What were your biggest purchase mistakes?

[abcha0s]

I've wasted my fair share of money in this hobby. Usually because I didn't do all of the necessary research first and ended up buying something that wasn't meant for my application. I accept these mistakes as part of the learning process. These products are not on my list.

There are also products that just didn't work as advertised. These are the products i am talking about. This is eternally frustrating and I wish it was easier to return this stuff. In the interest of saving others the time, trouble and money, my list follows:

D-D Nanoscope - $122

I’m not sure what I was expecting here, but this product simply does not deliver. It’s really nothing more than a lens that doesn’t attach to a camera. It’s not submersible and does not have any electronic hookups. The mount is poorly constructed and the unipod (not to be confused with a tripod) connector either came stripped or I stripped it on my first attempt to assemble it. It’s basically a high powered magnifying glass with a very small view hole. Almost useless.

Aqua Medic Reef Doser Quad - $480

Where to start? – The controller is very limited. It does not allow you to set a dosing schedule based on time-of-day and the configuration does not survive the loss of power. I never bothered to use the controller as there was no way I could program any of the complex dosing schedules that I wanted to use.

The one saving grace is that the pumps use AC power and can be easily modified to connect to a controllable power bar (Apex EB8 in my case). It is then possible to set your dosing schedule using an aquarium controller. The problem is – the pumps aren’t reliable either. I had one crack after about a month of use. I could never really get a precise dose and the characteristics between two pumps in the same setup were different. Check valves are required and flow rates are dramatically affected by pressure. Just simply not worth it.

Neptune Systems – Salinity Probe - $80

The idea is great – measure and monitor your salinity. In practice, I tried for months but could never get a stable or consistent reading. I was told by Neptune that my problems were caused by very small amounts of stray voltage in the tank. They suggested using a drip cup to completely isolate the probe. I may try this again on a future setup, but this purchase ended up in the garbage.

Marineland Stealth Pro Heaters - $40

This $40 heater nearly cost me thousands of dollars when it exploded in my sump. In this case, the product isn’t just garbage, it also doubles as a pipe bomb.

Deltec PF-509 Calcium Reactor - $459

I thought Deltec was supposed to make really great products? – Well, this Calcium Reactor fails miserably. The base is unstable and it is easily knocked over. There is no port for a pH probe. Perhaps most annoying is that undissolved co2 gets sucked into the pump and makes a constant hissing sound. (I emailed Deltec about the undissolved co2 issue and they acknowledged the problem but could not offer a solution). I wouldn’t buy this reactor for any price, but at $459 there are many other options that offer a much better product.

Polyp Lab Medic Parasite Treatment - $38

Reef Safe Ich Medicine? – It is reef safe, but it doesn’t work. There are stories of success and it’s possible someone will dispute my position, but there are no clinical studies proving anything about this product. My fish all survived, but most likely because of the healthy stress free environment they were in, not the medication. It’s basically snake oil.

So, what are your worst purchases?