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- Filter material for the removal of silicic acid (silicate) in fresh and marine water to prevent diatoms
- Simply place in filter bag and place in filter. Rinse after one to two weeks
- Silicate content can be checked with silicate test. Result: values below 0.4 mg/l silicate prevent diatoms
- Includes net bag and sealing clip
SilicatEx removes silicate from fresh and marine water aquariums. It removes from the main nutrients the unwanted diatom algae (brown coatings), which often appear after freshwater has been added. SilikatEx Rapid also removes phosphate etc. and thus curbs the growth of other algae. The filter material creates biotope-like living conditions.
Diatoms (often called Brown Algae) form a brown coating on plants, substrate and decor. Brown Algae is formed primarily when when your water contains more than 0.4 mg/l silicic acid/silicates (SiO2). The silicic acid is often found naturally in tap water. Diatoms (brown algae) use silicate to form their skeletal structure. So in order to combat the algae, just remove the silicic acid from the water and they will be unable to grow or form.
Diatoms are neither toxic nor harmful. They even form a part of the natural diet of grazing cichlids in Lake Malawi and Lake Tanganyika. But as algae form brownish coatings which are regarded as unattractive we tend to remove them from our aquariums. Often confused with slime algae, both algal groups can look very similar. But when you rub them between your fingers you can feel the difference: slimy algae feel greasy-slimy, whereas diatoms feel rough.
Delivery
Delivery costs for your order will be calculated during the checkout process based on your delivery address and the contents of your basket. You will only pay one delivery charge for your order. Express delivery is FREE for online orders OVER £39 unless any of the points below become a factor.
- Some large items like aquariums, ponds and pond liners will have an additional charge of £45.00 to help offset the cost of a pallet delivery.
- Orders containing a physical gift card will have an additional charge of £2.45 to cover the cost of materials and delivery (digital gift cards are a free alternative).
- Orders to highlands, islands and Northern Ireland may incur an additional delivery charge displayed at checkout this is based on the postal code provided. DPD provides a list of postal codes which have additional surcharges. Some of these post codes may also take 2 working days to arrive, even on express. Pallet deliveries cannot be sent to these post codes.
We only ship to the UK and cannot ship internationally.
We aim to dispatch items that are currently in stock on the same working day if they are ordered before 2.45 pm (excluding Bank Holidays). Orders after 3pm will be dispatched the following working day, unless it fits any of the below criteria:
- Orders containing live plants will take up to 2 weeks to arrive. We take a week's worth of customer orders and then inform the plant farms of the specific quantities we need to fulfil that week's order to avoid wastage.
- Pallet orders containing large items like big aquariums will take additional time to arrive as they are sent by a third party. These orders will NOT be dispatched until we have been in touch to arrange a delivery date, this is to ensure someone is available at your address to sign for the delivery. Deliveries will generally be delivered ‘curb side’ within the terms of the agreement we have with our couriers so you will need to make arrangements to transfer larger items into your home yourself. Unfortunately, our drivers are not insured to transfer the aquarium into your home.
- Physical gift cards and items from the gift shop (such as clothes, towels etc) are sent with 1st Class Royal Mail. Delivery usually takes 1-2 working days, though in rare cases and orders placed closer to public holidays (Christmas, Father’s day, Mother’s day etc.) may be longer.
Returns
If you are not 100% satisfied with your purchase online from our website, you can return the product and get a full refund or exchange the product for another one, for up to 21 days from the date you purchased it.
We strongly suggest signing up for an account with fishkeeper.co.uk as this will allow for some additional returns options like return to your local store.
If you checkout as a guest you will need to return the product to Maidenhead Aquatics, PO Box 619, Egham, Surrey, TW20 2BS, please package the order (along with a packing slip or a note including your name, address and order number).
Large pallet items like aquariums are deemed delivered successfully with no damage once the the driver has left the property. If a report of damage is submitted after the driver has left we may be unable to assist with replacements. We recommend refusing a damaged delivery, this is the fastest resolution.
Our full terms and conditions can be found here. When you place an order with us online you are agreeing to these terms and conditions.
For delivery before Christmas, orders must be placed on or before 3pm on Wednesday 20th December. We cannot guarantee delivery of these orders pre-Christmas as we are reliant on our couriers, but will use our best endeavours to get orders placed on this date out to you before Christmas. For full details of our festive delivery and opening times click here
Please note: online orders placed after 3pm on Friday 22nd December will not be dispatched until the New Year. For full details of our festive delivery and opening times click here