Python Squeeze

Since the description is pretty lackluster I will re-describe the product: First of all it is made for tubing that is either 1/2" or 1/4" These are the most common sizes for gravel suction hoses. It comes with 5 parts pre-assembled and a extra adapter for the 1/4" tubing. The rubber squeeze bulb is just that. There is the 1/2" adapter on one end. The other end is the the drain end which has 3 parts making a ball valve. Also this product is made in the U.S.A. At first I didn't think the thing worked I squeezed several times and nothing. I read the instructions and it still didn't get it to work. Thinking that maybe it was clogged I opened it up (super easy to do, which is great if the pump every gets clogged with stuff you suck up)and realized how it worked. In order for it to work you must have the draining end of the pump facing UP(They completely failed to mention this in the instructions). Once you've primed your suction tubing you can point the drain down into your bucket or wherever you're draining. The reason for this is the valve will be open if the drain end is facing down so when you squeeze the air pressure won't build up--air will just go out the drain end. Anyway the product works great, which is great because although I love Snailbert (my snail) I am absolutely disgusted by him at the same. Now I don't ever come in contact with the water in his tank. One downside is that I personally think it's a bit expensive, but maybe rubber is expensive or maybe it's because it's made in the the U.S.A.

I've had aquariums for decades. Siphon tubes are a fact of life to do water changes. With a new tall column tank I knew I was going to have trouble as it's too narrow to siphon the regular way. When I saw this "starter" I figured why not? Fits my regular Python tube siphon and is so much easier to get the water flow going than just gravity. Only drawback is if you have moss balls that have lost their roundness, it will suck the bits & pieces up and you have to unclog the little ball cock but that's easy enough with tweezers. I'm using it in both a 29 gallon regular tank & the 15 gallon column tank. Much faster and more efficient with this starter!

Edit 3/9/22 this siphon bulb worked so well at first I gave it five stars. Now it doesn't work at all. The product life is just too short to give it any more than one. Flexing the bulb causes the two connections to lose the seal over just a short amount of time. I'm going to try caulking it and hope that I can get a little more use out of it. This siphon bulb works so well and with so little effort. You only need to have the bulb 2-3 inches below the end of your influent hose for it to work. It's also very sturdy unlike most aquarium bulbs and I anticipate it will last a long time. I didn't have any problems with the bulb leaking when I switched from the 1/2" to the 1/4" adapter. I only did this because I already had 1/4" ID tubing. It should be noted that the 1/2" adapter is actually 9/16" so you will need to use a heat gun or very hot hairdryer to install 1/2" ID tubing. If you want to fit a hose on the effluent side, which I did, it's slightly less than 7/8". I recommend using 3/4" ID vinyl tubing and a heat gun for a drip free fit if you need to run the effluent off somewhere.

This product works great once you realize you need to point the open end UP and squeeze in order to start siphoning. I only bought mine a couple months ago, so I'd say I was still learning how best to use it for my setup. At one point the whole unit slipped off my siphon tubing into the 5 gallon bucket. I forgot about that when I went to dump it in the toilet. As I snaked the toilet several confusing hours later, one of the green pieces came out on the end of the snake. Thank God, I finally knew what was clogging the toilet! But now I've got a dreadful project on my hands. So don't do what I did.

There's a review that explains it pretty well above, but it takes a little getting used to. I went from a very manual process (involves tipping a vacuum head upside down in the water, lifting above water, and immediately tipping back down) to this, and this thing is a work of art. I had to get the hang of it, you do have to hold this pump the wrong way to get the water flowing, but it is SO much easier than the manual process and SO much more comfortable than siphoning with the mouth (insert barf emoji). I had this pump paired with the "Python Pro-Clean Aquarium Gravel Washer & Siphon Kit, Small" and I actually enjoy cleaning my gravel now. It's heavy enough that I don't even have to clamp the other end down into the bucket, I just keep this sucker (pun intended?) on the end and drop it in the bucket once the water starts flowing. It comes with two fittings, one for a smaller size tube (1/4in?) and one for standard (1/2in?) and both are easy to remove but still stay on the tubing well. I haven't encountered any leaking. All in all, I very much recommend. Treat yourself to no more fish poop water in the mouth or on the floor, it's worth it.

It turns out the two included intake nozzles were both the wrong size for the tubing I use to clean out my aquarium. One was too big and the other too small. The curve of the base of the small one does make it so that if I push the tubing against the base of the nozzle hard, I can make it seal sometimes and get the siphon bulb to work, but of course if I don't have it just right, air gets through and the bulb doesn't work. It takes some fiddling around and a few tries to eventually get a good seal and get the flow started. I think it works great otherwise, I just wish it had another size nozzle in between the two that came with it.

Great. Its good to know that when the siphon squeeze stops working we can just buy a replacement piece vs buy a brand new siphon every time. We have 4 fishtanks in the house and use the siphon constantly

No se adapta a las medidas de mangueras standard. Ya cuando el nivel de la pecera es bajo no succiona correctamentente. Muy descpcuonado del producto

I initially thought that it doesn't work but the problem is the poor quality of the instructions. So I searched Amazon.com reviews & found a review by Fredin J. Pallikal. "In order for it to work you must have the draining end of the pump facing UP(They completely failed to mention this in the instructions). Once you've primed your suction tubing you can point the drain down into your bucket or wherever you're draining. The reason for this is the valve will be open if the drain end is facing down so when you squeeze the air pressure won't build up--air will just go out the drain end." So it works but isn't worth the money.

Easy to use. Easy to dismantle to clean when blocked with gravel. Does leak from where connectors fit in rubber bulb so needs to be kept in a bucket or water will get on the floor.

I ordered this the other day, and within two days, I received it. I am very happy that I purchased this product because now instead of sucking on the hose and then quickly lowering the hose in the bucket, I just pump this two to three times, and the water starts to flow! Also, it is a great fit as the 1/4 inch adapter fits snugly on my python gravel cleaner hose.