AquaEl Pat Mini Filter Review - The Best for Shrimp and Nano Tanks?

[@conniet9937]

I didn´t understad how to assemble it. The lack of instructions that followed the package was frustrating 😂 Thank you for showing us how to set it up ❤

[@balldur]

Finnaly somebody WHO show exactly hotw to assemble it. Thanks!

[@AMEPuKA]

Thank you very much! I spent 30 minutes with no results before I saw your video, after your great video, it takes only a couple of minutes to set up the filter! Good job!

[@birdman1775]

if you twist that black thing on the end of the air tube, you can modify the amount of air going in, so you can then run it on the lowest and the aeration will still work. i know this video is old, but maybe this info will still be useful to someone 😊

[@candacelunford7245]

You are correct, the instructions were useless. However, you and this video are incredibly helpful. Thank you so much for this video🐟🐠💝

[@majorbruster5916]

Good review, Lauren. I use a much larger Aquael filter and find it quite adequate for my 90 litre tank. A tip for using this filter with small fry and shrimps, cover the sponge with the foot end of a pair of tights and tie it off at the top. This definitely prevents the smallest critters from being trapped in the sponge matrix and polishes the water. It needs frequent cleaning, but it's worth it to save them. Cheers!

[@airangel59]

Awesome review. Amazon product video on getting mounting bracket on was as useless as the instruction sheet. Thanks for the great explanation and demo. Plan to use my 2 on 12 & 16 gallon long low rimless tanks hooked up on the short side to hopefully have the flow span the 30+ inch length.

[@sirdee9607]

The Aquael Versamax and the Pad Mini with a little Tuning, brought me through more then 30 Years of my Aquariumhobby, I tried so much Filters over the decades but at the end I allwas came back to on of this two Filters, they are so well build, and they are super quiet, ever much more expensive Filters never give my Results near to this Aquael Filters, no matter I have it in a Fisch or an shrimptank. Sorrry for my bad English, Kind regards from Germany

[@brisykes1261]

As a completely new beginner thank you

[@dananiquenavarro2681]

you are my hero because I definitly needed the instructions

[@haitch04]

Ordered one on the strength of your excellent review. All I want is the smallest pump to move water at the opposite end of the tank to my filter. I didn't want too much movement and this looks perfect. Thank you so much for sharing.

[@joris0283]

I totally agree.... I have this filter for 6 months on my 30L shrimp tank with a fine sponge and it works perfect!! Great review!!

[@crazee635]

I bought a bigger and more dense sponge for it but this is the best filter I've ever had. It's very versatile as I have it in a 50 litre but it has the power to filter twice the size of my tank easily especially with a bigger sponge option. The main disadvantage is once the suction cups start to age the filter will not be fitted on the glass correctly and will allow access behind the sponge and some of my fish have perished as once they get behind there they get stuck with the intake of the sponge keeping them there. Needless to say they do not sell spare suction cups for this filter so I've since bought a bog standard sponge filter because I'm fed up of sticking filters to the glass.

[@johanna3470]

thank you for this video haha just got the filter and was so confused i thought i could pick it apart more !

[@BeeUndercover]

Thank you for this most informative video, I gladly used it for setting up my filter just now! :)

[@quintenvandesande228]

Was looking for a video exactly like this! Thanks! Ordered one and mine came with a second sponge, much denser and smaller holes than the first one. Perhaps they saw your video ;)

[@flvcko4]

I have a 23l tank, should I put it to the minimum? Great review!

[@Mill_O]

This was awesomely helpful, just picked up the Aquael 20 setup and it came without the mount that fixes it to the side of the tank, but I don't want it there anyway 😅 Was also curious about the additional attachments and this helped fix those concerns, thank you!

[@Valmtg]

The instructions were absolutely abysmal. The odd flipside is the insert translation included Hungarian so I was quite amused by it. Thank you so much for uploading this video. You helped save me a lot of frustration!

[@johanwettergren]

Excellent review! Expertly crafted :) Just what I was looking for ^^

[@sarahheaton3205]

Thank you so much, this was really helpful.

[@mattriggs.aquaria]

Great review!

[@_RandomPea]

@tiny menagerie I don't know whether it's worth highlighting but since my initial purchase and being very happy with the performance ive had some issues. 1. After turning off at the plug it completely stopped working and had no flow with a horrible grinding noise. 2. Amazon sent a replacement and straight out the box the second one had the same grinding and lack of flow. I'm determined to get a replacement but just worth mentioning the issues I've had :(

[@_RandomPea]

You can see my video on the review I've added on Amazon

[@WhiteCloudAffinity]

Hi, do you know what the ventilation slits on the pump sides are (located on the bevel)? Would it be a risk for sucking up shrimp?

[@elizabethyvanovich3592]

How do u clean the impeller🤔

[@jomsborgwiki5749]

Excellentes Video! Thanks for this Video 😀

[@Braddas1977]

Great video, thank you. Do you know where you got the diffuser from, we're struggling to find one, cheers

[@Jikan04]

I'm a newbie and just bought the day and night tank by the same company. The turbo mini that came with it is a little different, no hook thing and one suction pad. The flow regulator is a little handle. I'm not convinced the suction cup will stay on the filter as I can pull it out of the filter really easily.

[@mcem17]

thank you very much 👏👏👏👏

[@voodooer7361]

If I put it on the slowest flow will it be okey for a betta?

[@tinymenagerie]

Hey. Hmmm, to be honest having tried mine down as low as it would go, i think it would still be too strong for a betta unless it was a pretty big tank and the flow was directed up. Have you tried the ASAP filters? I have a 300 in one of the shrimp tanks and the waterfall style is much less flowy. Might be betta for a betta :D

[@voodooer7361]

@@tinymenagerie hmm I've never heard of them but I'll check them out. I asked because this one tank I have is a Nano 15 liters and they suggested me that this filter will be fine. Anyway because I already bought it (haven't used it yet) I'll try and make it flow less maybe with a sponge or I'll switch it with my other tank's filter who has nice slow flow and put this in the big tank. Thank you for answering me :)

[@petreco4260]

@@tinymenagerie how did it go? Is the flow in the small tank too high?

[@turtlecheese8]

How loud is it running? I have a 10 gallon in my bedroom and prefer much quieter filters. Mine makes a quiet hum, much like a computer running on idle if that's any reference.

[@kimkrikaujensen3084]

I get seriously annoyed by noisy filters. This, pat mini does not bother me. Very silent.

[@hamsterman3000]

Can the water exit spout be situated above water? I'm thinking of crafting a small waterfall for the water to run down from.

[@tinymenagerie]

Hmmm technically yes. But the water could be no more that an inch or so below the spout as the inlet is quite high up. Plus it’s a strong little pump even on the lowest setting so would probably be too fast for a waterfall with out a lot of mucking about to reduce the flow. And by that time it would probably have been easier to just get a small submersible pump and a length of hose 🤷🏻‍♀️. But that’s just my thoughts. Good luck either way 👍🏻

[@hamsterman3000]

@@tinymenagerie ok, makes sense. Thanks for the quick response!

[@Lerieiz]

Great review. Which kind of sponge is the best replacement for this? I just got one. Didn’t know shrimp can be sucked into it esp the babies 😂😂😂

[@kjpdjb]

Someone made a great suggestion. Just place a knee high pantyhose sock over the filter and tie it in a knot at the top of the sponge. The pantyhose/nylon material is much finer mesh to prevent little ones to get through.

[@lashaundrawolf634]

Do you think this would be betta friendly I am having a hard time finding a filter that works with my tank

[@FreeRio2023]

Can water flow back via the air intake? I like the bubbles but the thought of a leakage scares me

[@druvak]

Would love a vid on how you clean the filter

[@davidwonder3633]

Just take off the sponge, rinse in tank water. And back on.

[@_RandomPea]

I've just found out where my son's shrimp are hanging out or even stuck inside the tetra filter that came with his 18l tank. So, question. Is this as good or better than having the filter with inserts?

[@tinymenagerie]

This is better because shrimps can’t get inside it, but it’s very powerful for a little tank. A small sponge filter might be more suitable 🙂

[@_RandomPea]

@@tinymenagerie seems ok on low setting... Tried at full flow and my minnows gave me a funny look :) I also had to do a rescue mission on the shrimp that was in the tetra one, poor fella had got his eye caught in one of the fibres and looks to have blinded himself. Free and recovering now.

[@_RandomPea]

@@tinymenagerie oh wow... So, it's been working fine and brilliant product. Once you realise you need to twist open the air unit aswell lol :) Trouble is, I've just this minute turned it off at the plug and back on as I needed to move something and now it's completely broken, horrible grinding sound and no water pumping. Maybe I got a defective product but be aware you might end up with a duff one like me. Ps. I've added a review and video of the sound on Amazon

[@meganhinde8665]

Great Video! I have a 19L tank with this filter in. I have live plants and I'm about to buy a betta for the tank. Do I need the air intake tube attached to put oxygen into the water for my betta? or is the tube part optional? I know Bettas don't like a lot of water movement that's all :)

[@joealyjim3029]

No, bettas are labyrinth fish so they can breathe atmospheric air, water oxygenation isnt a problem for them. Also, if you point the deflector towards the surface it will create enough surface agitation to adequately oxygenate the water anyway.

[@petreco4260]

Does this filter create a large current in such a small aquarium ( 19l) or is it okay?

[@utting123]

How quiet is the filter?? Would you recommend it for a bedroom

[@tinymenagerie]

Hey Jack! I find my pat mini astonishingly quiet, I literally have to stare at the water to see if there is moving debris to check it's on. I would certainly recommend it for a bedroom, BUT it did take about a month to completely settle and up until then it did hum, and I personally find the venturi bubbles are obnoxiously loud so I run my filters without them on. It's a great filter though, good luck with which ever you decide on! Lauren.

[@mirsad96]

And you can't open it up to clean the impeller when it gets clogged up. Mine failed on me after a couple of months.

[@tinymenagerie]

I hadn't considered that, thanks for the tip!

[@komoonkh]

You can get it done. I did. But it is risky, it is not made to be disassbled. Two of these filters died in my tank, but I still bought a third one.

[@universeamvs]

So is it good for betta?

[@bigfootwill]

Great video thank you

[@emilyo2985]

Where do you buy them? Link please.

[@CB-st6bo]

Will this be good for my aquael laddy.40. 25L fish tank. I only have 4 gold fish inside it

[@danielgamingpc4090]

Great video!! I subscribe ! 👍👍👍

[@TheNielsAlmelo]

how to clean the rotor though?

[@petrinekjr8320]

I just bought this today after a lot of consideration and I put it in (completely new) tank without fish yet and just a couple of plants and substrate. I find it buzzing quite loud, is that normal in the beginning?

[@tinymenagerie]

Hey. Yes, mine was rattling quite a bit for the first few days. then on and off for the next three weeks or so until it settled. They do run quietly eventually though :D

[@komoonkh]

Yeah, they are little noisy at first, bit it will go away. I had 3 of these and all of them did that.

[@paulm0573]

@@tinymenagerieI’ve replaced the sponge on mine for a more dense sponge, but any risk of newly hatched shrimp being sucked in from the inlet holes behind the powerhead? I cannot find any mention of this from anyone and I placed netting over the holes just in case but doesn’t look nice especially with rubber bands holding it in place.

[@manonbogaert6235]

Can you turn off the bubbles?

[@tinymenagerie]

Hey Manon, sorry for the late reply. You can turn the bubbles off, or adjust them, but turning the black bit on the venturi.

[@ExploringAndMe]

I was so confusing thanks for your help

[@SAGARSANJOY]

Buy link

[@paulm0573]

I put a brand new Pat mini filter in my shrimp tank last night but there is a constant noise coming from where the powerhead is. Any idea what this could be? Is it because there’s still air trapped inside?

[@slavs94]

seems like air can get stuck in there, I turned my upside down while on under water and gave it a good shake, that fixed it

[@kimkrikaujensen3084]

Get the filter with a baby shrimp sponge to replace. Mine sits in it's tank, don't need the back hook or suction cups. The filter pushes the power head away from the tank side and the problem is gone. Just sits on the substrate.

[@morhafalankar255]

the only thing i disliked about this filter is the soundddd, i used an airstone on the air intake side to make the situation better

[@shafiabdullah3448]

Sounds like something I need too. In one side of the air intake pipe you have air intake controller and the other side is connected to the filter. How exactly did you connect the airstone?

[@gayefanner731]

Good question 🙋‍♀️

[@radbaranski]

same

[@ZsoltPapp79]

That is literally one of the worst filter on the market :(

[@komoonkh]

Why? I think that those cheap chinese filters are all the same. This one is decent imho.

[@Joe_Blow215]

very helpful, thanks