Tetra Aquarium Starter Kit, 5 gal

I purchased this tank in August '11 for a female Betta and her algae eating friends, a Cory Cat and an Otto. It was my first tank since starting up my Betta addiction again after many years. It is now almost May '12 and going strong. First, for the tank/hood/filter itself : Tank: * Yes, the other reviews are correct, there is some obvious sealant on the sides. Better too much I guess than too little, and yes it does become less noticeable once filled with water. To be honest, it never bothered me and mine is not that bad. Probably luck of the draw, but I once paid $120 for a Marineland and it came the same way. It is a strong, solid glass tank though, and a great size for a kids room or living area, or even all over the house in a 'I'm kinda addicted to Betta's' decorating way. Hood: * All one piece, it annoys some people - and is slightly less convenient to vacuum or arrange new plants, but overall this is not something I have to deal with everyday. The feeding port is large enough to be functional, but I use my fingers so I just lift the lid automatically. The hood fits reasonably well to very well, is easy to clean, and nothing has rusted on me yet. I keep the tank water level high, have a heater, and with the media bag there is definitely some splashing going on, all with no problems. Filter: * Very quiet, I have to make sure it is still on sometimes. Replacement filters are at all WalMarts, have never seen them out. * Easy to modify with the media bag, there was plenty of room. I did not stuff mine full and cram it in. I filled it just enough to slip between the (blue) filter and the (white) sponge. If you push it too far in or fill it over much, the water spills out by the intake pipe. This ruins my baffle. * Betta Baffle for the filter is easy. Buy an AQUARIUM sponge (never use kitchen sponges, they will kill fish quickly :( Cut the sponge and use a rubberband to attach. I let the sponge barely touch the water, and I keep my water level high. I clean the sponge with everything else, and check the rubberband every few weeks - our well water is really hard and they snap easily. * I too lost a fish to the filter intake, but as it happened right in front of me I unplugged it immediately and somehow got him out. It was my Otto, I think they are made to squish a bit! I made sure this never happened again with another media bag. Another item that would work are the Fluval sponges that are tube shaped. It did not slow the intake too much for my tank, but it is not heavily loaded. My tank set-up / maintenance: I later added a male guppy, (from the above) and now all 4 are doing fine in the tank, although 4 is the max I would have. I vacuum the gravel once a week - 10 days at the most .. they are messy eaters, and even with the Cat I like it cleaner. This normally takes the water down by 20%. I use salt in my aquariums, (at set-up and every other water change a small dose), a bit of Betta conditioner as well as Seachem Prime, and I rinse the filter at the same time. This has never hurt the bacteria growth, but I do also add bacteria at each water change (Seachem Stability) and test once a week. The tank has never had an issue, is always perfectly balanced. The plants have grown with plain gravel and a regular incandescent light, although I do feed them occasionally (Seachem Flourish - 1/2 doses at half the recommended intervals - plants are not growing fast and the fertilizers build up in the tank if the plants don't use it). Overall, there is nothing negative to say about this tank. It is a great start-up, especially for a Betta. I personally think it is a little small for anything other than a Betta tank, but that is a personal choice in some respects. From what I have seen, most people either give up or get bigger when it comes to fish.

This is a a great tank to start with, esp for goldfish. It comes with all the basics. You'll need to add gravel, plants, decorations, a thermometer, ect., and a heater if you plan on having tropical fish. The filter is quiet and does a good job of keeping the water clear. My only problem with this kit is that the hood comes with an incandescent light bulb, which puts off a lot of heat. If we leave it on for more than a couple hours it heats the water to between 76-80 degrees, which is WAY too hot for our goldfish. We keep our house very cool, so that's not contributing to the extra heat. I could keep tropical fish in this tank without a heater, just by leaving the light on. Also, since it's a "starter kit", it would be nice if it came with a net and a thermometer. Other than that, I am very happy with this tank, esp since I had to buy it, spur of the moment at midnight, after my son won a goldfish from the carnival. :-)

I ordered this online and got every piece, except the heater was charged separately and the total was 40 dollars, not 50 (but that's a good thing). This aquarium is very easy to set up and works nicely. It comes with a tetra 5-15 gallon filter (which Walmart also sells) and one filter cartridge, but you have to use the cartridge to set up the aquarium in the first place. Walmart is the only place that i could find that sells the filter cartridges, so i suggest buying those along with the aquarium. The filter is easy to set up; just put in the filter cartridge, hang it on the aquarium and plug it in. If you have the water line high enough you can't even hear the filter. However, it is a bit strong for my betta fish. Actually, almost too strong. The current will shoot him all over the tank if there is nothing to slightly obstruct the it. The intake thingy also is quite strong; i once saw my betta glued to it and he couldn't get off of it. I had to use a net to get him off. However, this only happened once. Otherwise, it does its job and works just fine. The heater is also fantastic. The indicator light is a bit useless, though, because it only records the temp of the immediatly surrounding water. I suggest getting a plain old thermometer if you're worried about the temp. It keeps the tank at a constant 75 degrees or so, and is easy to hide behind a plant or two. Same with the filter. The tank itself is quite nice; i personally hate the hexagon shaped tanks. All over its a nice combo for a nice price.

Looking for a small aquarium to brighten up your room? Look no further. This tank is exactly what I wanted, and my GloFish as well as little Neons seem to agree. Just remember not to overcrowd the tank--the rule of thumb is 1.5" of fish per 1 gallon of water. However, tetras do like to have a few buddies swimming around with them, so don't buy just a single fish of each kind- that's just cruel. The water filter is functioning well, but as others have mentioned, you do need to purchase a heater-- I think mine was around $15 and I bought it on this site as well. I'm uploading a picture of the happy campers in their newly set up "tent" :) I hope this helps!

I bought this tank and it came with every thing i needed except the fish and heater. they include the lighting, a bit of food, water conditioner, hood, and filter. Did over night shipping and it came the next day. no cracks and neatly packed. LOVE IT