Aqua sobriquet
Member
As some of you know, I ordered a Tetra EX400 for my newly setup Nano.
Someone asked for a review when I got it so here it is!
So why did I choose the Tetra EX400? Size and output were the two main reasons. I'm not that hard up for space but it seemed silly to have a large external hooked up to a 35L Nano. At 400 LPH output seemed about right and could be throttled back a bit if needed. Other options would have been an Eheim Classic but I liked the built in quick release hose coupling unit on the more modern designs like the Tetra.
I ordered the unit from Zooplus UK at a cost of £49.99 which included an extra 50p for ParcelForce delivery.
Paypal made payment quick and easy.
It was ordered very late evening on the 3rd June (so they received the order on the 4th) and the parcel was delivered on the 7th.
I could have ordered the unit from Zooplus.DE and saved some cash but as a first order it seemed quicker and easier to register with the UK branch - I can now use my login on the German site and order from there if I want to.
One of several other reasons I ordered from the UK site was that I hoped it would come with a UK power plug or adaptor, an issue others have had with buying electrical stuff from Germany. It didn't - more about that later.
Very well packed from Zooplus.
Some box shots. Quite a heavy package given the size of the box.
And this is what you get inside.
As you can see it's a two basket arrangement complete with media. All seems ok on the media front but the floss pad is a bit thin so may need backing up with some more or maybe using two pads. The input and output tubes are a nice transparent grey as you can see so should not look too intrusive in the tank.
Here's a shot of the assembled unit with a bottle of Vino which gives an idea of the size of the thing, quite compact.
It's difficult for me to make a fair comparison with other external filters from other suppliers as the only other unit I've owned was an Eheim Classic, and that was over 20 years ago. The Eheim was almost certainly made in Germany and this unit looks like it's been made in China. I'm not saying it's bad but the plastic components including the case are not as nicely moulded as they were on the Eheim.
That's it for now until I've got it up and running. I'll post part two as soon as I can but amongst other things there's some Planaria I want to get rid of in the tank...
I mentioned earlier about the power plug. It comes fitted with a standard two pin European plug which I thought was a bit disappointing. I bought an Eheim Air Pump a while back and it came fitted with the same type of two pin plug installed inside a neat UK adaptor. It's a bit bigger than a UK plug but quite a neat solution. Here are some pics. If you're reading this Tetra how about putting an adaptor in the box!
Bit bigger than a UK plug but not bad.
On the back of the adapter it says: ECP PowerConnections, Harlow England so I may try and get another couple of them.
Part two as soon as I can. Any questions, ask away.
Just found this in case it's of interest:
http://www.powerconnections.co.uk/convert_eurotouk.htm
Someone asked for a review when I got it so here it is!
So why did I choose the Tetra EX400? Size and output were the two main reasons. I'm not that hard up for space but it seemed silly to have a large external hooked up to a 35L Nano. At 400 LPH output seemed about right and could be throttled back a bit if needed. Other options would have been an Eheim Classic but I liked the built in quick release hose coupling unit on the more modern designs like the Tetra.
I ordered the unit from Zooplus UK at a cost of £49.99 which included an extra 50p for ParcelForce delivery.
Paypal made payment quick and easy.
It was ordered very late evening on the 3rd June (so they received the order on the 4th) and the parcel was delivered on the 7th.
I could have ordered the unit from Zooplus.DE and saved some cash but as a first order it seemed quicker and easier to register with the UK branch - I can now use my login on the German site and order from there if I want to.
One of several other reasons I ordered from the UK site was that I hoped it would come with a UK power plug or adaptor, an issue others have had with buying electrical stuff from Germany. It didn't - more about that later.
Very well packed from Zooplus.
Some box shots. Quite a heavy package given the size of the box.
And this is what you get inside.
As you can see it's a two basket arrangement complete with media. All seems ok on the media front but the floss pad is a bit thin so may need backing up with some more or maybe using two pads. The input and output tubes are a nice transparent grey as you can see so should not look too intrusive in the tank.
Here's a shot of the assembled unit with a bottle of Vino which gives an idea of the size of the thing, quite compact.
It's difficult for me to make a fair comparison with other external filters from other suppliers as the only other unit I've owned was an Eheim Classic, and that was over 20 years ago. The Eheim was almost certainly made in Germany and this unit looks like it's been made in China. I'm not saying it's bad but the plastic components including the case are not as nicely moulded as they were on the Eheim.
That's it for now until I've got it up and running. I'll post part two as soon as I can but amongst other things there's some Planaria I want to get rid of in the tank...
I mentioned earlier about the power plug. It comes fitted with a standard two pin European plug which I thought was a bit disappointing. I bought an Eheim Air Pump a while back and it came fitted with the same type of two pin plug installed inside a neat UK adaptor. It's a bit bigger than a UK plug but quite a neat solution. Here are some pics. If you're reading this Tetra how about putting an adaptor in the box!
Bit bigger than a UK plug but not bad.
On the back of the adapter it says: ECP PowerConnections, Harlow England so I may try and get another couple of them.
Part two as soon as I can. Any questions, ask away.
Just found this in case it's of interest:
http://www.powerconnections.co.uk/convert_eurotouk.htm
