OK so first of all, let's just get this off my chest: I'm new to the aquarium scene, so take everything I say with a grain of salt.
In my attempts at beginning my first ever aquarium I searched high and low for a setup that I could easily assemble and maintain. I knew that a big tank would be too complicated for a beginner, so I set my sights on 10 gallons max. After comparing a few different stores (Petco, Wal-Mart, and a few locals) I found an Aqua Culture Starter 10 Aquarium kit at Wal-Mart.
OK, now let's also take into consideration that I've had the tank for 3 weeks. (Knock on wood.)
The total of the kit was under $30 retail. Not on sale. Which was fine by me. Box listed contents as:
Size 10 Glass Aquarium
Full Incandescent Light Hood (bulbs included)
AQUA-Tech 5-15 Power Filter with EZ-Change Filter Cartridge
Water Conditioner
Premium Tropical Fish Food and Goldfish Food
Fishkeeping Guide and Easy Set-up Instructions
The aquarium and hood were Regent. The H20 conditioner was AquaSafe (a Tetra brand), which was okay, but I was told to use AquaPlus. The Foods were all TetraMin (once again, fine by me).
I had never set up a tank before. Ever. Yeah, I'd had bettas in the past, woopty-doo... Complete set up took maybe about 15 minutes, and, considering it was my first ever and I did it all by myself, it was relatively easy. I've had nothing but smooth sailing with this kit and I would recommend it to any beginner. It's relatively inexpensive and easy to set up, and can be found at just about any Wal-Mart. And let's face it, every town now has it's own Wally World just about.
I've been pondering on whether or not I want to buy the 55 gallon kit by the same manufacturer, comes complete with the stand and all... but I think I'll wait a while and get some feedback from others before I make the purchase.
So, final verdict? The Aqua Culture Starter 10 kit is easy to assemble, easy to maintain, inexpensive, and a good size for a beginner. I would definitely recommend it to a beginner.
Added By: mr. sanders I have bought the Aqua culture deluxe 10 and is a great product. good for every beginner (like me)
Added By: AiWen Yes, I have this tank too, and I too got it for $30 USD. Hmm... Everything this aquarium kit has is good, except for the lighting. 2 weeks after I got it, the lighting broke and I had to get another hood and lighting for $29. There should be a deluxe 10 gallon tank by Aqua Culture too. I think that is the one that has better lighting. But yeah, it is great for beginners.
Name: Ian Comments: Welcome to the hobby, if you are anything like my wife and I, you will soon have a tank in every room.
I would like to correct a common misconception that you described regarding tank size. It is actually easier to keep a larger tank than a smaller one. Your tank is it's own little ecosystem, and a small ecosystem can be upset by even the slightest contamination. If you have a larger tank there is a higher dilution effect for contaminants introduced, and more resistance to changing conditions.
Name: terri Comments: Actually, as an aquarist, I have to say for the record starting out with a 10 gallon tank is the hardest of all for a beginner. Mainly because too many things can go wrong. I actually bought this particular tank, I was lucky with the fish I chose to start the tank and cycle with. However finding the filters for the Aqua-tech is a *itch. Just fyi.
Name: Zac Mazza Comments: The deluxe kit is definitely worth the extra 20 dollars. It comes with a heater as well as upgraded single tube lighting fixture. Much better than the screw in bulbs and gives you more opportunity to upgrade. The AquaTech kit is definitely a great, economical purchase to get you started!
Name: Brian Abrigana Comments: It's pretty good. It was easy to setup. The biofiber sucks though. Since the filters are made by marineland though, you can actually buy a biowheel, biowheel bracket and biowheel bearings and put it on the filters. You ask, how do I know it's made by Marineland? It says on the back of the biofiber in big letters MARINELAND thats how I know and I've done it before. You'll have to figure out the size that you need though. Just ask on a fish forum. You will also have to cut the lid. The directions are on kokosgoldfish.com just register and ask.
Comment : I bought this as my first tank and it has been running smoothly since. (Almost a year total.) It's cheap and simple, and the only complaint I have is the incandescent hood. I prefer CFLs for energy efficiency and lighting quality, as well as for plants. Other than that, it's a great starter! Plus, the small size means you could likely do without a heater because of the light. My tank stays a consistent 76 in a 73 degree house.
Comment : I have the 29 kit, and know a few people that have the 10 and/or the 55. So far I have yet to hear much bad about anything except for the incandescent hood. My 29 has been up and running 9 years, so I can vouch that it's a product that will last.
Comment : Hey everyone... I've had my tank for about 4years it's great but I can no longer find the filters #17acc by Aqua-tech. I've been to every Wal-mart, Petsmart, Petco in a 20 mile radius no one carries them any more what's one to do? I can not find them on the internet either! HELP!!
Comment : I picked up the ten gallon kit used, and it is still in great shape, with the exception of the missing light cover. (The plexiglas that protects the bulbs from getting wet.) I haven't decided what to do to fix that yet. I found the replacement filters at Petco. Use the Rite-size "A" by Penguin.
Comment : Ok i have just got this tank not long ago.. while i love it and the fish love it.. the pump is so strong the fish are having issues. is there a way to slow the pump down? the current is just crazy.
Comment : They are good kits. I had to buy mine specificaly for a channel cat but that was one year ago so now I have to get a 55 gallon.
Comment : We just set up the Aqua Culture starter 10 kit about 3 weeks ago. after 1 week the plastic covers of the lights broke off - just one morning they were laying on the bottom. Now I am having to replace lights every week. Does anyone know where to order new light covers? or what kind of light set up can I use
Comment : I am actually planning on buying a 55 gallon because i have been plagued by the curse of incopentempt sales men. I went to Petsmart and they sold me a Clown Loach saying how great it was and that I only need 1 of them. Later after buying the fish i discovered that thet get huge up to 16 inches and to top it off they need to be ing groups of five. I could just return it but it is such a nice fish and I really like (him/her). So I am saving my limited funds to buy a 55 gallon tank and a stand. What does the package at Wally World's include.
Comment : Who makes these kits i cant find them anywhere on the internet?
Comment : I started out with the 10 gallon kit from wally world and am considering the 55 gallon tank because my two blue channel cats are getting too big for the 29 gallon tank that I have now. Reading everyone's comments have helped me decide that I may just go out this weekend and get the 55 gal tank from wally world. Thnx everybody.
Comment : Well, I have a 10 gallon Aqua Tech, a 29 Gallon Aqua Tech & stand, and I just purchased the Aqua Tech 55 gallon tank by Marineland. I don't know where Brian gets off saying it is a cheap tank, the AquaTech is made by Marineland who are the very best. I have received great joy out of the first two tanks and am pleased the way the 55 gallon is going. I also bought the matching aquarium stand that is sold with it. There is not a thing wrong with the Aquatech Regent filters by Marineland with the Biosponge. Marineland also makes the Bio-wheel which is the Golden Child every other filter is compared too, but the Regents work almost as well and they don't break down as much and they are quiet. The Bio-wheel has more moving parts and sometimes it gets stuck. It isn't really a necessity. My Walmart carries all of EZ change cartridges too. These kits are an excellent value and of high quality construction by Marineland who are the very best in aquatics. They do all the commercial tanks tool.
Comment : best kit I ever bought, cheap and E-Z to mantain.
add a heater and you can tropical or just have coldwater fish
Comment : I have had my 10 gallon starter tank for almost 3 years now and I have never had a single problem with it. The only thing I had to replace was an occasional lightbulb but they are dirt cheap at walmart. I love this tank. I stuck with goldfish since they seem to be easy to care for and there are a lot of pretty breed of goldfish. I actually just bought another 10gal tank for my boyfriend's mother. I would highly recommend this tank to anyone. It's easy and I think it's a very nice tank. I get a lot of compliments on it when friends come over and they flip out when I tell them that it was under $30. I want to get a bigger on eventually.
Comment : i bought this two years ago and its great except the filter died on me only 3 1/2 months but its still good
Comment : We bought the 55 gallon kit from Walmart after our 30 gallon used tank started to leak. We have had it up and running for almost a year now. The only thing I didnt like was the lighting was a little dim and was not bright enough to grow plants. We purchased a glass top and bought T-5 lighting so that we could actually grow plants. We also placed the old lighting back on and we doubled up on the filtration by purchasing an additional 40/60 filter pump. We are thinking about adding the bio wheel to it but we're not sure if it will be that beneficial. We have quite an assortment of fish including sharks, swords, mollies, platies, assorted tetras, danios, oto cats, cory cats glass cats and a pictus cat in addition to ghost shrimp and dwarf frogs. Our swords, mollies, platies and guppies have all had babies. We are now getting ready to buy the 29 gallon kit from Walmart as our guppies are starting to overpopulate our tank and we want to put them in their own tank. We will most likely beef up the lighting on this tank too as we like lots of plants. The only reasons we are buying a 29 gallon kit this time instead of another 55 is because we already have the stand for the 29 gallon and I don't have the room for another 55 gallon right now. Someday we hope to have an even larger tank (maybe 125 gallons) but that would require beefing up the floor and getting rid of some furniture. The kids really enjoy the aquarium and we do not regret purchasing it.
Comment : I just brought home the Aqua Culture 55 Gallon kit for $158.99. It beat the price of assembling all the seperate peices by about 60 bucks, so I said what the heck I'd take the risk. I am hoping that it works out, because it is a rather large tank and its a cheap brand. I am not new this the aquarium game, but I am not able to afford the more expensive bands. I will report back again to let everybody know how it goes.
Cheers!
Comment : Nice starter kit. Not everyone wants to spend real big bucks on a fist tank and it's a nice try it out kit. The hood is junky but I've had mine as a tetra tank for about 4 months without any problems. I like my tank but found out I am not an aquarium person and will never have another so for 30 bucks it was a good investment for me. My friends sink a grand easily into a quality 55 gallon setup freshwater and that's too much money to find out if fish are your thing or not. Nice kit just make sure that you don't buy the fish at Wally World rather at a private pet shop where the people know water quality/ph. I don't even use a heater as my tank stays 78 at room temp. but you can add a heater for only 8 bucks if you need to. Whisper junior fits the 5-15 filter for replacement pads and are a bit better quality than the wally world ones.
Comment : I have never had any trouble finding the Aqua Tech filters by Marineland, Walmart has them in every different size, from 5/15 gallon all the way up. EZ change#1 cartridges, #2, etc. etc. Your just not looking in the right store.
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