My Horrible Experience with Fiji Cube’s AIO…

[Klyle]

So I’m going to get straight to the point…I purchased the Fiji Cube 32g AIO a while back. (From BRS) I had it up and running for a couple months before I decided to get a skimmer. I ran that skimmer for about a month before I decided I was sick of manually topping off twice a day. I added an ATO. It was at this point which I noticed horrible skimmer performance. After looking into it, I noticed the skimmer chamber fluctuates, mirroring the return chamber. The reason I didn’t notice it before this is because I was manually topping off, and apparently keeping it way more constant than the RB Prism ATO keeps it. So the bottom line is, I paid $600 for a tank that doesn’t function properly. I didn’t notice the issue until a few months, due to (IMO) a reasonable situation. I tried contacting FC for a week with no luck. I don’t live far from BRS so when I went by to pick up an order, I informed them of the situation and they were able to get someone at FC to reply to me. Well after a month of getting the run around and waiting on “consultations with technicians”, etc, they told me today to drain the tank, figure out where it is missing silicone or whatever, and fix it. You would think they would at least offer to send me a freakin bottle of silicone or something…not to kick rocks. It’s going to be real fun draining an established reef and keeping all my animals alive while the silicone dries. I will definitely never ever buy anything that says Fiji Cube on it ever again. I have an Innovative Marine AIO as well, and it’s built WAY BETTER than this Fiji Cube. I suppose whenever I finally have the time to fix their mistake (hopefully by March!) I’ll do a video of the draining and inspection and post it here. I’ll try to get it done soon, as it would be really nice if the skimmer actually worked in the SKIMMER chamber! Happy reefing!

 

[jphilip813]

Welcome to the club of Disaffected Customers of Fiji Cube. Their AFTER SALES/Customer Service is TRASH. My recommendations as I had mentioned before is to capture everything on video then upload it to YouTube. Contact FijiCube and one of their vendors (BRS) via email send them the link of the NUMEROUS communications you had with them. Lastly, if it comes down to it, reach out to the state Attorney General Office and BBB within MN to make an official complaint. FC, doesn't like bad press, but typically hide behind that "ONE" email account; no phone number to reach customer service or they are in "Training" and will drag it out until you call them to task. Speaking from experience here. I finally got what I wanted from them after 8 months and never purchased anything from them directly again.

 

[Klyle]

Welcome to the club of Disaffected Customers of Fiji Cube. Their AFTER SALES/Customer Service is TRASH. My recommendations as I had mentioned before is to capture everything on video then upload it to YouTube. Contact FijiCube and one of their vendors (BRS) via email send them the link of the NUMEROUS communications you had with them. Lastly, if it comes down to it, reach out to the state Attorney General Office and BBB within MN to make an official complaint. FC, doesn't like bad press, but typically hide behind that "ONE" email account; no phone number to reach customer service or they are in "Training" and will drag it out until you call them to task. Speaking from experience here. I finally got what I wanted from them after 8 months and never purchased anything from them directly again.

Thanks for your response…great ideas that I intend to pursue. The part of me trying to just be a better person says let it go, but the rational side is saying if they aren’t held accountable, a lot more people will get screwed! Apparently they’re in St Paul but there are zero addresses listed- like you said ONE email. I think I’m going to see if BRS has anything else they can do for me first. I’ve had issues with products in the past and BRS has always been there for me…but I don’t really feel like this one should be on them. Either way Fiji Cube sucks.

 

[jphilip813]

Thanks for your response…great ideas that I intend to pursue. The part of me trying to just be a better person says let it go, but the rational side is saying if they aren’t held accountable, a lot more people will get screwed! Apparently they’re in St Paul but there are zero addresses listed- like you said ONE email. I think I’m going to see if BRS has anything else they can do for me first. I’ve had issues with products in the past and BRS has always been there for me…but I don’t really feel like this one should be on them. Either way Fiji Cube sucks.

Another note, Keep it professional when you contact them via email and video. There is one person who seems to be the only person who can answer anything, but always take weeks to respond "Michael S." thats all I know his name is, but he only reponds to that one email and the chat feature. I also went on their Facebook account, posted some of the issues I had with video evidence and it was removed, and I received a chat reply as soon as the video was posted, but then weeks on weeks of delay in response from them. Just keep it professional and stick to the facts and you will have the upper hand.

 

[MoshJosh]

Maybe a dumb question but I am not familiar with these tanks. Is the water level in the skimmer chamber fluctuating higher or lower than the return chamber baffle?

 

[Klyle]

Maybe a dumb question but I am not familiar with these tanks. Is the water level in the skimmer chamber fluctuating higher or lower than the return chamber baffle?

It’s an exact mirror. Meaning it isn’t constant = skimmer won’t skim

 

[BAMatter]

It’s an exact mirror. Meaning it isn’t constant = skimmer won’t skim

Are you keeping the water level higher than the baffle? If so, then this is what will happen…

 

[MoshJosh]

Are you keeping the water level higher than the baffle? If so, then this is what will happen…

That’s what I was tiring to get at. Another way of looking at it is, when the pumps are off where does the water level sit in the back chambers? If the water in the skim chamber and return chamber is way above the return baffle the tank may be “too full.” Also, where is you ATO sensor? And how big is the ATO pump?

 

[BAMatter]

That’s what I was tiring to get at. Another way of looking at it is, when the pumps are off where does the water level sit in the back chambers? If the water in the skim chamber and return chamber is way above the return baffle the tank may be “too full.” Also, where is you ATO sensor? And how big is the ATO pump?

I knew exactly what you were getting at… I was just helping to facilitate it to the op. Maybe it will help.

 

[Klyle]

Are you keeping the water level higher than the baffle? If so, then this is what will happen…

No. I am not. Just seeing this message…

 

[Klyle]

That’s what I was tiring to get at. Another way of looking at it is, when the pumps are off where does the water level sit in the back chambers? If the water in the skim chamber and return chamber is way above the return baffle the tank may be “too full.” Also, where is you ATO sensor? And how big is the ATO pump?

The ATO sensor is in the return chamber. Water level is way below the baffles. It’s a small pump…but plenty strong enough to pump water as needed.

 

[Klyle]

Maybe a dumb question but I am not familiar with these tanks. Is the water level in the skimmer chamber fluctuating higher or lower than the return chamber baffle?

No. It is not.

 

[Klyle]

In case anyone is wondering…

 

[Klyle]

In case anyone is wondering…

 

[MoshJosh]

Sorry, but from the picture it looks like you are running with the water level too high. . .

That said, hard to tell from the picture.

But if the red line I drew is the baffle, the water level in return chamber should be less than or equal to that:

You can drain just the return section during normal operation, and if only that section drains then that is the problem and the tank is "overfilled". If draining that section during normal operation causes bother skimmer and return chamber to fall below the baffle (the one I marked in red) there is an issue with the silicone/baffle

 

[BAMatter]

Sorry, but from the picture it looks like you are running with the water level too high. . .

That said, hard to tell from the picture.

But if the red line I drew is the baffle, the water level in return chamber should be less than or equal to that:

You can drain just the return section during normal operation, and if only that section drains then that is the problem and the tank is "overfilled". If draining that section during normal operation causes bother skimmer and return chamber to fall below the baffle (the one I marked in red) there is an issue with the silicone/baffle

All this…

 

[Klyle]

Sorry, but from the picture it looks like you are running with the water level too high. . .

That said, hard to tell from the picture.

But if the red line I drew is the baffle, the water level in return chamber should be less than or equal to that:

You can drain just the return section during normal operation, and if only that section drains then that is the problem and the tank is "overfilled". If draining that section during normal operation causes bother skimmer and return chamber to fall below the baffle (the one I marked in red) there is an issue with the silicone/baffle

All this…

Sorry, but from the picture it looks like you are running with the water level too high. . .

That said, hard to tell from the picture.

But if the red line I drew is the baffle, the water level in return chamber should be less than or equal to that:

You can drain just the return section during normal operation, and if only that section drains then that is the problem and the tank is "overfilled". If draining that section during normal operation causes bother skimmer and return chamber to fall below the baffle (the one I marked in red) there is an issue with the silicone/baffle

I see what you are saying. Man I really hope that isn’t what the issue is. I’m going to feel really dumb. I’ll lower the level and see what happens and probably reluctantly post back…sometimes I really wish I could ignore reality and just live my own truths. Then I’d never have to be wrong. Ha. Either way I really appreciate ur input

 

[Beau_B]

I concur, if the water is where it appears, being just below the dial of the heater, that's too high.

Having heaters in return chamber can be tricky. If the ATO stops and the level drops, the heater can fry before you notice it. With that AIO set up I'm not sure where you could hide the heater though...

We all have experiences where we discover things the hard (and/or embarrassing) way.

 

[Klyle]

I concur, if the water is where it appears, being just below the dial of the heater, that's too high.

Having heaters in return chamber can be tricky. If the ATO stops and the level drops, the heater can fry before you notice it. With that AIO set up I'm not sure where you could hide the heater though...

We all have experiences where we discover things the hard (and/or embarrassing) way.

The heater is temporary. I had to move the fish to QT in my basement. I moved the Inkbird and heater with them and tossed those in there for the time being. I totally agree, return chamber isn’t the ideal place. And thanks for the words of encouragement…I’m pretty sure this was my issue. In my defense, I’ve been communicating this to Fiji Cube for over a month. You would think they could have helped me figure this out before I went on the internet and made myself look like an idiot. Once I’m sure this was it and everything is working properly, I’ll make sure to post this was all my fault and nothing to do with the tank. All that said, their customer service still sucks really bad and innovative marine is way better!

 

[BAMatter]

I see what you are saying. Man I really hope that isn’t what the issue is. I’m going to feel really dumb. I’ll lower the level and see what happens and probably reluctantly post back…sometimes I really wish I could ignore reality and just live my own truths. Then I’d never have to be wrong. Ha. Either way I really appreciate ur input

Don’t feel dumb... Ive done way worse, trust me

let us know if you’re able to get it sorted