Best Buys

[windmill]

Just had an idea. I'll start this thread and list something I'd consider one of my "best buys" for my aquarium. Basically, everybody should name one thing that they bought for their aquarium that has made life easier/better in some way, and explain how it made things easier. A piece of equipment that you should've broke down and bought at the beginning. Actually, lets not limit it to purchased items, even little things you may have manufactured or rigged yourself count too. Stuff like a line from a skimmer collection cup to a gallon jug so you don't have to empty or adjust skimmers so often.
For me: it was my Digital Timer. 3 seperate, well spaced outlets all wired to a timer with multiple settings and on/off times for each outlet. Enabled me to clean up all that nasty wiring and eliminate my seperate analog timers for day-lites, moon-lites, and my skimmer. Picked one up at Target for about 25 bucks.

 

[readster]

$5 coralife digital thermometer.

 

[sign guy]

W/D FILTER AND FUGE before I bought them I was using a emp and I have seen a masive differance

 

[majakarot]

RO system, waited years to buy it, will never haul water from the store again... siphon hose long enough to reach outside is a close second

 

[cjml]

Originally Posted by majakarot
RO system, waited years to buy it, will never haul water from the store again... siphon hose long enough to reach outside is a close second

Ditto-ro/di unit!! Well worth it!!

 

[murph145]

agree too RO unit but also a refractometer is a great tool i just dopnt trust those hydrometers anymore took me 2 years to figure that out lol and the hydrometer said my water was at 1.025 the refractometer came back at 1.030
so u tell me which is better

 

[acrylic51]

AquaController....

 

[fishman72b]

Lifegard Inline filtration system. SOO much better/easier than my old sump.

 

[acrylic51]

Do you have any pics of your setup???? I'm curious as to the LifeGuard canisters.....I am considering using them only for carbon use only.......

 

[reefkprz]

digital timer
wavemaker
and of course every piece of coral I ever bought

 

[fishman72b]

ok, i have a 4 stage, but i dont use the heater module, becuase i cannot find a heater to work with it. so i have 1st stage, mechanical, 2nd stage , chemical, 3rd stage 9 watt UV. Its being sucked in by a MAG 7. and output is a 3/4 ID tube to a SCWD, where the is is diverted to 2 outputs into the display. =] best move i ever made, but i will comment that it did have leaks at the beginning, but i sealed em up with some caulk, and still has some drips, and the the salt must have dried up and sealed itself somemore.

 

[fgcu14]

a few 5gal buckets, you never know when you may need them

 

[xdave]

I get 5 gallon buckets from the ice cream store for $1.

 

[fishman72b]

lucky.. lol i just paid 110 dollars for 15 of them. and thats the cheapest around for me!

 

[readster]

does anyone own one of those marineland saltwater mixer/dispensers ? i bought one, it's kinda big, and makes as much dang saltwater as you can want, but it's kindof overkill too.

 

[phsyco]

A wife that likes my saltwater hoby. "took me 3 tries and 5 kids later...."

 

[f14peter]

An internet connection . . .

 

[sign guy]

Originally Posted by FIshman72B
lucky.. lol i just paid 110 dollars for 15 of them. and thats the cheapest around for me!
a hundred and ten bucks for what the buckets!??!

 

[yimmy]

My UV sterilizer 300$...healthy tank though

 

[windmill]

Dang sign guy.....if I understand that correctly, that's a little over 7 bucks a bucket. I think I've seen them at Wal-Mart for like 5 bucks a bucket. Can't remember for sure though....