Product Review 4: Super Scrub by Fluker's

As promised, today I'm doing a review of Fluker's Super Scrub, which I use to clean out my tank and as well as my plants and other decorum.
What I'd also like to do if I have the time today is write up a piece about my current findings on terrarium landscaping and what I'd personally like to try in my future habitats. That piece might come a little later though, since I've only really got vague ideas and a couple (dozen) YouTube videos of knowledge so far.

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Product Review 4: Super Scrub by Fluker's

Cleaning is an important part of any animal care in order to maintain good health and well-being. Not to mention the fact that a dirty tank is a smelly tank. But it's really hard to find good cleaners that are viable, non-toxic options. My family's had zebra finch die just from using a scrubber which had come into contact with some harsh cleaners a while before and had since been washed and rinsed several times. Since then, I've been super anal about what I use to clean and dry my tank and habitat objects.
Since the very beginning, I've been using Fluker's Super Scrub for my cresty, and I've had no issues. I would think it's safe for any reptile. Amphibians might be a different story, what with their extreme sensitivity to their environments.

Overall Rating: 9/10


Pros:

Cleans organic off fecal matter well and leaves a nice fresh smell that isn't at all overbearing (at least to me). Also hasn't so far left any streaks on my glass.

Cons:
The brush that comes with the cleaner is pretty rigid and should NOT be used on foam backgrounds. I've already damaged mine a bit by trying to give it a scrub down.


Comments:
Despite the brush issue, I still really like this product so far. In truth, I don't use the brush for much else. I find just dumping a bit of the cleaner in a tub of distilled or treated water (JurassiSafe for the win) and scrubbing with my fingers to be more than adequate.


Images:
This product can be seen in lots of my images, off in the peripherals. But, in case you were wondering, this is what you get.

 

Links:
Flucker's Super Scrub - products page

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Short and sweet, I hope this can help someone out there. I wish I would of had it before that one person searched my blog for an answer, but hind sight is 20/20.

I think I will wait for tomorrow to write up my summary of my research into custom habitat design, so that I can do a bit of research into what kind of plants would work best in my case. Also, there are some pretty good documentaries on Oasis tonight, and I have the house majoritarily to myself, so a bit of rest is what I shall have tonight.

Also, personal note, I really enjoyed the open house on enviro-tech yesterday! I'm going to make my online application either later tonight or tomorrow, but there shouldn't be any issues. I should have all the qualifying high-school courses, as least on paper. In any case, there are some refresher courses I can take. Always a possibility.

Product Review 3: Terrarium by Exo-Terra

As promised, I'm tossing up a product review today. After my last two product reviews, I realized I was waiting to get new products in order to write reviews when I should also be reviewing the products I've already got. Kind of a dumb moment on my part. So today, I'm reviewing one of the most important aspects of the habitat: the terrarium, and for anyone who's read this blog before, you know exactly which product that is.

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Product Review 3: Terrarium by Exo-Terra

For this review, I'm doing more of a generalization of all Exo-Terra terrariums based solely on my mini-sized terrarium. Since most of the features I'll be noting are available on all models, I think this will be fine. Obviously, my critiques will not be size-based (because, hey... size doesn't matter).

Overall Rating: 9/10


Pros:
Great front and top access, particularly because of the two door system, which makes it so you don't have to open the entire front of your habitat. The accesses secure nicely, making escape pretty much impossible.
Good ventilation from both the front grill and top screen, the later of which is a pretty strong mesh, making it tougher than screen lids I've used in the past.
The little details that really make this a great product are ones you might not even use or even realize exist. The bottom is kept just off the ground, giving sufficient room to pass cables for any under-mounted heating pads or to slide in light stand footings, like I do. The top's wire and cable inlets are really handy, and even have a sliding blocker to close off the unused inlets.
Also, probably one of the most prominent features, it works very well with the other Exo-Terra brand products, as well as those by other companies.


Cons:
Not many, and I really had to dig deep to stop myself giving this product a 10, but the top lid can be temperamental to put back on. When you have an arboreal critter that likes to bolt by climbing even higher up, this can get messy. It's especially tough when you have tubes, like the ones used in the Monsoon system, tucked away up top.
Also, being that there are two doors, there's a small area in each front corner that often catches plants and other objects because of the way it opens.


Comments:

Just to clarify, the utility inlets are a great idea, it's just that they're fairly tight on water tubing. I worry that each time I try to squeeze them back in, I might pinch the cable and cause some really unwanted spraying to occur. I could fix this, but I would really have to cut into the background, since the tubing obviously can't be bent at a perfect 90 degree angle. Back before I had the Monsoon system, though, it was fine.

Images:
Well, pretty much all my images I host here feature the terrarium, but I'll toss in some newer ones showing off my newest fauna.

It just so happend that my Monsoon system went off as I was taking this shot.
I think I need to clean out a nozzle again, as it's kind of in Super Soaker mode.

Links:
Exo-Terra Terrarium - products page

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 So that's it for today's review. I think that tomorrow I will review the cleaning product I use, firstly because it's an important product and also because I noticed someone visiting my site after trying a Google search on weather or not the product is safe to use with crested geckos. So, to that one  Googler out there, I will make a nod, as well an any possible future hobbyists who may want to expand their knowledge. 


Oh, on a personal note, tomorrow is an open house at my local college for people interested in the video game design and environmental technician courses. It's like fate, really, I swear. So, after that, I will write up another review, since I was away for pretty much a full moth.

Product Review 1: Monsoon RS 400

The posts got a little delayed due to me not feeling super great for a bit, but here they are! Bright, shiny and smelling like spring.

Also, I received my bag of Repashy today! Hooray!

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Product Review 1: Monsoon RS 400 by Exo-Terra

As you might guess, this is a product  I've been interested in from the very begining. Not only did the concept of a rainfall system seem way too cool to me, the idea of not having to worry about misting every morning, day and night really appealed to my lazy/forgetful side.

As such, I feel my expectations may have been pretty high from the get go. So, keeping that in mind, I'm pretty happy to say that the RS 400 met almost all my expectations!

Overall Rating: 8/10


Pros:
The pros are pretty much as I though; easy to use, easy to assemble, easy to fill, effective, and so on and so forth. I really feel as though I could leave for a couple days and not have to worry about watering... just feeding. But feeding has nothing to do with this system, so I can't fault it for that.
Aside from what I already expected, I have to say that the nozzles don't stick out quite as much as I was afraid they would. I kind of hid them away in the leaves, which you can see below in the pictures.


Cons:
Though the system is made to take advantage of the Exo-Terra terrarium's cable and tube conduits on the lid, I feel like the two systems weren't designed in tandem, especially with a foam backboard installed. The way I have it installed now, I feel as though there is way too much pressure on the tubing because there just isn't the right amount of room back there. To be fair, that's good in a sense. I don't want Rocza or his food slipping in back of anything. On the down side, should the tight squeeze puncture the tubing, that's a fine jet of water spraying all around my nice shiny electronic toys. I really wish I had a better place to put it... but till then, I'm keeping an eye on it, and I've reshuffled the room a bit to accommodate.
Also in reference to the space issue is the fact that the lid to the terrarium is now twice as hard to put back on, and it was tricky from the start.
Also, yeah, the nozzles aren't super obvious, but they're still very much present. I also find that though they do articulate, it's never quite the way I want them to be. Not a big issue though.


Comments:
Neither pro nor con, I noticed that too much hose means a crappy spray. What I though might have been a clogged nozzle actually turned out to be a lack of pressure due to the small hole and the length of tube. Once I trimmed the punctured part off, it worked just fine. Not bad for second hand, really.
The cycle light is also super bright. My computer has some nice lighting on it and... I mean it's almost on par with this one little light. Nothing a piece of tape or a sock can't fix...

NOTE: I've recently bumped this down to an 8, as from time to time, the nozzles start to spray pretty harshly. So far, I've been able to fix this by jiggling the tubing, but it's still annoying. Also, after reviewing the rest of the cons, it just didn't add up to a 9.


Images:

Left-hand nozzle coming out of the amapallo plant.

Right-hand nozzle coming out of the croton plant

My new canopy section, complete with feeding ledge.

Links:
Monsoon RS 400 Rainfall System - product page

Product Review 2: Magnaturals Feed and Water Ledge

Product Review 2: Magnaturals Feed and Water Ledge by Pet Tech

I still can't believe the luck I had finding this product. I really want to go back to Big Al's and just buyout the lot of everything I want. Sadly, that would hurt my wallet. It's not cheap, but so far, well worth the price.


Overall Rating: 10/10


Pros:
It's a ledge, it's a bowl, it's magnetic. What more could one ask for? The dish comes out easily and is replaced easily. The whole of it is light-weight, and the magnets are immensely strong, so it feels like it could support a small gecko-sized elephant. It's foam, so it doesn't absorb and it's easy to clean, though admittedly, I haven't had to clean any crap off it yet. And above all else, it looks crazy-good!


Cons:
Well... If you have a weak grip on the magnet while attaching it, I guess you could bust your glass. That's about all I have to say about that.


Comments:
Above and beyond the pros? Not much to say, really. I'd love to say that Rocza loves it as much as I do, but the little guy enjoy his privacy. So far as I can tell, he hasn't ventured out onto it yet. As tonight is cricket feeding night, I plan on changing that. 
Oh! One comment; it was bigger than I had anticipated. That's about it.


Images:

The earth-toned colour really fits in well with colour-scheme of my set.

Once more, a shot of the overall canopy effect.

Links:
Magnaturals Feed/Water Ledge by pet Tech