# My take on the Petco Arc 6.25



## Fourthwind (Jan 28, 2015)

Well my kids Betta's needed a new home after a Grandma got them a minibow 2.5 (and the fish) for Christmas. Didn't take me long to figure out that it in no way shape or form was this going to work for the fish or us. Shows you what good advertising on a box can do for the un prepared. Anyhow after scouring on this site and countless others, I decided to give the Petco Arc 6.25 a shot. It fit my parameters on size, and type of filtration. Now understand I have not had tanks for over ten years, but when I did, I was fully committable by most peoples standards. (About 600 gallons worth of tanks in my house) I also worked at a LFS for many years, and then had my own company building tanks and ponds. Even with that experience I must say I under estimated the "simple" Betta's needs. Here are the experiences I have had so far with this tank.

Overall I must say that I would buy another one of these tanks. 
The good parts. Glass is about 3/16 thick on the main tank. Craftsmanship looks good. Filter looks to be sufficient and can be set to lower flow for beta's. Tank is easily modified for a divider, and other betta needs. Light bar is sufficient for low light plants and has moonlight feature.

The only part I was not real happy with once it was out of the box was the glass lid. The lid is maybe 1/8 inch thick. My guess is closer to 3/32. The lid is also one piece, undersized, and will require installing mesh or splash guards to help with both loss of water and possible jumping beta's. 

Here are the mods I have done to start off with on this tank. Just the stuff I felt needed to be done for the long haul. See the pics below

1. Removed the "Biological" sponge and replaced with 400 grams of Fluval Biomax ceramic media.

2. Installed a divider for the "boys" I did the recommended double layer, but I also added top and bottom supports.

3. Added a piece of screen over the intake to help keep fins out.

4. Added a heater (fit nicely in the pump sump)

As a side note, with gravel and décor in the tank, it holds right at 5 gallons of water.

My last job before fish go into the tank is to fix the lid so they cannot escape :roll:

As this tank cycles I will post updates as to how it continues to work. For now I have to say with the ease of modifying for beta's and overall appearance I am pretty happy.


----------



## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

Looks great except for that crashed P-40 (or is that a Mustang A?) Just kidding.

New Life Spectrum Betta or Omega One Betta Buffet are the best foods. Prime (by Seachem) is the most-used water conditioner around here. Float some Anubias for shade, and for hiding and sleeping in near the surface. (I ought to make a macro of that.)

Where are the fishies?

Welcome to the forum. It's always nice when an experienced keeper joins us.


----------



## Fourthwind (Jan 28, 2015)

Yup.. Serial number says it's a P-40 from the Burmese campaign. 

Added the boys to the tank last night right before the game. They are quite happy in their new home.

What type of Anubias would you recommend for floating? Thought Anubias were all rooted plants? Been waiting for a new shipment of plants at the LFS. Wanted to add some val to the back corners.

Feeding Hikari gold and freeze dried Daphnia right now. Will see if any of the LFS have the others you recommended. Been using Amquel and Novaqua as that was the preferred when I was in the hobby. Will look into the seachem products. Using bottled spring water since our tap is barely fit for African cichlids.

Loving the tank. Absolutely silent!


----------



## givemethatfish (Feb 10, 2014)

Thanks for posting this. I do not, I repeat DO NOT, need any more tanks right now. But I've been eyeing this tank each time I've gone to Petco lately. My closest Petco has a rather creative fish department manager, and he has this tank set up nicely on display with live plants and driftwood and a few male guppies. Although bafflingly enough, they don't actually carry this tank at the store, so it's kind of a "you want what you can't have" kind of obsession for me. I don't even know how much it costs - would you mind sharing what you paid for it?


----------



## Fourthwind (Jan 28, 2015)

It was 69.99 at the store. Of course as with every tank I spent that amount again on supplies to mod it and fill it. As it sits in the pic I have put about 150 into it. Not including the boys


----------



## givemethatfish (Feb 10, 2014)

That's not too bad actually for a full kit of that size. Thanks!


----------



## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

Amquel+ in conjunction with Novaqua is arguably better than Prime. (Shhh...don't tell anyone I said so. It would take me too long to explain.)

Anubias is wonderful. It can be planted as long as you don't bury the rhizome where the leaves come out. You can tie it to rocks and logs. And you can float it. It's almost as care-free as silk plants.

High pH water can be cut with RO or distilled water to bring down the pH. What is your pH?


----------



## givemethatfish (Feb 10, 2014)

Ooh Hallyx! You are the king of telling people to use Prime! What gives??


----------



## Fourthwind (Jan 28, 2015)

Hallyx said:


> Amquel+ in conjunction with Novaqua is arguably better than Prime. (Shhh...don't tell anyone I said so. It would take me too long to explain.)
> 
> Anubias is wonderful. It can be planted as long as you don't bury the rhizome where the leaves come out. You can tie it to rocks and logs. And you can float it. It's almost as care-free as silk plants.
> 
> High pH water can be cut with RO or distilled water to bring down the pH. What is your pH?


PH of my tap water is 8.5 with a hardness in the 300 range. I may be looking at a filtration system in the future, but for now the spring water is a small price to pay for a PH of 7 and hardness less than 25ppm

I will be going to the LFS for plants this afternoon. New shipment was due to arrive this morning. :-D

Modified the outlet of the filter system this morning. Even on low I didn't like how much the super delta on the outlet side was working to swim around the front of the tank. At first I used just a piece of the bio-media foam that came with the tank. Very coarse and should not clog. It works great at dispersing the outflow, but after seeing the delta rest on top of it, I decided to wrap it in divider material to avoid fin tearing. So far this is working well and will even add a tad more biomass.


----------



## givemethatfish (Feb 10, 2014)

You're very precise. I like it.


----------



## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

Nice. And very workmanlike.

Well, gmth, it's like this. Amquel+ (the new stuff) breaks down the nitrogenous compounds into their constituent molecules, ions, and cations. So says Kordon. It does not unlock and release ammonia back into the tank during the next 24 to 48 hours like Prime.

But it does not chelate (remove) heavy metals and does nothing for slimecoat. For that you need Novaqua (which also dechlorinates, btw, making it the choice for cycled or planted tanks). And it's not as concentrated, which increases TDS in the tank.

Prime is cheaper and easier to use. It's also more easily available, I think, depending on where you live.


----------



## givemethatfish (Feb 10, 2014)

Wait, it takes care of nitrates too?! That's the ticket. The only thing I ever worry about is nitrate buildup in my low-light tanks without a lot of fast growing plants. I *need* to see the chemistry behind this. I'm going to ask Kordon if they have any technical data. Might be a good thing for my more lightly planted tanks so I don't get panic face when I have to stretch a water change to 10 days. Looks like you can dose in between water changes as well. I'm very interested in this.


----------



## givemethatfish (Feb 10, 2014)

Looks like you can use their Rid Metals in conjunction with Amquel Plus to take care of the heavy metals.


----------



## Fourthwind (Jan 28, 2015)

I think I am done? Other than coming up with a permanent fix to the PIA lid I am pretty dang happy with the tank. The "boys" are happy, my kids are happy (especially my daughter when her betta swam into her castle), and I am a lot happier now that I have what I consider a real tank that I have a good chance of keeping stable. (knocks on wood) 

On the Amquel / Novaqua side of the conversation, I would want to be careful with using the metal remover in planted tanks. I seriously doubt the ability to break down or trap nitrates or nitrites for that matter. Little bit like putting a sponge bob Band-Aid on a bullet wound.


----------



## givemethatfish (Feb 10, 2014)

I like it. Looks like two happy fish 

Well, I asked Kordon for any more information they can send on the process they are using to break down nitrates. It's certainly not a wild impossibility that the product does what they claim. I mean, you can detoxify nitrate with vitamin C or erythorbic acid. I can't find the ingredients for Amquel+ online anywhere though.


----------



## Aeon (Jul 15, 2014)

looks nice I too was checking out this tank .... thanks for the info though looks great


----------



## scootshoot (Oct 11, 2010)

Tank looks smexy. First time hearing of this tank, Petco should hire you in their marketing dept.


----------



## Fourthwind (Jan 28, 2015)

I am a big believer in user information on the internet. I know I have been helped a lot by it, and I saw very little on this tank, but was fortunate enough to get a good look at one at a store. I hope that this will help others in the future. Petco couldn't afford me :lol:


----------



## scootshoot (Oct 11, 2010)

Hehe I checked the online petco site and they don't even have this tank listed anywhere.


----------



## Fourthwind (Jan 28, 2015)

scootshoot said:


> Hehe I checked the online petco site and they don't even have this tank listed anywhere.


Chatted with Petco today to find out the light wattage (10 Watts) The tank is only available at the stores, and is the reason why you don't see it online.


----------



## Fourthwind (Jan 28, 2015)

Ok here is an update to these Arc 6.25 tanks. Overall they have been rock solid biologically. I added a Finnex Stingray LED light to my plant tank and it has been awesome. I also modded the filter system a bit. Once the mechanical / carbon filter clogs, the sump water level will lower a bit. Instead of buying the petco replacement I bought a sheet of bulk filter material, and cut it to size. I cut away the fabric on the plastic filter tray, and removed the carbon. Re inserted that into the filter bay, and slid the replacement in front of the tray. Works very well.

Very happy with the two I have. I am however taking my kids betta's and moving them to a bigger tank. This tank is great for one male, but two monsters is not enough room.


----------



## Kim (Apr 30, 2008)

That tank is really looking gorgeous!! I also agree that the size is perfect for one betta, but not really 2. That fish looks so happy


----------



## Sadist (Jan 1, 2015)

Great job!


----------



## WhitneyLin (Aug 28, 2013)

Oh what a gorgeous tank. I need to see if our Petco has them. I'm looking for a nice tank for the kitchen and the modifications dont look too hard. I had to modify my Fluval Spec V and this seems about the same. 

And what gorgeous boys.


----------



## Fourthwind (Jan 28, 2015)

The thing I liked about this over the spec V was the flow patter seemed better with the inlet and outlet not on an end of the tank. You will need a better light to grow plants. They say the light is 10 watts, but my guess it is really only about 2.


----------



## WhitneyLin (Aug 28, 2013)

Fourthwind said:


> The thing I liked about this over the spec V was the flow patter seemed better with the inlet and outlet not on an end of the tank. You will need a better light to grow plants. They say the light is 10 watts, but my guess it is really only about 2.


 The flow is definitely something im not the fondest of on the fluval. Thankfully its easily fixed but it can be a pain. Especially since my boy loves to sleep against the, thankfully mesh covered, grate right by the prefilter sponge that covers the outflow. 

Eh, I have a black thumb. Plants come to me to die. *sigh*  So I dont mind the light. As long as it works nicely im good. I have light problems. I think I got something wrong with my fluval tank. The end doesnt plug tight into the adapter, so the light likes to flicker and dim. I really need to look into changing it. And I have one of the Marineland 5 gallon hex tanks and that light runs way to hot. I dont even use it. That tank is near enough to one of the floor lamps that it gets enough light. 

Lights and heaters..both of them hate me. lol


----------



## Fourthwind (Jan 28, 2015)

ok so I just ran into a major deficiency with this tank. I kinda knew this was going to be a problem from my very first post on this tank. The thin one piece lid that you have to remove to clean the tank. Well I busted one this morning. Really my fault for not finding a better spot while I cleaned, but it was destroyed non the less. So after contacting Petco HQ, I find out there are NO parts available other then filter replacements. Luckily I know the local manager and he pulled one out of a new tank on the shelf (awesome service by the local store) but this is likely a one time deal. Going to take the piece to a local glass shop to have a blueprint made of it, so I can make one with a middle joint, thicker glass, and less gap. Thought about plexi, but being that this is a plant tank, I don't want for it to dull the light once it starts to become opaque. Lessons learned I suppose.


----------



## Sadist (Jan 1, 2015)

Bummer about the lid!


----------

