Category Archives: Product Reviews

Unbiased and honest product reviews with science in mind.

A Review: Identifying Corydoradinae Catfish by Ian Fuller and Hans-Georg Evers

Identifying Corydoradinae Catfish by Ian Fuller and Hans Evers has been long awaited by many catfish enthusiasts whether Corydoradinae is their interest or other Siluriformes. Using the vital recent revision of the genus (Dias et al., 2024) we now have an accompanying book accessible to hobbyists but also enthusiasts.

The revision of Corydoradinae was long needed as in some way resurrecting previous genera and reflecting the previous lineage system hobbyists used, this lineage system was also reflected in the fishes phylogeny/evolution (Dias et al., 2024). Revising the genus Corydoras and subfamily Corydoradinae reflects the morphology/anatomy and ecology better and helps us understand how to keep our Corydoradinae better.

This book offers a modern view at the group brimming with lifetimes of experience and knowledge. I need not introduce the authors as both are extremely well respected not just within Corydoradinae, catfishes but the hobby in general. This collaboration creates the perfect all round collaboration.

The science is always useful to really understand aquariums and how we keep our fishes of which some sources very much lack. Identifying Corydoradinae includes some fascinating science you wont see included elsewhere that is described in an easily understood manner to someone who might not be trained in the sciences. One of the most interesting topics was genome expansion written by Professor Martin Taylor, a scientist who studies the genetic aspects of Corydoradinae. I also very much enjoyed the section on toxins or poisons within Corydoradinae from Professor Eric Thomas as this is at the cutting edge of science, it’s a topic that is not well understood yet this book offers the latest knowledge as to the topic.
For me as having an interest in ecology I was really keen to see mentions as to the fishes ecology and habitats. The ecology section was very useful for hobbyists in describing actually where these fishes are found from experience and knowledge, giving the hobbyist an idea of how to keep the fishes and breed them. Diet has sometimes been misunderstood in the hobby and the inclusion of what we know these fishes feed on is no doubt a benefit. Dr. Luiz Tencatt goes into detail on these fishes diets and hopefully this helps hobbyists know what to feed their fishes.

The layout of the book is useful for the hobbyist as logically passes through the genera before the described species and then the undescribed. This means the hobbyist can quickly identify the species they are most interested in at the time. Brochis is additionally split up which helps identify the various lineages, not completely removing the lineage system therefore the usefulness of it but that would require another scientific revision.

All the species are clearly explained with distributions, size and also detail as to their identification and ecology. To help the enthusiast who might not be too clear on the various genera there is a guide to the various genera and the key features a hobbyist can use to identify them. Plenty of clear images are provided of not just the adults but variants and as the fish ages.

In conclusion, this is a great book with so much detail for any catfish enthusiast. It provides information to help the hobbyists understand a large group of catfishes that can be tricky to identify. Certainly a book you can read in one session but for many years will be of great use.

References:

Dias, A.C., Tencatt, L.F., Roxo, F.F., Silva, G.D.S.D.C., Santos, S.A., Britto, M.R., Taylor, M.I. and Oliveira, C., 2024. Phylogenomic analyses in the complex Neotropical subfamily Corydoradinae (Siluriformes: Callichthyidae) with a new classification based on morphological and molecular data. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, p.zlae053.

Venturi, the power diffuser you didn’t know you needed.

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This small gadget I would never be without and they aren’t well known. One of the most important purposes of an aquarium is movement and therefore also oxygen supply. While air stones are largely decorative they can have a purpose in helping oxygen saturation by breaking up the surface of the water. Many filters do not provide enough of this surface movement and this is where venturi’s come in.

Venturi’s are a solution to this, they simply use the force of the filter outlet to pull air through into the water column. The amount of flow provided is much stronger then without or with a spray bar. So while this might not be much use for fishes such as Betta splendens that like next to no current for most fishes particularly those that like a current it is really a life saver. On top of these benefits it helps you identify the route of flow through the tank from these bubbles.

These little adaptations are easy to setup, all that is required is hose line that can attach it to the external filters outlet, I recommend heating that tubing with boiled water for 10 seconds to make it easier to attach.

There are are few available on the market and some filters come up with attachments that force air through. I have trialed a few over time but the majority tend to be loud or produce little air. Eheim’s remain the only you could attach to any external filter with a spare bit of tubing. There are some cheaper ones on the market that attach to filters I cannot comment on.

Most of my comments on these are through experience. I keep largely high flow fishes and one powerhead wouldn’t cut it. Since adding these I wouldn’t look back, improving flow but also oxygen saturation and where these fishes also need higher temperatures oxygen saturation is a limitation. For around £7-10 it’s not much more, while designed for Eheim filters they should work on Fluval and other brands.

One big question would be do they reduce the flow of the outlet by creating a barrier? It seems very clearly not. My only worry is back pressure on the impeller and filter pump but in maybe 4 years of having them I’ve had no issues with them.

Otherwise I cannot recommend this simple device even more. They change aquariums for the better in many ways.

Inkbird 306A Review and Setup

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Inkbirds are a brand/product of external thermostat, these are units that regulate the temperature change provided by a heating unit. Without a thermostat the heater will not switch off at the desired temperature. Many heaters contain their own ones but very frequently they do malfunction, so in theory these external units are more reliable. Some heaters do not have an internal thermostat such as many titanium ones so would require an external thermostat.

There isn’t much of a range in external thermostats with either Inkbird or D-D around. The reptile hobby does have a wider range of thermostats but it is unclear how much and if they are waterproof unlike these two aquarium brands.

Generally the majority of people set their external thermostats as the only thermostat with the heater unit itself at a much higher temperature. Personally I prefer to use both as a fail safe, so the heaters are only setup just above that of the Inkbird and therefore if the Inkbirds fail hopefully those thermostats of the heaters should cut it off.

The other benefit is these are connected to WIFI and therefore can be controlled from my phone. On top of that it will send push alerts for any issues and if I notice that the units are disconnected it could hint to a powercut.

These thermostats do not require only to be controlled via your phone but also can be used manually if that is preferred. It also means they will stay running during any WIFI outage. The temperature history also allows for you to loosely track how long it takes to heat the tank and also if and when there was any power outages.

Review/opinion:

I have two Inkbird’s myself and have done since 2021, they have proven reliable to me and a necessary part of my aquariums since having heaters fail in the past. They are really good units, setting them up can be a challenge but certainly worth it. Where I do keep fishes that require 28c I think it puts a lot of pressure on most heaters so the inkbirds really help here. The thermostat allows for two heaters to be attached meaning it doesn’t take as long to reach the desired temperature.

Setting up your Inkbird

Step 1: Download the Inkbird app on the Apple App store or what is required for Android.

Step 2: Your home screen should look similar to this without any inkbirds setup. Click on the Plus Icon.

Step 2: Choose the product you have, here the Inkbird-306A.

Step 3: Choose the mode. I find AP mode the easiest, it might not be automatically set to that so press the other mode option to select it.

Step 4: Press the WIFI button on the Inkbird until the light on the unit blinks slowly. This might take several goes.

Step 5: The Inkbird will then require your WIFI including password of which needs filling in.

Step 6: It will request for you to join the network that is provided by the Inkbird unit. Go onto your WIFI settings and join that network.

Step 7: Press connect.

Step 8: It will then connect which can take time, keep the phone close to the Inkbird unit while connecting.

Step 9: All connected, you can name the unit.

Running Inkbirds

This is the main screen, it has several updates so hadn’t always looked like this. It should be pretty self explanatory how to use.

The central value is the temperature where it will tell you if the heaters are providing heat or not. This screen is also where any warnings will appear such as low temperature, wide temperature range between probes etc.

You can select temperature by pressing on that range T1-T2.

Under settings you will find this screen, this is where you can select alarms. I have mine quite extreme as during water changes it can be a real pain if you set it to 2-4 degrees under. Heating time might also be worth considering, it’ll produce an alarm if too long so consider how long after a water change the aquarium takes to reach it’s desired temperature.