# What tools you using?



## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

GLA's new Borneo tools are almost exact knock offs of the ADA versions for less money.


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## Milq (Feb 11, 2010)

I would like to get myself some fancy tools someday, but gosh the prices on those things.

I just use my hands/chopsticks/net.


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## FinalDistance (Mar 14, 2010)

Tools are too overprices... plus I'd probably go back to using my 2$ x-acto knife anyhow lol


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## mayanjungledog (Mar 26, 2009)

I use a $6 pair of curved mustache scissors from Target for trimming and surgical thumb forceps (Adson) for planting.


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## ThatPlantedAquariumGuy (Mar 2, 2010)

Check ebay, I've found some nice lookin' tools that were surgical stainless steel for not much. You can pick up a five piece kit for around $35 shipped. ADA and GLA tools are a rip off in my opinion. They _*WAY*_ overcharge for something that is nothing but a surgery tool re-labeled for aquarium use.


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## AquaDean (Nov 20, 2009)

Tools, tools, tools, I'm a tools guy, always have been and probably always will be. Nothing like the right tool for the job at hand, or the hobby as the case may be. 

But $90 for a pair of scissors or $40 for tweezers is too much. At the same time I say that I find cheap non functioning tools disgusting also. So you need to look outside the box just a bit and you'll find some very good tools at a decent price. 

Check ebay for stainless surgical scissors, I found 11" ones for under $20. Tweezers the same thing, you might have to page through several pages but you should come up with something. In the "made for aquarium" stuff the ANS tools are pretty nice for the money, similar to GLA stuff.

Chopsticks are great but I go for the bamboo cooking sticks. Usually sold in pairs, same profile as a chopstick, but you can buy longer ones.

Plastic putty knives from the hardware store work great for smoothing your substrate. I got a set of three different widths for under $2. Plus they float up if by chance I drop it. 

Tools, tools, tools, can't have enough tools.


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## jmhart (Mar 14, 2008)

Ebay knock-offs: surgical scissors and 12" tweezers. If I ever turn my 120g into a stem tank, I'll probably buy some 18" curved scissors and some longer tweezers.


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## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

Craigthor said:


> GLA's new Borneo tools are almost exact knock offs of the ADA versions for less money.


But if I'm going to buy nice tools, and spend more than $5 a piece or so, I want the real deal not a knock off. While some people may say that Borneo is a comparable brand you should see the mark up on those as well... I got the price lists from the company that represents Borneo Wild, Mosura, Etc and can't justify buying them retail... :icon_neut But the money issue isn't huge I'm pretty committed to this hobby for the foreseeable future and have played around with knock offs for a few years. 



ThatPlantedAquariumGuy said:


> Check ebay, I've found some nice lookin' tools that were surgical stainless steel for not much. You can pick up a five piece kit for around $35 shipped. ADA and GLA tools are a rip off in my opinion. They _*WAY*_ overcharge for something that is nothing but a surgery tool re-labeled for aquarium use.


Yeah I have a bunch of that stuff already 8inch surgical scissors and 11" curved and normal tweezers. Surgical steel etc but I think the ADA Design is worth it for me. I've been in the hobby a while and will be in the hobby for a while. If you notice the title of the thread it is me asking what you're using out of curiosity, not what you think of what I'm using or planning on buying Thanks for the input though!

@Aquadean, I also use the bamboo cooking sticks at certain times since they're longer and thinner generally. 

So what else is everyone using? Anything weird? My weirdest piece a while ago was a comb with half the pieces cut off to comb my hairgrass and willow moss. I've also been known to use soldering wire to attach things to DW...

-Andrew


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## Franzi (Dec 7, 2009)

I use my wife's makeup crap when she's not looking.

Kidding


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## jreich (Feb 11, 2009)

my brothers tooth brush to clean my difusor


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## bigboij (Jul 24, 2009)

My Tools

<$1 cheapy tooth brush for algea/nano/canister cleaning,
$5 dollar 12" stainless steel forceps from harbor freight
$5 5 piece stainless tweezer set from harbor freight
$1 putty knife
$2 curved stainless grooming scissors 
$2 home depot buckets
$6 bucks worth of extra 5/8" od tubing
$2 baby med syringe for applying h2o2 and accurately dosing chems 

total under $20 bucks


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## HoustonFishFanatic (Apr 13, 2007)

Andrew, I have been using a few ADA tools for over 3 years now and have not regretted putting down the money for them. These are tools for serious aquascapers who wanna pay more attention to the aquascape than worring abt how you are going to trim that HC carpet etc without disturbing the hardscape etc.
If growing plants and trimming them to just keep them down is your goal then 
I guess any regular 11" scissor would be fine.
Before I got the Ada tools I was using the eBay tool set which runs around 30$.I usually have 2-3 aquascaped tanks running which have stems and require trimming every 15-20days. The eBay pair of scissors lasted approximately 8 months. Even though I take careof the tools like wiping them clean after use etc the pairs broke underwater at the hinge while trimming the
stems. You can imagine how bad a half trimmed mound of HM looks.

Bhushan


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## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

Too funny guys, too funny. I love how half of the people are like why waste money on ADA and try to save me and stuff and half the others just laugh or post what they actually use which is what the thread is intended for, since aquascapers need tools and probably wonder what others are using, or at least I do.



HoustonFishFanatic said:


> You can imagine how bad a half trimmed mound of HM looks.
> 
> Bhushan


lmao. I think that may be the best comment I've read on here for a while. I personally put my value on how much time I use items, not normal convention of what things _should_ cost. Every time I mess with my tanks the tools are used, this is daily, so over time its a great investment especially if I don't have to worry about them breaking, that must've been awful. I think your comment also really sums it up ADA Tools have their place, same with cheaper alternatives, and at some point some people may decide the real deal is worth it. 

For me, the scissors are a bit steep still I think, maybe at this point, so I'm hoping the Do!Aqua ones are made in L and XL soon. Although I can totally justify the $50 on the pincettes...


So what else is everyone using? I also am using a few nets which I forgot to list and SS mesh and 2 beakers.
-Andrew


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

bigboij said:


> My Tools
> 
> <$1 cheapy tooth brush for algea/nano/canister cleaning,
> $5 dollar 12" stainless steel forceps from harbor freight
> ...


This is my new favorite list of tools. :icon_smil And this is coming from a guy who owned ALL the ADA tools at one point. Don't get me wrong the ADA stuff is super nice and great quality but the new ADA versus the ADA from 2-3 years ago is different. I had some of my collection was from older shipments and then the rest was from a new shipment and they are made in different places and a couple pieces weren't as nice as the rest of the set.

Just my opinion though.... Now to go shopping at Harbour Freight tomorrow...


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## jeepn4x4 (Jan 27, 2008)

I am using the set I bought off of Craigthor. Not the ADA stuff but the set before that.


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

jeepn4x4 said:


> I am using the set I bought off of Craigthor. Not the ADA stuff but the set before that.


Nice to see they are still around. I believe this was an AZGardens set the bigger set I believe.

Craig


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## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

(Its 8 inches long)
Anyone like the look of this? I'm thinking about getting one myself and selling them as well. They'll be $20-$25

It is a spring scissor, looks really interesting In my opinion.

I also am going to get the more normal smaller types for $15 or so.

Fun stuff,
-Andrew


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

A Hill said:


> (Its 8 inches long)
> Anyone like the look of this? I'm thinking about getting one myself and selling them as well. They'll be $20-$25
> 
> It is a spring scissor, looks really interesting In my opinion.
> ...


Is it stainless steel? Also how big are the smaller ones? I like the look of these.


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## MONARK (Jun 4, 2009)

I use the DoAqua Curve Scissors M and the DoAqua Pincettes M. It's been a year since I got these and I'm happy with them!

About prices and brands... I used to play airsoft and something that I learned is that you should buy quality over price.... so I went for the next best thing DoAqua (at least for me).


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## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

Craigthor said:


> Is it stainless steel? Also how big are the smaller ones? I like the look of these.


Yes.

The others are 4.5 inches.

I also found some cool aligator forceps, 6.5 inches for $25-$30 

If you can't tell, I'm on the hunt for tools for personal use and to sell for my nano aquarium + wabikusa sections of my website. I'm not sure if this is the right place to post the stuff so I'm going to update my website with some pictures of potential products to get some response hopefully.

-Andrew


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## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

MONARK said:


> I use the DoAqua Curve Scissors M and the DoAqua Pincettes M. It's been a year since I got these and I'm happy with them!
> 
> About prices and brands... I used to play airsoft and something that I learned is that you should buy quality over price.... so I went for the next best thing DoAqua (at least for me).


I like those scissors as well. I'm waiting for the XL and L versions though.

-Andrew


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## MONARK (Jun 4, 2009)

The medium DoAqua scissors are the perfect size for my Mini-M


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## AquaDean (Nov 20, 2009)

Here is a neat little tool that I've made for cleaning the glass on my nano tanks. I used a bamboo cooking stick and a piece of algae cleaning pad. I actually buy a larger piece of this pad from the hardware store and just cut the size I want from it. I poke the bamboo cooking stick into the edge of the pad and then put a little silicone into the hole it makes. Then I push the stick back in give it a couple twists to coat with the silicone and let dry overnight. These work great for cleaning the glass in my nano tanks, plus when the pad wears out I can make another.


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## tyler79durdan (Jan 23, 2010)

I just want a 2.5 foot pair of curved pruning scissors! and forceps...


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

tyler79durdan said:


> I just want a 2.5 foot pair of curved pruning scissors! and forceps...


Here is some 24"ers http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3746+13912&pcatid=13912

Craig


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## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

Craigthor said:


> Here is some 24"ers http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3746+13912&pcatid=13912
> 
> Craig


You can also buy the plastic types, a bit less sturdy but work as well.

-Andrew


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## GTR (May 27, 2009)

I'd be constantly dropping those spring-loaded scissors in the tank.

I use long, cheap, old and rusty tools. lol


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## Barristan (Sep 13, 2003)

These look like they would work well; I may buy them:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Aquarium-STAINL...emQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item3efdd557ce

Opinions?


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## sparkysko (Jun 11, 2004)

AquaDean said:


> Here is a neat little tool that I've made for cleaning the glass on my nano tanks. I used a bamboo cooking stick and a piece of algae cleaning pad.


I do something similar. I twirl around some filter floss onto the end of a skewer. Kinda velcros itself together into one homogeneous floss ball.


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## funkyfish (Mar 16, 2009)

A $4 10" stainless tweezers, straight and curved from Dr Foster and Smith
$9 bucket from petsmart
Free Stainless steel surgical scissors, I need to get new ones since these are very very old but my mother in law is a nurse so that won't be a problem
Free syringes from walgreens or hospital
I also bought a set of brushes to clean my filter which were like $8 
A Syphon that I got a long time ago.
And a mag float for cleaning my glass.


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## deleted_user_9 (Feb 28, 2009)

A kitchen spatula tied to a long stick. My tank is a bit overfiltered and the sand shifts in big drifts every few days, so I scrape it all back.

Every now and then I steal my husband's needle nose pliers when I've got little fussy pieces to plant.

The tool I could really use is a longer pair of legs. Short chick + big tank = wet clothes and cursing.


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## jreich (Feb 11, 2009)

birmansandbettas said:


> The tool I could really use is a longer pair of legs. Short chick + big tank = wet clothes and cursing.


that just made me picture that sceen from deuce bigalow. "no i want the snails all the way on the bottom." lol


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## waters10 (Oct 22, 2008)

bigboij said:


> My Tools
> 
> <$1 cheapy tooth brush for algea/nano/canister cleaning,
> $5 dollar 12" stainless steel forceps from harbor freight
> ...


I got the $5 12" forceps from Harbor Freight. But it doesn't say it's stainless steel ... I got it anyway.

They had 10" curved and straight that were stainless steel for the same price.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

My favorite "tools" are quart-sized plastic containers my Thai food comes in if I get pickup or delivery. I use them for EVERYTHING- catching fish, holding fish, holding plants, trimming tanks, moving water, topping off filters, regenerating Purigen...

My Ebay knockoff tools are going on 2 years now and no issues. Still look like they did when I bought them.

A putty knife has become my favorite algae scraper for my 90gal. Nice wide blade.

I need some Dobie pads for the algae in my bowfront, though- got some spots I just can't get to with anything else...

:icon_mrgr


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