Products sold by TMC

[Tangman]

Hi Reefers now is your chance to say how and why you like or dont like TMC products ie Skimmers/ Aquaray lights and all the other products they sell. Please use this as a debate area and not a place to slate anyone, if anyone has a serious problem with a product TMC will get in touch and try and solve it for you. I hope you use this section and tell us your good or bad stories. Twiggy:D

[Hellfish]

Just bought some TMC Rio pumps. They seem very good value for the volume they chuck out, are quiet & come with the expected range of attachments. Only downside was they were larger than I expected so it was a squeeze to fit them in the circulation bay of my tank & couldn't put one in the return section as it's too narrow (AM Perc 90). That's not a criticism of the pumps, more a warning to other Perc owners.


Not got anything else by them but would love some Aquarays if they ever come down in price

[Viking]

I find the V2Skim series awkward to set up. The difference on the control between no skimmate and flooding the cup is so small that it's virtually impossible to set correctly.

Also they're poorly designed with regard to the pump connection procedure. They provide you with a piece of pipe which you're supposed to bend to the right shape to connect to the inlet of the skimmer.

The venturi is prone to blocking meaning a reduction in air being drawn in, and there's no way of accessing the venturi to clean it. Only way seems to be poking a suitable implement in the hole and hoping for the best.

Finally, the bubbles are too large to properly function as a means of skimming anyway. Occasionally the thing decides to have a good few seconds and produces a fine stream of small bubbles, but [see my first point above] all this manages to achieve is a flooding of the skimmate cup.

As far as TMC contacting me to try and solve the issue, no thanks. It's an inherent design flaw in my opinion, and the best solution I can think of is to buy a skimmer that works rather than one which doesn't.

Oh, that reminds me. It's about time for my 6 weekly check of my V2Skim 600 to see if it's managed to pull any skimmate out yet.

On the plus side for TMC I bought a TMC Vecton 300 UV steriliser some while ago. That seemed to work okay, given that when I plugged it in the uv tube lit up. I don't use it any more but it's there if I need one.

[Hornrob]

So to some things up viking you highly recomend the v2skim range to anyone in the market for a new skimmer haha.

[Viking]

Well, I've only got first hand experience of the 400 & 600. Maybe the larger ones are better?

[Gizmo]

So far have used the reef white aquaray to supplement my T5's and I'm really taken with them. Put out a surprising amount of light for LED's and give a great 'shimmer' effect. Only shame is the lack of a decent mounting kit.

I have also used the old Vecton UV which is a simple 'does what it says on the tin' product and never had any problems with it.

I was very interested in the V2 Skim 400 till I read about the probs people have with them so it's a shame as I quite like TMC kit and would have liked to use one of their skimmers too.

[Tower]

My mate just stuck 8 Aquarays over his tank and it looks amazing! :D I'm running Arcadia twin 150W with actinics and IMO his lighting blows mine away. Colours are much crispier and the blue is something to behold!

Only issue he has is the mounting system which I've seen mentioned on another forum. With 8 strips the bars on the TMC system 'sag'. Particularly if you have to extend them if your tank is any decent size front to back.

When I went to a meet at one of our bigger sponsors in Yorkshire some time ago the owner had started using Aquarays on a few of his tanks and had warned me of serious problems with the transformers in terms of reliability stating they were of poor quality. He had sent back several transformers more than once.

If I bought them (which despite the above I would still consider) I would most likely price them up including 2 decent quality transformers from another supplier, 1 capable of running a few pairs of white and another to control the blues on their own.

With a little modding the mounting system can be made safe.

Look no further TMC than Reef Corals for some genuine, honest feedback from the guys out there doing the business. :D:D:D

HTH... Barry

[cl0wn]

i'm sure the new aquarays have a strengthening bar along the back, might be worth giving them a ring or emailing them. have seen a perc 90 display in my lfs with just one blue and one white and was unimpressed, but perhaps when they get a visit from the tmc rep they may advise to use a few more as the corals in the display have bleached over time. hopefully customers won't see the tank and think they can get away with the same lighting.

have a v2 600 calcium reactor, despite a few teething problems i am impressed. it's a bit basic, but you get what you pay for. tmc were very good at supplying spares through my lfs and they were very cheap. running very well atm.

[Hellfish]

My mate just stuck 8 Aquarays over his tank and it looks amazing! :D I'm running Arcadia twin 150W with actinics and IMO his lighting blows mine away. Colours are much crispier and the blue is something to behold!

Only issue he has is the mounting system which I've seen mentioned on another forum. With 8 strips the bars on the TMC system 'sag'. Particularly if you have to extend them if your tank is any decent size front to back.

When I went to a meet at one of our bigger sponsors in Yorkshire some time ago the owner had started using Aquarays on a few of his tanks and had warned me of serious problems with the transformers in terms of reliability stating they were of poor quality. He had sent back several transformers more than once.

If I bought them (which despite the above I would still consider) I would most likely price them up including 2 decent quality transformers from another supplier, 1 capable of running a few pairs of white and another to control the blues on their own.

With a little modding the mounting system can be made safe.

Look no further TMC than Reef Corals for some genuine, honest feedback from the guys out there doing the business. :D:D:D

HTH... Barry

Seen a tank with a bunch of aquarays attached to a framework of white eggcrate & 21mm white plumbing pipes. Very effective & no sagging.

Ian.

[michael.]

as i mentioned before when eric mentioned this idea concerning tmc kit, the aquaray bars are good imo, but very overpriced, i think they should be around 60 quid a bar, cant see why they are as expensive as they are, and they are expensive, i have some running on my tank and especially like the reef blues, but they need to be priced properly.

as for the salt, tm pro reef, id like to see it with slightly better alk levels, it can then compete with D&D.

Overall though i highly rate their products:)