[Bluewind]

I have found a few testimonials here and there about store bought decor that was unsafe. Perhaps it changes pH, chipped, rusted, or was toxic. I have also seen some posts for good pieces that our little friends really enjoy that hold up well. I wanted to start a single thread for us to exchange these stories instead of having them all over the place
. Please only speak about products that you have 1st hand experence with and include as much data as you can (where you bought it, who made it, when you bought it, facts about it, rather or not it is inert, pictures of the product, and so on).

You may also post info on product recalls, but only verifiable information and facts, not opinions (unless you actually owned the product in question and can give us an idea of your experence with it).

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[fashionfobie]

I have had experience with a few store bought pieces, specifically a plastic temple style building at Petsmart, which I keep in my 55 gallon tank. I haven't had any problems with it. It wasn't dyed a vivid color so I am not sure if that is the reason.

In my betta's tank I used a smaller plastic vase style plastic piece dyed red and it lost color, I also had a few betta fatalities in that tank so I removed it and now just use live plants.

I have used human grade coffee mugs before and terracotta pots. No problems with them at all.

Lately I have been using more natural materials, such as rocks, bricks and logs. I collected wood at the beach, washed it well with boiling water and a brush. I didn't have any problems at all with it. Actually my farlowella always hangs out on the natural wood and even my kuhli loaches prefer digging under the bricks and rocks more than the plastic temple even though it is filled with sand and makes a nice cave.

Obviously it is more comfortable to squeeze under a lava stone brick!

I also have a well planted tank and which is always a plus. I would say my fish have selected natural over fake 9 times out of 10. I let them be the judge and thus I am moving more and more toward natural materials.

 

[Bluewind]

I had a bad experence with the cheap rainbow cave avaliable at walmart (could someone post a pic for me please?). It spiked my pH in my small tank! I took it out and tested it by soaking it overnight in a bucket and then testing the water which confirmed that it was the cause. I have also heard that it contains metal from other Betta keepers, but I cannot confirm that myself at this time.

I also have a "small coral orniment" (the redish one made by aqua culture) that I bought from walmart that has caused me issues because of its looks. It started out bright and beautiful, but since October, it has lost almost all of its red and absorbs the color of anything near it (food, meds, and so on) resulting in a piece that is a hodgepodge of colors! It's just plain old ugly now, but my Betta really loves the piece and freaks out if I remove it, so it's there to stay. It never has changed my water chemistry which is part of the reason I put up with its looks.
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[fashionfobie]

As long as the water chemistry isn't having issues, I say freedom to do your will!

 

[rjordan390]

Store Reviews

While visiting another forum, I came across a topic called Store Reviews. There is one store in Arizona that breaks all the "Commandments" of customer service. No refunds, store credit on your next purchase, misplaced orders, poor packaging, rude responces, wrong plants or fish, no credit for doa, credit cards are charged even for missing items, poor communication to customers, etc, etc.
Do a search on Arizona Aquatic Gardens (complaints) and see for yourself.