Aqua Scaperz | The Freshwater Aquarium Blog

Hydor is recalling their Theo 300W aquarium heater product that was sold across the United States and the rest of the world. The recall is only effective if you own a specific batch number for the heater specifically 929 – 932 – 939 which was produced during the June – October 2009 time frame and in the UK batch number 946. If you happen to own any of these batch numbers you are to stop using the product immediately and contact Hydor for a replacement and or refund. The defect could cause irregular functioning of the heating element that could burn or cause the glass to crack. There has been only 4 cases that have been reported (2 in USA and 2 in Italy) and it is very nice to know that Hydor has taken it upon themselves to go ahead and issue a recall voluntary. The image to the right shows where the batch numbers are located on your heater. Again if you own one of these specific batch numbers you can contact Hydor directly.

Update: Hit below the break to read what Hydor Customer Service sent us.

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North American Pet Products, a company that produces pet products and habitat displays that is located in Corona, Calif., has purchased Casco Group, Inc. The Casco Group makes aquariums and commercial pet display systems and will  operate as a division of North American Pet Products. North American Pet Products will move Casco’s operations to its headquarters in Corona and other existing Casco facilities will remain at their respective locations. North American Pet Products now has a robust portfolio to actively target the pet industry at a worldwide scale which already has strong distribution in the North American Market. Yes, it seems that world domination is within reach, at least in the pet industry. Full press release after the break.

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Sera has had their line of air pumps for some time now and 2 of the 3 models received a nice performance boost. The models getting more efficient are the 275 plus air, and the 550 R. The 275 plus air wattage has been reduced from 6 watts down to 4 watts and the 550 R has been reduced from 12 watts down to 8 watts. These new models also have been retrofited with a filter drawer allowing you to clean the intake area further increasing the efficiency of your pump. The price on the 550 R tops out at €35 ($48.69) and models below that including the 275 plus at €22 ($30). Expect to see these pumps arriving in Europe and the UK.

Waste-Away is a beneficial bacteria will naturally dissolve the sludge and dirt that accumulates in an aquarium and prevent the build-up of debris when used on a regular basis. Waste-Away is fast acting and specially formulated to remove aquarium gunk, unclog gravel/coral beds, and keep filter pads freely flowing longer.  This results in better water flow, more oxygen and a healthier aquarium environment. Waste-Away should be used on a regular (weekly) basis to keep sludge from acculmulating which can negatively affect fish and corals. Contains no phosphates.

Ah ha! The truth comes out! There is a new study that suggest the cause of global warming isn’t what you think, but it is in fact because–wait for it– water vapour. Researchers discovered “that the amount of water high i atmosphere is far more influential on world temperatures than previously thought. Although the findings do not challenge the theory of man-made global warming, they help explain why temperatures can rise and fall so dramatically from decade to decade. The study, published in the journal Science, says a 10 per cent drop in humidity 10 miles above the Earth’s surface explains why global temperatures have been stable since the start of the century, despite the rise in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. And a rise in water vapour in the 1980s and 90s may also explain why temperatures shot up so quickly in the previous two decades, they say.” So there you have it, we aren’t the cause of global warming. It’s the nasty water vapour out there so we can all sleep better tonight. I’m glad it’s finally settled. We can continue ruining the environment by doing what we want. Oh that reminds me, I need to fill my Hummer back up with gas…I swear I just filled it up yesterday.

[thanks Michael!]

via [Daily mail]

Eheim, makers of professional aquarium filters has updated their popular 3e canister filters. What is the update you ask? How about a little USB action? This additional USB port allows you to upgrade the software and functionality of the 3e canister filter. You remember the Fluval G series filters? Much the same as those that have software running the pumps so to with the new Eheim 3e canister filters. Eheim isn’t saying much of what the additional USB functionality will do, just that it has it. Which is fine by us. Also we would suspect that it will be for PC only, so sorry mac fans it looks like you’ll be left out in the dark.

The Samurai gourami, Sphaerichthys vaillanti, is a close relative of the chocolate gourami which has recently started becoming more readily available in the U.S aquarium trade. First discovered in Indonesian Borneo, this exciting new fish is considerably more colorful than it’s cousin S. osphronemoides. The samurai gourami grows a little bit larger than chocolates, reaching a length of just over 3″ (8cm) and they also have a slightly more angular snout. This exciting species is just now starting t show up with some regularity and you can expect to pay around $25 for immatures pairs and up to $30 for large single adults. Although these fish may require special conditions like reduced lighting, very soft water and much more docile tankmates than your typical freshies, if these fish are well conditioned they will readily breed and they are mouthbrooders to boot! The male S. vaillanti incubates the eggs in his mouth until the young are ready to hatch at which time tiny well formed young gouramis are released. Image of male above from FlickR user Fontok and image of the female below from Otsuka-Nettaigyo. Follow the break for the full video of spawning and courting of this species and let us know in the comments if you have any experiences with this exceptional new anabantoid.

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The freshwater planted aquarium hobby has never experienced a greater influx of new aquatic plants than it does today. Two of the very latest newcomers include this new Limnophila from Guinea and a Staurogyne species from “Rio Cristalino”. ALthough many Limnophila show a great deal of detail on theedges of their leaves, none can match the deep, elongated grooves that make Limno Guinea such a unique looking plant. There are enough people who have this plant that if you ask around the usual spots, you’ll see some around. We know very little about the new Staurogyne species besides the name of the Rio Cristalino from which it originates. Big thanks go to Daniel^~^ for sharing these pictures with us.

If you’ve been wondering about the real difference between ADA tanks and Do!aqua which are also made by ADA, the above image should make it clear what the major difference is; it’s clarity. The labeled Do!aqua tank on the right has greener glass which is slightly less clear than the homologous ADA tank next to it. The Do!aqua tank on the left was $50 for a Mini-M and the ADA tank on the right was $75 for the same size. If you just get one of these tanks you probably won’t notice the difference in clarity but seeing them side by side it was easy to see what set these two aquarium lines apart. Either of these tanks are finely crafted and excellent choices for any stylish type of aquaria but if you really want to wow, clearly you’ll want to be considering the ADA as a first choice. If you are in the Bay Area of California, looking for ADA and planted products but you don’t want to take the hike into San Francisco’s to visit ADA importer Aqua Forest, consider stopping by the Aquarium Showroom in San Jose as they also stock ADA.

Keep your eye on the look out for this recently introduced breed, we don’t think it will be hard though. The new captive strain that was first introduced at Aquarama has been spotted by Aquascaperz all over the place for around $15-$20 a pop. We are sure to see the price go down as soon as more people start breeding this fish. No harder to keep or breed then your average Microgeophagus ramizeri, needing soft to medium hard water of low pH (5-6). They prefer water temperatures in the mid to upper eighties F but will do fine in the lower eighties F and of course a heavily planted aquarium. Photo above from Harn Sheng.