Welcome DocTim aka Dr. Tim Hovanec, inventor of Dr. Tim's One And Only, fmr. BioSpira

platytudes said:
I don't know if Petsmart and Petco carry his product (like Dun, I've never needed it, so never bothered to look) but if it they do, wouldn't he be all set? What difference would three positive reviews make on AC? :rolleyes:
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I've never seen this product in either of those stores. Given the amount of skepticism/confusion about these products, if it were me I'd jump at the chance to demonstrate its effectiveness by impartial and experienced aquarists on a board that's well respected with lots of traffic. With no mishandling issues or newbie mistakes to worry about, it's a golden opportunity!

I'm frankly disappointed, so I'm going to buy a dang bottle and review it myself. I admit I'm skeptical, but if it works for me as advertised I will sing its praises louder than Lenny! I have no dog in this fight and fair is fair. Results will be posted regularly, with pics of my fish and test tubes as it progresses.
 
i see what you're saying platy. word of mouth speaks for itself though. as well certain members here hold more weight than others when they speak... and their word is spoken in virtual infinity. one becomes 3, becomes nine, etc., etc., and does so much faster over a larger audience. there becomes an almost infinite echo at times as well. the medium a forum provides have made and broken plenty of businesses. may be small beans on the doctors scale (and probably a moot point) but it's another niche market that can be cornered. bigger profits are the goal once the company morals and products are laid down. there's nothing wrong with that... it's business.

can't argue doc tim's stance either, though. pedaling after being revered is a large step backwards.

as well... assuming dr tims one and only works as well as i understand it would be good for forum members here to suggest in certain cases i'd think. swaying a few key minds could certainly help issues in plenty of lost newbs tanks in the future.

either way, i was purely curious on his stance and imo his reply was spotless.

honestly, i've started buying certain hikari products according to recommendations here. if rachel's excited i'm likely to try it for my inverts and see how things go. i got my sample coming. if i like it, it's one more product i'm switching to hikari for.

tom barr sells his services on his site. lack of has nothing to do with his credentials/credibility, imo. honest work for honest pay goes a long way. same goes for doc tim and both have confidence in their work and give back to the community, afaik. admirable traits, imo.

we do have a celebrity or 2 here afaik. i'm pretty sure i've seen at least one name... and nobody reacted any differently. this "celebrity" i speak of (if i'm getting this right) is arguably the best in his business and his business is entertainment related. not my business to disclose any more info so, please don't ask...
 
Jannika said:
I've never seen this product in either of those stores. Given the amount of skepticism/confusion about these products, if it were me I'd jump at the chance to demonstrate its effectiveness by impartial and experienced aquarists on a board that's well respected with lots of traffic. With no mishandling issues or newbie mistakes to worry about, it's a golden opportunity!

I'm frankly disappointed, so I'm going to buy a dang bottle and review it myself. I admit I'm skeptical, but if it works for me as advertised I will sing its praises louder than Lenny! I have no dog in this fight and fair is fair. Results will be posted regularly, with pics of my fish and test tubes as it progresses.
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Tetra SafeStart, the possible similar product to Dr. Tim's One And Only is in many big box stores because of Tetra's distribution size but once again, Tetra's SafeStart was started up when Spectrum Brands, in 2005, bought out Tetra and Marineland and Marineland held or jointly held some of the original patents for BioSpira. Dr. Tim went out on his own several years ago, after Marineland was acquired by Spectrum, and has new patents since going out on his own and I'm guessing he has made strives with improvements to Dr. Tim's One And Only whereas Tetra's parent company, Spectrum Brands, has been having major money problems and went through a Chapter 11 Bankruptcy for which they emerged in August of last year... so I don't know how much money they've been pumping into R & D to improve upon the shelf life and viability of their product... while Dr. Tim has been ONLY working to improve his company and products... for which he was the expert when he worked as Chief Science Officer for Marineland. He does have his own distribution network of online stores such as DrsFosterSmith.com and several other BIG online sellers... and also you can find a local store from his site, http://www.drtimsaquatics.com/WhereToBuy/WhereToBuy.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spectrum_Brands
In January 2005, Rayovac purchased United Industries Corporation for about $476 million in cash and stock. Brands included in United Industries were Vigoro, Spectracide and Sta-Green lawn products, Cutter, Hot Shot and Repel insect control products and pet supply products with the Marineland, Perfecto and Eight in One brands.[3] In 2005, Tetra, a major provider of pet-fish products, was acquired. This lead to a name change to Spectrum Brands.[2]

Heavily leveraged in debt, Spectrum attempted to sell its pet division (United Pet Group) containing aquarium products and supplies under the Tetra, Marineland, Instant Ocean and Jungle brand names, and pet care products under the Dingo, Firstrax, 8 in 1 and Nature's Miracles brand names. Appliance maker Salton, owned by hedge fund Harbinger Capital, agreed to pay approximately $692 million cash to purchase the pet care division, but the deal collapsed on July 14, 2008. According to Forbes and The Wall Street Journal, the sale was rejected by Spectrum's own key lenders, most likely because the deal valued the brands for less than what the bankers considered them to be worth.[citation needed]

On February 3, 2009, Spectrum filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.[4] The company later emerged from bankruptcy on August 28, 2009.[1] Since emerging from Chapter 11, Spectrum has announced year-over-year increases in sales and adjusted EBITDA for the second quarter of their fiscal 2010.
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I don’t mind sending out some samples – Jannika you can be first on the list – just PM me an address that Fedex can deliver to along with a phone number. At $10 to $12 a pop I can’t send out dozens of samples but some is no problem. So if you interested and have a need as you’re setting up a new tank etc then how about the first 10 or so requests I’ll take care of (I'm taking it out of Lenny’s commission, anyways!).

We are not in PetCo, PetsMart or Wal-Mart for many reasons and have no plans to be. We deal with independent stores. Positive forum reviews are always a plus - word of mouth is a great way to get established. I don't think I have had to backpedaled by not being part of huge corporation - we didn't see eye to eye on many things and I like the freedom running my own company gives me - no committees!

We're a small company and I know it sounds corny but I learned from the founder of Marineland that if you take care of the fish, the customer and the product you'll be successful. Too many companies focus solely on the bottom line and eventually, IMO, it hurts them. We don't need to worry about this quarter's stock price or investor relations etc. and we don't have to compromise our morals to be successful.

 
DocTim said:
I don’t mind sending out some samples – Jannika you can be first on the list – just PM me an address that Fedex can deliver to along with a phone number. At $10 to $12 a pop I can’t send out dozens of samples but some is no problem. So if you interested and have a need as you’re setting up a new tank etc then how about the first 10 or so requests I’ll take care of (I'm taking it out of Lenny’s commission, anyways!).

We are not in PetCo, PetsMart or Wal-Mart for many reasons and have no plans to be. We deal with independent stores. Positive forum reviews are always a plus - word of mouth is a great way to get established. I don't think I have had to backpedaled by not being part of huge corporation - we didn't see eye to eye on many things and I like the freedom running my own company gives me - no committees!

We're a small company and I know it sounds corny but I learned from the founder of Marineland that if you take care of the fish, the customer and the product you'll be successful. Too many companies focus solely on the bottom line and eventually, IMO, it hurts them. We don't need to worry about this quarter's stock price or investor relations etc. and we don't have to compromise our morals to be successful.
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Waitaminute!!!! If I supposedly get a 5% commission and I don't even have any sales yet, since I don't sell anything... and then you give away 10 $12.00 samples, that would mean I owe you $114.00 ($120.00 total value minus $6.00 commission). I'm not sure I like this deal! LOL
 
Oh wow, samples after all...:D Neato!

The closest store to me that sells Dr. Tim's products is 30 miles away, so I probably won't be buying anything locally. It is an interesting line, though - although it's hard for me to tell the difference between ReFresh, EcoBalance, and WasteAway.

Maybe it's just to keep things simple for the customer, or maybe it's because it's a trade secret, but I would have more confidence in these products if the kinds of bacteria used were actually listed so I could research them further - if in fact these are three very different formulas, which I believe they are.

I'm sure it's tough to sell products to experienced aquarists (the people in the 7 year + bracket that Dr. Tim mentioned) since you'll often hear the mantra "dose nothing in the aquarium, only Prime." Taking a shortcut by putting in an additive is a big no no. If nitrates are creeping up or the gravel is dirty, a water change is the one and only (no pun intended ;)) solution, even if all other levels are right on the money. A simple mention of using Tetra's Easy Balance will get you flamed - even though I'm sure that there is real science behind those Nitraban granules and if I recall correctly, it also has buffering capacity. And there are so many companies selling sludge eating bacteria products that I find it hard to believe it is all a total crock!

With so many people into keeping inverts now - especially shrimp - where the task of gravel vacuuming is almost impossible, it would be really nice to have an invertebrate safe sludge remover you could dose with each water change (or as needed). I don't really see how it makes you lazy, any more than using an automatic feeder for your cat or dog kibble!
 
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you'd better get to work, lenny! quit slacking. :laugh:
 
GoldLenny said:
IMO.. I'm still regularly amazed at how some long-time hobbyists have no clue about BioSpira and now the improved version of it, Dr. Tim's One And Only... but that's just me.
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Possibly because long-time hobbyists generally have one or more tanks already running and established, and know enough to just grab some established filter media from an existing setup to seed the media in a new tank. That course of action is recommended all the time on the boards here. If you already have an abundant source of active bacteria, there's no need to go out and buy it, and no need to really keep up on the leading edge of research going on in that area, other than possibly just for curiosity's sake.
 
Originally Posted by dixienut
Welcome DocTim, and i for one am glad you do the work you do,. when i was a noobie,.. i almost killed my fish listening to other and using their products that didn't work,..

i used your stuff, both fresh and salt versions and they did what they claimed,.. and caught flack about it but i used it and tested and it did what you claimed,.. and me and my fish tank you,.. that was a few years ago,.. 2006 i believe,..
and i trust your products,..
Was that intentional or a Freudian slip? ;-)
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it was a finger slip =)
 
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