The Brightwell Aquatics Commitment: What Makes Us Different than the Others

If you have been an avid aquarium hobbyist during the last decade or so, you have probably seen the wide range of water care products entering the marketplace. A handful of them are credible; that is, they perform some useful and/or required function in an aquarium and the means in which they do so are plainly described by the manufacturer. Unfortunately, a large percentage of water care products cannot be described in this fashion.

Like many of you, I am long-time aquarium hobbyist, with decades spent tending to all manner of marine and freshwater aquaria, and years spent as an aquarium professional. I have fought the same battles that you have with algae and livestock illnesses, balanced my water chemistry using what was available to me, maintained countless fishes, invertebrates, and plants, and had my share of successes and failures. Additionally, I have seen the conga line of products entering the hobby that create confusion among hobbyists and earn dollars for exploitative manufacturers; frankly, I got tired of it all and decided that it was time to make some changes in the industry. Being a disciple of a hobby based on Chemistry, Biology, Geology, and Physics, I feel that an aquarium hobbyist generally prefers to be told in concrete terms the service that a product will perform and the constituents of the product, itself.

Additionally, products should be formulated to provide the best possible performance, with high-purity materials, and without unnecessary ingredients. It was from these ideals that the concept of Brightwell Aquatics was born.

The goal in operating Brightwell Aquatics is simply to provide the absolute highest quality, scientifically-sound products and customer service of any aquarium water care manufacturer, and to do it all in a straight-forward and honorable fashion. This might seem like a lofty (and refreshing) goal, but considerable time and effort has been invested in this pursuit; this is my commitment to you, the Brightwell Aquatics Assurance of Quality and Ethics.

• All of our products are formulated by a published marine scientist who has been a passionate aquarium hobbyist for over 30 years. The goal in formulation is always to utilize the highest purity ingredients in concentrations that provide the most use to the hobbyist. Collectively, we are employing our understanding of the marine sciences to create scientifically-sound products. These products are formulated to do what we say they do on the label.
• All of our products are manufactured in our own production facility in Pennsylvania.
• With very few exceptions, all raw materials utilized in Brightwell Aquatics products are over 99.9% pure (many are over 99.99% pure). We utilize Food/FCC Grade (Food Chemical Codex; suitable for use in food processing and production), USP Grade (US Pharmacopoeia; suitable for use in the production of pharmaceuticals), and ACS Reagent Grade (American Chemical Society; materials are of the highest purity attainable) materials in all possible instances; materials of a lesser grade are used only when they are not physically produced in higher grades. We are dedicated to keeping impurities out of our products to the best of our abilities.
• All water used in our liquid products is filtered through a multi-stage, high-removal rate purification system, so that the contents of each bottle are as close to what we state they are on the label as is possible.
• With one exception (trace elements), we do not, nor will we ever, use chelated raw materials in our products. Because the majority of a chelated element is composed of organic material, the use of chelated major elements (such as calcium), in our opinion, should be limited to those elements required in minute quantities in an aquarium. Chelated major, non-conservative elements contribute considerable organic material to an aquarium, rapidly degrading water quality.
• All of our products are created and packaged using equipment that is considered suitable for use in production and processing of food for human consumption. A quick glance at our production facility would reveal a lot of stainless steel and high-density plastics. We maintain a clean production facility and work very hard to ensure that each product leaving our facility lives up to the highest standards of quality.
• Brightwell Aquatics liquid products that target specific elements (such as Calcion, Magnesion, Strontion, Iodion, and Ferrion) are formulated to exceed the concentrations provided by competing products. In doing so, a hobbyist is able to adjust the composition of many more gallons of aquarium water with our products per unit volume than is possible with competing products. Because Brightwell Aquatics products are competitively priced, the result is “More bang for your buck”.
• Products intended to replicate natural water parameters, such as Replenish and Liquid Reef, are formulated using the most up-to-date data on marine seawater composition. We take our formulation seriously; in many cases, ionic ratios and final elemental concentrations are so exacting to natural water parameters that variations between the two are immeasurable.
• All of our products are lot numbered for quality control and customer service. We pull multiple samples from each batch at the beginning, middle, and end of the packaging process and place them in climate-controlled storage for a period of three years from the date of manufacture. If you should ever have an issue with one of our products, we will ask you to send the remainder of the product to us for physical and chemical comparison to our own samples from that lot.
• An average Guaranteed Analysis and comprehensive list of Ingredients is printed on each product’s label. Whenever possible, we list the exact raw material used in the product; we avoid listing such exhaustive information only when details surrounding the formulation are considered a trade secret (which we want to keep concealed from competitors).
• The Instructions and Overview on each product’s label explain how best to utilize the product and take the guesswork out of trying to balance aquarium water chemistry. Included is information on creating a stock solution (powdered products only), the increase in target ion concentration that occurs in 1 gallon of water when adding 1 gram or milliliter of the straight product or stock solution, how to determine the rate of ion depletion in an aquarium, and basic information on the importance of maintaining proper concentrations of the target ion or substance in an aquarium. A Technical Background on each label explains important aspects of the product’s intended use in a more in-depth fashion than is provided in the Overview.
• The usage guidelines of the products are written in plain language, but if you find that you have questions, call us and we’ll take all the time necessary to ensure that you understand the nature and usage of the products. Technical support is provided by phone and e-mail during the hours of 8 – 4 EST, Monday through Friday.
• We do not, nor will we ever, create and market a product that is in some way misleading to you, our customer and fellow hobbyist.
• We will never re-package a pre-existing product with the intention of effortlessly gaining sales in some other area of the market. Each one of our products has its own unique formula, created specifically to do what we intend to market it for.

My continued commitment to the quality of our products and service, and the moral ethics of how we operate our business, are what stands behind every product bearing the Brightwell Aquatics name and makes them an attractive option to the hobbyist that has grown tired of the hype and confusion that often surround water care products and their manufacturers. If you’re ready for a change, try Brightwell Aquatics. It’s about science. It’s about time.

Chris Brightwell
President
Marine Scientist