IceCap Acclimation Kit
SKU: IC-ACK-200S
MSRP: $ 10.50
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Available Through Authorized Retailer
- Advanced Osmotic Shock Defense: Slow-drip balancing system designed to minimize parameter shock on sensitive marine fish, corals, and delicate motile invertebrates.
- Integrated Rubber Siphon Starter: Equipped with a built-in squeeze bulb pump primer that gets the water flowing instantly without requiring oral suction.
- Rigid Hooked Acrylic Intake Tube: Rigid hook design slips securely over standard glass trims or thick plastic frame molding to keep the intake line pinned in place.
- Submerged Intake Strainer Sponge: Outfitted with a fine-pore pre-filter block at the intake point to prevent floating sump debris or macroalgae from clogging the line.
- Fine-Tuning Threaded Control Valve: Includes an inline variable-clamp thumb screw valve to easily set and lock your target drops-per-second velocity.
- Flexible Dual-Length Vinyl Line: Supplied with professional-grade medical vinyl tubing that resists pinching and retains its flexibility over long-term use.
IceCap
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IceCap Aquatic Drip Acclimation Kit (IC-ACK-200S)
The IceCap Aquatic Drip Acclimation Kit (SKU: IC-ACK-200S) is a simple, highly effective livestock husbandry tool distributed by CoralVue to safely ease new aquatic arrivals into your home ecosystem. When fish, shrimp, starfish, or live corals are shipped across country networks or brought home from a local store, the water they travel in quickly deviates from your display tank's established parameters. Drastic differences in salinity, nitrate density, total hardness, and pH can shock an animal's regulatory systems, leading to high stress, weak immune responses, or immediate osmotic failure. The IC-ACK-200S eliminates this danger by utilizing a controlled gravity-fed drip line to slowly replace transit water with your display's clean water, allowing the specimen's chemistry to adjust naturally over a safe 30-to-60-minute window.
What makes this specific kit far superior to generic DIY airline setups is the inclusion of the integrated manual siphon starter and the rigid over-rim hook line. Sucking on dirty aquarium tubes to start a siphon is unhygienic and risks introducing bacteria or medication residues to your mouth. The IceCap kit features an inline rubber squeeze primer that starts the water flowing smoothly with a few simple presses. The intake end is anchored by a rigid acrylic U-tube that clips over your display rim, holding a specialized foam strainer sponge fully submerged to prevent accidental dry siphons. A precise inline plastic thumb valve gives you full control over the flow rate, letting you dial it down to a slow crawl for ultra-sensitive invertebrates like echinoderms or wild-harvested shrimp.
Key Features
Hygienic Manual Pump Primer: Simple rubber bulb mechanism starts your siphon instantly while keeping your hands clean and your mouth dry.
Pre-Filter Strainer Block: Sponge-wrapped intake prevents loose carbon fragments, filter sock fibers, or macroalgae strands from creating inline bottlenecks.
Precision Drip Regulation: Micro-clamp thumb screw valve allows you to easily adjust your delivery line from a fast, steady stream down to a single drop per second.
Flexible Clear Vinyl Line: Kink-resistant vinyl tubing lays flat over your bucket edge without looping, kinking, or cutting off flow.
What’s Included:
(1) Rigid Over-Rim Acrylic Intake Hook Assembly Tube
(1) Low-Density Fine-Pore Protective Intake Strainer Sponge
(1) Flexible Clear Vinyl Transfer Siphon Line with Rubber Primer Bulb Unit
(1) Threaded Plastic Adjustable Flow Micro-Control Clamp Valve
(Note: Acclimation buckets, holding containers, and specimen nets are sold separately).
Technical Specs:
Official Manufacturing Title: IceCap Aquatic Acclimation Kit
SKU / Factory Part Identifier: IC-ACK-200S
Primary Siphon Method: Gravity-Fed Drip System with Built-in Manual Siphon Starter
Maximum Rim Clearance Capacity: Fits standard framing trims up to 1.5 Inches wide
Material Matrix Composition: Corrosion-Inert Rigid Acrylic, Soft Rubber, & Flexible Marine Vinyl
Primary Function: Gradual Parameter Balancing, Osmotic Pressure Management, & Shock Abatement
Warranty
CoralVue, Inc. hereby guarantees this product to be free from defects in material and workmanship for a period of:
- 1 Year
Warranty is activated on the date of purchase.
This Standard Limited Warranty applies and is limited as follows:
- To the product only as long as it remains in the possession of the original purchaser.
- To the product that has not been subject to accident, misuse or abuse.
- To the product that has not been modified, altered, defaced, or had repairs made or attempted by other than CoralVue, Inc.
- That CoralVue be immediately notified in writing within ten (10) days of first knowledge of defect by owner or his agent.
- That CoralVue, Inc. shall be given first opportunity to make any repairs, replacements or corrections to the defective construction within a reasonable period of time.
- Under no circumstances shall CoralVue and/or the Manufacturer be liable by virtue of this warranty or otherwise for damage to any person or property whatsoever for any special, indirect, secondary or consequential damages of any nature however arising out of the use or inability to use because of the product defect.
Before you start - turn the aquarium lights off and dim the lights in the room in which the acclimation process is to take place
- Float the bag in a sump or aquarium for 15 minutes to equalize the water temperature.
- Empty the contents of the bag, including water, into a clean container that can hold 2-3 times the volume. Be sure not to expose sensitive invertebrates to air.
- Hang the acclimation kit’s curved plastic tube on the side of your aquarium. The sponge filter at the water intake must be fully submerged and in a location where it will not be affected by air bubbles or strong water currents.
- Place the end of the hose with the water outlet in the container holding the fish, and make sure that it is secure.
- Close the water control valve and press the siphon starter/flow monitor gently until water runs in.
- Open the water control valve slowly until water drips from your aquarium into the container holding the fish. Set the drip rate so that the water volume will double or triple in 30-60 minutes.
- Close the water control valve. Slowly and carefully introduce your new fish to the aquarium.
Pro Tips:
- Target a 30-to-60-Minute Window to Double or Triple the Water Volume. When adjusting the inline thumb valve, try to set a drip speed that will double or triple the initial amount of water in your bucket over a 30-to-60-minute window. Rushing this process defeats the purpose of drip acclimation, while stretching it past 90 minutes can cause the bucket water to cool down too much and allow toxic ammonia to build up as the transit water's pH shifts. For highly sensitive animals like starfish, sea urchins, or delicate shrimp, aim for the longer end of the 60-minute spectrum.
- Rinse the Complete Kit in Hot Fresh Water Post-Deployment. Every time you finish acclimating a new addition, always run hot, fresh tap water through the entire tubing line, siphon bulb, and intake sponge before putting the kit away. If you leave raw aquarium water to dry inside the narrow vinyl lines, salt crystals and organic biofilms will quickly form. This buildup can clog the fine control valve, warp the internal check valves inside the priming bulb, and cause the lines to become stiff and cloudy over time. Never use soap or household detergents to clean the kit.
- Always Use a Dedicated, Soap-Free Bucket for Livestock. When selecting an acclimation container to pair with this kit, never use a generic household mop bucket or a container that has been cleaned with household chemical sprays. Even microscopic traces of soap residue, bleach, or window cleaners can instantly prove fatal to sensitive marine fish and coral tissues. Always keep a dedicated 2-to-5-gallon bucket set aside labeled strictly for aquarium livestock use only.