Marina Multi-Vac 3-in-1 Battery operated Aquarium Cleaner, Black

I didn't really know what to expet from the Marina 3-in-1 Aquarium Gravel Cleaner, given that I am a first time aquirist. I would have liked a little more instruction on how to use it or what to expect, and a fuller description on the Amazon page would have been helpful (although I did purchase it based on the reviews).When I first used it I expected more of a 'vacuum' power from the battery charged motor, however it took some trial and error to work out that the gravel cleaner (when attached to the main shaft that leads to the filter and power pack - approximately 3-4 inches long) should be removed to get a greater suction on being able to remove algae and large particles in the water. It was also helpful to use it in this way in order to clear debris, sand and plant matter from non-substrate material (in my case a large piece of bogwood and a boat).The gravel cleaner attachment worked quite well, although initially this also needed some trial and error as I started out filling the filter bag (that sits above the water line) with sand... and pulling up the 2cm layer of live plant fertaliser that sits below the 2-3 inch layer of sand. The other attachment, which I haven't used yet (and may never do) is for cleaning algea from the glass. I have long handle sponges that work around the aquarium quite well, especially as the front of the tank is bowed, which means the glass cleaner attachment doesn't work on this part of the aquarium.The filter bag itself is fairly easy to attach, although in my case having someone to hold the cleaner itself to provide a much needed pair of hands to steady it is essential (probably because I'm not too good handling more than one task at a time). I noticed that after the first use the bright white shade of the bag did change to a sandy brown, but that is to be expected given the polutants in the substrate and in the water itself. I bought a replacement to use when needing to wash the first bag, but I haven't needed to use this yet after a almost a month of use.My only gripe was that the absence of batteries wasn't advertised in a more prominant way on the listing; it took a few days to order the C type batteries (not something we stocked as a rule) from Amazon to be able to use it. The cleaner can also be used as a cyphon, simply by connecting a tube (not provided) in place of the filter bag, but I haven't the need to use this function. If I were to recommend one thing that would make this the perfect cleaner, it would be to add some form of lighting fitted into the top (or bottom) as (for me at least) I have a dome covering the aquarium with a lighting rig that is removed completely when needing to clean the tank... this means it's a little difficult to clean completely with a dark tank (even with using ambient lighting).I aim to provide honest and helpful reviews - if you feel that I have achieved this then please click 'yes' below.

Where to start!?Looking for a powered aquarium vac, I considered several makes and read All of the reviews.Despite some of the detrimental comments and some poor reviews I decided that this vac was worth considering.However, with hindsight, I realise that this was a bad decision and I have to concur with some of the previous commentsYes, the vac does work but within limitations i.e. suction is not brilliant.It's rather tricky to get the water and debris to flow through the unit but there is a knack to it and it does suck up both adequately eventually. Unfortunately, it also sucks up the gravel, (surprising given the poor suction overall), which quickly clogs the mechanism and stops the pump and suction. It's not easy to remove the gravel, (which I had to do repeatedly), and all in all the whole process is messy and time consuming. And then, the (brand new d***c**l), batteries went flat!)Ultimately I went back to my manual gravity fed pipe but I did use the bag to siphon the water through!An excellent idea but not practical in reality. Cheap unit, expensive bag!

I was skeptical when buying this after reading 'mixed' reviews. The truth is this product is great if you use it correctly, however it has some pitfalls. Not great for shallow aquariums, I use it on a BiUbe (BioOrb) 35l with a water depth of approximately 27cm and it is just about ok at its shortest length. For people saying this is useless and doesn't work this is not the case, I will agree it can be fiddly to get going but when it goes it is a fantastic product.There is certainly a knack to it, it has some flaws in that the end gravel tube has teeth which reduces the suction in shallow beds, for the BiOrb rocks they tend to get stuck in the teeth but are easily removed, there are tricks on youtube to get around this. If you remove the end attachment altogether its got some suck! problem here is any smaller stones go straight up into the mechanism and can jam in the motor, (this gives you an idea of the power, it will easily move the smaller BiOrb ceramic media) again easy enough to remove, just a bit of a fiddle, the product could really to with some kind of gauze to stop larger objects getting up there. I'm looking to adapt mine in some way with a bit of mesh.To get it going you need to put it in the tank at a 45 degree angle, I find having the bag facing upwards seems to help, make sire there is no air in the tube or bag by rotating it in the water or removing and placing back into the water, wait for the water to start pumping and away you go. Instructions are very limited with the product but like I say there are some youtube videos on similar products that will help.Battery wise, mine is still going, I use it regular every week and its still on the first set of Duracell two months in and still seems to be doing the job well. The one thing that is bugging me is the button doesn't always click so sometimes I have to hold it down, again, not a deal breaker but a bit annoying.On the water change function, it doesn't come with all the tubes and to be honest I'm not sure how effective it would be anyway, I would say you are far better sticking to using this as a vacuum and buying a hand pump for water changes, I use the BiOrb one which is fantastic, but that's just my opinion.So overall a great product that has really helped me with weekly cleaning, dropped a star because of the lack of instructions or support for the product and it's 'fiddly features' but recommended if you're willing to give it some trial and error to begin with.

I have a 22l tank and very pleased with the outcome!The extension was a little too long for my tank so trimmed it down.I have gravel in the tank, so only use the two attachments (gravel and glass cleaner) and it does a superb job. The glass cleaning attachment leaves the glass very clear. The gravel attachment is also good (I only use the small head)Bit of a knack to cleaning the gravel in that you vigorously move it causing the dirt to float then lift the vacuum and capture all the floating dirt (few videos on YouTube)