About Us:
Our current staff welcomes you:
Devon (Owner, Information, Website Design, Videos, Customer Service)
Michelle (Shipping/Sales)
Steven (Artwork, Diagrams, Web design, Information, Shipping)
Tommy (Website Consultation)
Carl (Founder, Information)
Devon (Owner, Information, Website Design, Videos, Customer Service)
Michelle (Shipping/Sales)
Steven (Artwork, Diagrams, Web design, Information, Shipping)
Tommy (Website Consultation)
Carl (Founder, Information)
Mission Statment
We strive to sell products and provide information in this manner:
Unique Website with Unique Content:
Simply put AAP has always been based on "Information & Content First, Products 2nd and our layout reflects this.
When AAP's founder decided to go online after years in the aquarium industry both in operating fish stores and a large, highly regarded aquarium maintenance company, he wanted something different, not the same cookie cutter website; more information heavy and selling pages that also provide copious amounts of information.
As well AAP and founder Carl Strohmeyer's history has ALWAYS been about information and the community first, product/sales 2nd. From our founders many times putting people above sales, such as his extremely costly to him (both personally and professionally) dropping of his largest client in support of an employee to many times he has put profits well behind helping others.
The following points will expand on this... however, we have NO intention of being like every other cookie cutter aquarium/pond/fish website. We are unique in our set-up, information, use of many web pros in web site set up, and mostly professionally used products.
Our articles are unique with content, which is regularly updated. With both research and professional experience behind much of the information. This also includes our sister website- "Aquarium & Pond Answers".
Our mission has been and will be to push our information first and any products recommendations second. Even then, the majority of the products we recommend are based on our researched articles and experience.
For those who ask us to sponsor their forums, clubs, etc. If we elect to do so, please understand our mission statement of information first will also be carried over to any sponsorship. Please do not ask us to sponsor and then ask that we not follow our Mission Statement as more than one forum has.
Quality products based on our often unique information and experience:
At a great value that we or our aquarium maintenance partners would use.
If you explore our website from products to information, you will find a unique mix of products and information not found anywhere else. We don't carry just what sells. We sell products that are often only marketed to aquarium professionals, where cool gimmicky features are not often the priority.
An example would be many of TMC products, such as their LED controllers, which doesn't have a lot of "flash", but more makes up for it in science based electronics.
As another example, we generally do not sell UV sterilizers with baffles (twists), wipers, or other features, which our research has found to be simply gimmicks, which can leads to short life span of a product.
Longevity of products (including lights that will last more than a year or two in an aquarium environment) is also very important to what we promote, as this was important with our 1000s of contract aquarium clients in that products that did not last at the very least incurred free house/business calls to correct the problem (which is simply not a a good business model)
This means, you will likely not find this website to sell everything you need for your aquarium or pond, as our mission is not to be everything to every aquarium or pond keeper.
As well we do not mean to ever imply that we too are not continuing to learn from others, and ongoing experience and that our products fit every application, as they most certainly do not!
We also do not want to ever imply that we are the end all of aquarium research & information (we certainly are not), but we do revise our article on a daily ongoing basis, which you will not find with most Internet articles or social media based information
Our goal is NOT to be a one stop store for all aquatic needs. Our hope is support of local aquarium/pet stores. However, we also do hope we are one place for aquatic information and do hope there's support for this information by purchasing at least a few of our helpful or unique products, if the information is found to be helpful.
This includes products, which are easy to find elsewhere such as API (Mars Fish Care) Filstar or Furan 2 where we provide information about their use not found elsewhere.
This is especially true of late, since Mars Fish Care has essentially thrown aquarium professionals "under the bus" that helped promote their brand in favor of discounters, by selling to these discounters at lower prices than what a professional can purchase. Even in large quantities and then not answering letters professionals and others send asking for similar deals.
We often do not sell some products from companies where we find the majority of their products excellent. We do this, because we or our professional maintenance partners have not found these particular products satisfactory.
A good example would be SeaChem Focus, our founder found no difference in its use in controlled testing.
Another example is the Fusion 500, we only sell the Fusion models we found to work well.
Other companies such as API, we do not sell all their products, or recommend their use for all applications the manufacturer (or others) may, so please read our extensive library of Aquatic Information (such as Aquarium Medications) if there is questions prior to use.
An example of a product we thought was an excellent idea, but failed in testing was the JBJ Internal UV Sterilizer (which is also sold under alternative names).
Another example are the Hydro Sponge PRO filters in small sizes, such as the #2. While the #5 PRO is an excellent filter for the environment and flow rates for they were designed, we have found the Hydro Sponge #2 PRO to not work as well in both flow rates and bacterial loads for the smaller tanks a #2 are designed for, thus in the end the #2 Standard out performed the #2 PRO in most instance (although we do sell this filter due to customer demand)!
Most products we sell have a background in our decades of experience. This often includes, science based testing and ALWAYS includes only selling products that have known ingredients, which agree with the known science of aquarium keeping.
Testing:
Even in selling many of the best quality products at competitive prices, we also realize that nothing is perfect and with many of our products such as the UV-C bulbs, aquarium light fixtures, UV sterilizers, pumps, and many, many more we open and test before shipping to help our customers avoid the hassles of receiving defective merchandise.
So if you see cut seals, etc., this due to our opening & testing of product prior to shipping (often with UVs in particular, we re-pack with more packing material than comes in the original box).
This is a time consuming process, which few of our competitors take the time to perform! The bottom line is, if the product package is open and the product looks "fired" as in the case of a UV bulb or other light fixture, this is because it was opened and tested, by us to ensure a non-defective product. Not because we sell used products!
Unique FREE:
Articles & Information as noted earlier, about many aspects of aquarium and pond care, which are based on decades of experience, which also include our aquarium/pond maintenance partners. As well as 1000s of hours of in depth research, often outside the anecdotal aquarium community.
If you have been helped with the many articles we provide here and at Aquarium Answers, please help us by providing a link in a personal blog or website to one of your favorite articles or products here and giving a "shout out".
Feedback:
Our policy is to provide the BEST and most ACCURATE information possible, which our decades of hands on experience and research testifies to.
Because of this knowledge base, we do NOT allow the popular Amazon.com type feedback as we have found this to be highly inaccurate with good reviews for products, which over normal use fail or bad reviews for excellent products, which were not properly used or even sold incorrectly.
The lowest possible price:
This means, many products we sell often are close to cost with profit margins as low $2 on some filters & pumps (even large aquarium or pond filters have small profits).
Shopping Cart:
We utilize a PayPal hosted shopping cart, which accepts Credit Cards without requiring a PayPal account.
We do this for the proven safety of their encrypted shopping carts. Also, this integration allows for a template where by we can provide the copious amounts of information/content unique to our website.
Provide Customer Service:
To compliment our top notch researched articles, we respond to emails within an hour or two (often much less) during normal business hours.
Unlike most businesses in our field, we also check emails after hours and on weekends to provide immediate professional help for our customers or those simply asking questions about their fish or equipment. In fact, based on statistics, the vast majority of such questions are not from customers.
PLEASE respect this unique after hours service we provide. Please do not continue to ask follow up questions into the night expecting an immediate response, but rather please read information we provide. Please understand that this is also our family time too.
As well, our staff is trained to answer basic product questions, not specific aquarium/pond set-up or fish disease questions. We understand most people (as per our Stat software), will use the advice given to them to purchase locally. However, please also respect we cannot remain viable answering questions for other businesses customers.
Please allow us to help you by reading the articles we have spent 1000s of hours in research/writing, and refrain from repeat questions and discussions until after reading the article content. As well, when management level staff have to jump in and help with email questions that are already contained in our library of articles, this also detracts them from their time they spend in constant research, testing, & graphics to keep the articles updated.
HOWEVER, please feel free to ask for clarifications, etc., especially for unique lighting applications, etc.
Please also understand, when asking questions in our customer service email, it ONLY helps the asker.
However when questions are asked in our sponsored forums, it benefits many in the forum and these forum posts are added to Google/Bing/DuckDuckGo searches, resulting in one question/answer benefiting many (including our website SEO, thus there's a small benefit for us too), as well as allowing us more efficient use of our time.
We are set up to operate online:
As already noted, we offer world class customer support/help via email, INCLUDING after hours and weekend tech support from staff not even in the office that we pay per email to offer timely customer support. Few online sellers offer this (also including our staff paid to be online @ Everything Aquatic Forum).
The FACTS are that we can provide links, diagrams and search history via email, which phone support simply cannot do.
Email support also allows to much better multi-task, which in recent years with very low margins due to free shipping, Amazon and other pressures has become a MUST!!
To help us serve you better, please use the same email address for your questions/customer support as you do with purchases. This makes it easier for us to provide you with the best possible customer support.
We need a written record for a variety of reasons, including teaching/training of other employees or forum members.
This written record is important, as we have had multiple incidence's of persons asking questions by phone (including our phone order line, which is not intended for tech support) and then disputing the information given based on miscommunication or other reasons and then demanding returns at our cost or even filing charge backs.
We will often research questions we do not readily have an answers for. This includes contacting staff (not otherwise readily available in shop, rather working at other locations for efficiency), vendors, sister maintenance company personnel, etc. for further information.
We then can provide links to our extensive library or our many trusted outside resources for further information. This CANNOT be done via phone.
In fact, everyone at AAP reads technical questions sent by email (even if they were not the person who answered) including Carl. ALL questions are used to improve future questions and our articles. We cannot efficiently improve our articles and future answers if technical questions are answered by phone (as we did in the past).
As well, since fraud is at an all time high, with little merchant protection from credit card processors and other online providers, we LEGALLY need this written record for proof of what we recommended or proof of the correct item sent
Handle In House Warranty Returns:
This means time and man hours spent testing and often replacing or occasionally repairing products. When the majority of these returns are damaged by misuse or customer equipment failures (such as Blown UV Bulbs due to a customers bad ballast or moisture damage to lights). Many of these warranty issues would not result in replacement from the manufacture without a repair/replacement charge, yet most of the time we provide this service for free other than return shipping fees.
Unique Website with Unique Content:
Simply put AAP has always been based on "Information & Content First, Products 2nd and our layout reflects this.
When AAP's founder decided to go online after years in the aquarium industry both in operating fish stores and a large, highly regarded aquarium maintenance company, he wanted something different, not the same cookie cutter website; more information heavy and selling pages that also provide copious amounts of information.
As well AAP and founder Carl Strohmeyer's history has ALWAYS been about information and the community first, product/sales 2nd. From our founders many times putting people above sales, such as his extremely costly to him (both personally and professionally) dropping of his largest client in support of an employee to many times he has put profits well behind helping others.
The following points will expand on this... however, we have NO intention of being like every other cookie cutter aquarium/pond/fish website. We are unique in our set-up, information, use of many web pros in web site set up, and mostly professionally used products.
Our articles are unique with content, which is regularly updated. With both research and professional experience behind much of the information. This also includes our sister website- "Aquarium & Pond Answers".
Our mission has been and will be to push our information first and any products recommendations second. Even then, the majority of the products we recommend are based on our researched articles and experience.
For those who ask us to sponsor their forums, clubs, etc. If we elect to do so, please understand our mission statement of information first will also be carried over to any sponsorship. Please do not ask us to sponsor and then ask that we not follow our Mission Statement as more than one forum has.
Quality products based on our often unique information and experience:
At a great value that we or our aquarium maintenance partners would use.
If you explore our website from products to information, you will find a unique mix of products and information not found anywhere else. We don't carry just what sells. We sell products that are often only marketed to aquarium professionals, where cool gimmicky features are not often the priority.
An example would be many of TMC products, such as their LED controllers, which doesn't have a lot of "flash", but more makes up for it in science based electronics.
As another example, we generally do not sell UV sterilizers with baffles (twists), wipers, or other features, which our research has found to be simply gimmicks, which can leads to short life span of a product.
Longevity of products (including lights that will last more than a year or two in an aquarium environment) is also very important to what we promote, as this was important with our 1000s of contract aquarium clients in that products that did not last at the very least incurred free house/business calls to correct the problem (which is simply not a a good business model)
This means, you will likely not find this website to sell everything you need for your aquarium or pond, as our mission is not to be everything to every aquarium or pond keeper.
As well we do not mean to ever imply that we too are not continuing to learn from others, and ongoing experience and that our products fit every application, as they most certainly do not!
We also do not want to ever imply that we are the end all of aquarium research & information (we certainly are not), but we do revise our article on a daily ongoing basis, which you will not find with most Internet articles or social media based information
Our goal is NOT to be a one stop store for all aquatic needs. Our hope is support of local aquarium/pet stores. However, we also do hope we are one place for aquatic information and do hope there's support for this information by purchasing at least a few of our helpful or unique products, if the information is found to be helpful.
This includes products, which are easy to find elsewhere such as API (Mars Fish Care) Filstar or Furan 2 where we provide information about their use not found elsewhere.
This is especially true of late, since Mars Fish Care has essentially thrown aquarium professionals "under the bus" that helped promote their brand in favor of discounters, by selling to these discounters at lower prices than what a professional can purchase. Even in large quantities and then not answering letters professionals and others send asking for similar deals.
We often do not sell some products from companies where we find the majority of their products excellent. We do this, because we or our professional maintenance partners have not found these particular products satisfactory.
A good example would be SeaChem Focus, our founder found no difference in its use in controlled testing.
Another example is the Fusion 500, we only sell the Fusion models we found to work well.
Other companies such as API, we do not sell all their products, or recommend their use for all applications the manufacturer (or others) may, so please read our extensive library of Aquatic Information (such as Aquarium Medications) if there is questions prior to use.
An example of a product we thought was an excellent idea, but failed in testing was the JBJ Internal UV Sterilizer (which is also sold under alternative names).
Another example are the Hydro Sponge PRO filters in small sizes, such as the #2. While the #5 PRO is an excellent filter for the environment and flow rates for they were designed, we have found the Hydro Sponge #2 PRO to not work as well in both flow rates and bacterial loads for the smaller tanks a #2 are designed for, thus in the end the #2 Standard out performed the #2 PRO in most instance (although we do sell this filter due to customer demand)!
Most products we sell have a background in our decades of experience. This often includes, science based testing and ALWAYS includes only selling products that have known ingredients, which agree with the known science of aquarium keeping.
Testing:
Even in selling many of the best quality products at competitive prices, we also realize that nothing is perfect and with many of our products such as the UV-C bulbs, aquarium light fixtures, UV sterilizers, pumps, and many, many more we open and test before shipping to help our customers avoid the hassles of receiving defective merchandise.
So if you see cut seals, etc., this due to our opening & testing of product prior to shipping (often with UVs in particular, we re-pack with more packing material than comes in the original box).
This is a time consuming process, which few of our competitors take the time to perform! The bottom line is, if the product package is open and the product looks "fired" as in the case of a UV bulb or other light fixture, this is because it was opened and tested, by us to ensure a non-defective product. Not because we sell used products!
Unique FREE:
Articles & Information as noted earlier, about many aspects of aquarium and pond care, which are based on decades of experience, which also include our aquarium/pond maintenance partners. As well as 1000s of hours of in depth research, often outside the anecdotal aquarium community.
If you have been helped with the many articles we provide here and at Aquarium Answers, please help us by providing a link in a personal blog or website to one of your favorite articles or products here and giving a "shout out".
Feedback:
Our policy is to provide the BEST and most ACCURATE information possible, which our decades of hands on experience and research testifies to.
Because of this knowledge base, we do NOT allow the popular Amazon.com type feedback as we have found this to be highly inaccurate with good reviews for products, which over normal use fail or bad reviews for excellent products, which were not properly used or even sold incorrectly.
The lowest possible price:
This means, many products we sell often are close to cost with profit margins as low $2 on some filters & pumps (even large aquarium or pond filters have small profits).
Shopping Cart:
We utilize a PayPal hosted shopping cart, which accepts Credit Cards without requiring a PayPal account.
We do this for the proven safety of their encrypted shopping carts. Also, this integration allows for a template where by we can provide the copious amounts of information/content unique to our website.
Provide Customer Service:
To compliment our top notch researched articles, we respond to emails within an hour or two (often much less) during normal business hours.
Unlike most businesses in our field, we also check emails after hours and on weekends to provide immediate professional help for our customers or those simply asking questions about their fish or equipment. In fact, based on statistics, the vast majority of such questions are not from customers.
PLEASE respect this unique after hours service we provide. Please do not continue to ask follow up questions into the night expecting an immediate response, but rather please read information we provide. Please understand that this is also our family time too.
As well, our staff is trained to answer basic product questions, not specific aquarium/pond set-up or fish disease questions. We understand most people (as per our Stat software), will use the advice given to them to purchase locally. However, please also respect we cannot remain viable answering questions for other businesses customers.
Please allow us to help you by reading the articles we have spent 1000s of hours in research/writing, and refrain from repeat questions and discussions until after reading the article content. As well, when management level staff have to jump in and help with email questions that are already contained in our library of articles, this also detracts them from their time they spend in constant research, testing, & graphics to keep the articles updated.
HOWEVER, please feel free to ask for clarifications, etc., especially for unique lighting applications, etc.
Please also understand, when asking questions in our customer service email, it ONLY helps the asker.
However when questions are asked in our sponsored forums, it benefits many in the forum and these forum posts are added to Google/Bing/DuckDuckGo searches, resulting in one question/answer benefiting many (including our website SEO, thus there's a small benefit for us too), as well as allowing us more efficient use of our time.
We are set up to operate online:
As already noted, we offer world class customer support/help via email, INCLUDING after hours and weekend tech support from staff not even in the office that we pay per email to offer timely customer support. Few online sellers offer this (also including our staff paid to be online @ Everything Aquatic Forum).
The FACTS are that we can provide links, diagrams and search history via email, which phone support simply cannot do.
Email support also allows to much better multi-task, which in recent years with very low margins due to free shipping, Amazon and other pressures has become a MUST!!
To help us serve you better, please use the same email address for your questions/customer support as you do with purchases. This makes it easier for us to provide you with the best possible customer support.
We need a written record for a variety of reasons, including teaching/training of other employees or forum members.
This written record is important, as we have had multiple incidence's of persons asking questions by phone (including our phone order line, which is not intended for tech support) and then disputing the information given based on miscommunication or other reasons and then demanding returns at our cost or even filing charge backs.
We will often research questions we do not readily have an answers for. This includes contacting staff (not otherwise readily available in shop, rather working at other locations for efficiency), vendors, sister maintenance company personnel, etc. for further information.
We then can provide links to our extensive library or our many trusted outside resources for further information. This CANNOT be done via phone.
In fact, everyone at AAP reads technical questions sent by email (even if they were not the person who answered) including Carl. ALL questions are used to improve future questions and our articles. We cannot efficiently improve our articles and future answers if technical questions are answered by phone (as we did in the past).
As well, since fraud is at an all time high, with little merchant protection from credit card processors and other online providers, we LEGALLY need this written record for proof of what we recommended or proof of the correct item sent
Handle In House Warranty Returns:
This means time and man hours spent testing and often replacing or occasionally repairing products. When the majority of these returns are damaged by misuse or customer equipment failures (such as Blown UV Bulbs due to a customers bad ballast or moisture damage to lights). Many of these warranty issues would not result in replacement from the manufacture without a repair/replacement charge, yet most of the time we provide this service for free other than return shipping fees.