Check out this australian online shop it is awesome so much for so little www.aquariumproducts.com.au I will be buying stuff from here from now on.

You are right, that is really cheap and only slighly more than wholsale here. Any idea on postage costs from Aus?

Getting things replaced under warranty would be a nuisance though.

Hi macka

I live in OZ. My Fluval was $100 cheaper than some shops. And their price is even less than what I paid. As Caryl said, the only problem you have is with warranty. But chances are, it usually goes wrong once the warranty runs out. I only looked a bit around. But you can find out the postage from Australia by just asking the place of purchase. I once bought an item from the states. The price including shipping was half the price it would have cost here. So sometimes you can be lucky.

John

I have emailed the owner seeing if he is able to send things to nz and on what the postage price would be, im just waiting for a reply. Im really keen to try the biological fluid bed filters and the seachem filters as i have heard alot of good things about them, also how much are or how many fluid bed filters do you see in nz? The only one i have seen was around the $200 mark. As for warranty yes i could be a problem but most parts are available in nz for some of the range they have.

Hi macka

I hear so much about the fluidized bed filter. But very little or none at all her in OZ. It is a big thing in America. There are also DIY sections on how to make one. I already made somthing like that but instead of sand I used gravel. Only for a trial. It works. All it costs you is a cannister, very save. A pump or a powerhead and a few leghts of hoses. Qite simple to make.

John

Done a lot of diy filter research lately. One of the best links for diy fluidized bed filters is

http://www.fishlinkcentral.com/articles/article023.htm

Read both good and bad things about them. They are very effective but use up a lot of dissolved oxygen so you need a spray bar or similar. They are also hard to adjust. Too much flow and the bacteria won't colonize or else the sand will be pushed up the tube, to little and you get stagnant areas. Beware of the small retail versions, as they are not very effective.

Of course this is just IMO from what I've picked up from surfing filter sites.

Cheers

Shilo

Hi Shilo

Your HO is not too wrong. I personally would not buy or make one. There are people who swear by their Fluval, Eheims, Marinelands. Every equipment in your tank is usually choice. There are some good filter, not so good one and some outright useless ones. Be it an inside, outside, u/g or whatever. It still comes down to choice. And Shilo, the pitfalls you pointed out are a valid reason not to use a fluidized bedfilter. There are better ways for the good bacteria to grow.

John

Hi John

It still comes down to choice.

As a born-again fish "newbie" I did a heap of research on aquariums systems and got very confused with the different opinions.

Came to the conclusion that they are like vehicles:- Different engines, tyres, etc suit different types. The only similarity they share is that they transport you. Same with aquariums:- different filters, heaters, light systems etc are used for different purposes. You wouldn't want to use a small sponge filter in a 500ltr saltwater tank, and it would be overkill to use a protein skimmer on a 25ltr Guppy tank. Everything has its advantages and disadvantages.

My mixed up thought processes anyway :roll:

Plan your system, do the research and take everybody’s opinion with a grain of salt. If one opinion is the opposite of another, choose what you think will suit your system the best. They are all correct!

Cheers

Shilo