the best canniter filters. If you don't care about price, Eheim is the way to go. Rena is a good alternative with a lower price. If you want a HOB, AC.

Visi-therm Stealth.


I'd say always look on both Foster and Smith and BigAl's, compare prices. Also, try froogle, it'll do the walking for you. Pricematch at Petsmart can be worth it on one or two items. Shipping at Fosters and Smith is cheap and doesn't get above $14, so if there is a lot you want, often times it's way cheaper to order it all at once and pay shipping once. Even with shipping, it'll be cheaper than Petsmart price match. For example, API Master Test Kit is 29.99 at Petsmart(online and in store), it's $15.00 + $10.00 at Foster and Smith. You already save $5, and anything else you order is either free shipping(basically) or just $4 more shipping for big stuff.

[BadDogsPa]

1. Whisper Power Filters,Easy clean and usage
2. Visi Therm Stealth, have never had one fail yet
3. Petsmart.com
4. Big Als No Doubt!
5. API - Tap Water Conditioner

[jmhart]

I forgot to mention, but you already know: Prime, always and only Prime.

[FtwayneFish]

Man someone needs to make jeffrey a MOD! Hes very helpfull and always spot on.

UPDATE.
I got a Whisper 10 for my 10g.
I havnt bought heaters for my 5g-10g yet, but will get visi therm stealth.
I got too many gift cards to go online.
I got Seachem Prime. yesssssss
I also found a steal 10.00 each. AC 70 and 50 powerheads. too much for my 5 and 10 real bummer.

[pinkertd]

The Visi Therm Deluxe heaters are just as realiable. They are glass though so can be broken....although that doesn't bother me. I've not broken a glass heater in all my years of fishkeeping. The thing I like about the Deluxe rather than the Stealth is that they have an indicator light on them. I have the confidence that the heaters are working from just walking in to any of the three rooms where my tanks are and seeing that light! If I didn't have the lights on the heaters I would probably be walking over to the tanks constantly checking the temperature!

Also, my two cents about water conditioner. I use NovAqua+, buy it in the jug size from Drs. F&S. One of these days I'll remember why I decided against Prime, but at the time, I was interested in trying one of the resin products and something in the Prime would interfere with the way the resin product worked.

[FtwayneFish]

thanks pinkertd. i love the light on my heater for my 55g. i didnt know the stealth's didnt have a light? but i like the black un-noticableness.

[svf]

I work at a Petsmart, so I can tell you that the price match thing is wonderful. Just remember that there are some items on the website that are not in the store, and there are some items in the store that are not on the website. One more thing to remember is that things can be temporarily out of stock in stores, so keep that in mind if you are working with a time constraint. If what you are looking for is not in one particular store, your store can call other stores in the area to see if the item is available there, and they can hold it for you if you would care to go to the other store to pick it up.
As far as your other questions, I have used Penguin hob filters and I like them very much. They are easy to clean and maintain. I have an Eheim canister filter on my 30 and it is wonderful. I have tried a couple of different kinds of heaters and I prefer the Stealth. It works better for me.

hth :)

[BadDogsPa]

I like the fact stealths dont have a light,only because its the main reason my cichlids kept pecking at my heater that broke

[FtwayneFish]

that stinks

[FtwayneFish]

the hanging the ugly heaters slanted is for better mixing of the heat to water right?

[jmhart]

You know, everybody's got a differnt opinion about how to place your heaters. Some people say vertical, some say horizontal, and some say slanted. I think a good case can be made for all.

In my bigger tanks, I use two heaters, so I have one vertical and one horizontal, just in case. In one of my tanks, I've got one heater position vertical next to the HOB intake. They kind of blend in to one piece of ugly. I have the other heater down low horizontal behind some fake plants(this take is new, haven't gone planted yet).

In the other one, I've got one heater horizontal low behind some plants and the other is vertial kind of sorta blending in with some tall plants. I use the visi-therm stealths so they blend in pretty well with my black background.

If you have an HOB, I'd recommend position the heater either horizontal under then output or vertical next to the intake. This way the HOB sucks in(or just pushes around) the heated water to mix it well.

If it's not possible to do this, I'd say slant it.

But again, everybody's got a differnt answer. Bottom line, just make sure there is enough flow in your tank to spread the heat around.

[Sploke]

If the heater is fully submersed, all the heat produced will be dissipated into the water regardless of placement. What comes into play more at that point is proper water circulation. I could see if your heater is vertical with no flow, then it would heat a thin column of water around itself and would not mix. But, with proper filtration, that should create enough flow that the heated water will disperse and be replaced with cooler water ready to absorb more heat.

[FtwayneFish]

thanks guys