Api Water Conditioner

[powerdyne6]

Why is this so hard to get now.

I usually got this stuff on Amazon for about $30 Cad for the 32 ounce bottle.

Now it is $65 Cad

I am in the Vancouver Canada area and a few of my local places I visit don’t have it either.


I would like to continue using it and I don’t really want to change brands as I and my fish are used to this stuff.

Any suggestions or places I can buy this?

 

[GaryE]

I've had trouble finding it. It was in an east coast chain a couple of weeks ago when I went looking, but the chain isn't national. It's pretty well the same stuff as the easier to get Prime.

 

[powerdyne6]

I've had trouble finding it. It was in an east coast chain a couple of weeks ago when I went looking, but the chain isn't national. It's pretty well the same stuff as the easier to get Prime.

Can you link me to the “prime”?

I guess changing isn’t a big deal I will just have to figure out the dosage that I need

 

[GaryE]

Prime should be easy to find. Seachem is a big company in our small pond, and they have largely pushed APi to the margins.

Seachem Prime 500ml

Seachem Prime 500ml, Prime® is the complete and concentrated conditioner for both fresh and salt water. Prime® removes chlorine, chloramine and ammonia

aquariumdirect.ca

It's this stuff. I found it cheaper in a store in Halifax. I bought the AP stuff instead, but they both smell exactly the same (that sulphur smell). I use a medical syringe to dose it, with a short length of airline where the needle would be. I pull it up with the syringe, and have the precise measurements for how much to use. It's economical.

 

[MaloK]

There is 64 ounces jugs right there. At 60$

API Fishcare 52J API TAP Aquarium Water Conditioner 64-Ounce Bottle

 

[GaryE]

There is 64 ounces jugs right there. At 60$

API Fishcare 52J API TAP Aquarium Water Conditioner 64-Ounce Bottle

I love it when I see a bottle of water conditioner with the seller offering an easy payment plan. Yikes!

 

[Essjay]

I usually get mine from eBay or Amazon. There's a not very close LFS which sells it, and I have just discovered that Pets at Home sells the 4 fl oz/118 ml size cheaper than eBay/Amazon.

I want the 237 ml size but no-one sells it. The 118 ml bottle is more expensive pro rata and the 473 ml bottle lasts forever.

 

[powerdyne6]

There is 64 ounces jugs right there. At 60$

API Fishcare 52J API TAP Aquarium Water Conditioner 64-Ounce Bottle

Yes… I have seen this as well.

My post was in regards to it doubling in price from $30 to $60

Was inquiring about this product becoming harder to find locally.

 

[Essjay]

It's interesting that here in the UK the price has only crept up alongside inflation.
This water conditioner has never been sold in many LFS in the UK, I've usually bought mine on-line.

 

[GaryE]

My post was in regards to it doubling in price from $30 to $60

Was inquiring about this product becoming harder to find locally.

My read on it is that Prime, the competitor, has pushed API out, at least in Canada. With a bigger market share and stronger product line, they can get their stock into stores more easily. Stores are in trouble, and having to pay for two water conditioners on their shelves is an expense they don't want. They're barely hanging in.
With our lower population, even the online stores don't seem to carry large product lines. When I asked one seller, he said that if one product languished on the shelf, it wasn't replaced. Seachem is very strong with marketing, and when you read forums, they have a very loyal following.
I'm disloyal when it comes to brands, especially when the ingredients seem to be the same. I don't have chloramines, and dechlorination is a simple process. If the price of the API product skyrockets, I switch away from it. When Prime gets a monopoly, the price will go up too, but that's beyond my control. I'd rather have the choice, and if someone steps in to compete with Seachem, I'll support them. Right now, the API and Prime products are the best value.

I've noticed that when a product becomes hard to find in Canada, as API stuff has, Amazon jacks the price up very high.