gassman Posted September 4, 2016 Report Share Posted September 4, 2016 Just wondering... does everyone use air pumps /airaters.??..anyone out there that dont use em.??..and is it completely nessary to use them. ..??? And...or..will it depend on tank and the fish within ?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aquaoz Posted September 4, 2016 Report Share Posted September 4, 2016 Are you referring to using them purely for aeration or as part of filtration (ie sponge filters etc?) They are one of the lowest cost, efficient, reliable, and low maintenance forms of keeping a tank healthy. Often used to power complementary filtration (sponge filters) in breeding setups. As aeration only they offer a double benefit: gas exchange (oxygenation) from bubbles, and gas exchange through increased surface area when bubbles agitate the service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bitis Posted September 4, 2016 Report Share Posted September 4, 2016 I use air to drive all my filters in my breeding and rearing tanks and I also use the air to move water from one tank to another. (1 heater for 4 tanks and same water conditions shared) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grubs Posted September 4, 2016 Report Share Posted September 4, 2016 Tubs outside often have no air (and no filter). Air is rarely used on tanks with CO2 injection because it reduces the CO2 concentration by degassing. I use air powered sponges on most tanks, however on tanks where I'm injecting CO2 for plants I disconnect the air and use the same sponges with a small powerhead on top, or I use canister filters. Tanks inside the house I always use canister filters and never air because the air is too noisy. Donny@ageofaquariums 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clickme Posted September 5, 2016 Report Share Posted September 5, 2016 i am experimenting with air pumps to find a way to circulate / move water in the tank (not at the top) - get some water column movement. I dont want much. i think air pumps are invaluable tools in aquariums for all sorts of needs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gassman Posted September 5, 2016 Author Report Share Posted September 5, 2016 I was just thinking about gettiing more water movement in my tanks...i have several large tanks...all sumped...no air pumps. .i just dont like the continual noise..LOL. . On each tank i have pvc inlets that spray water across top of each tank and other holes pointed down so i get circulation thru bottom of tank (if that makes sense ) I haven't had any worries yet...just been thinking about it. ..as every tank i see lately has airation. .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clickme Posted September 5, 2016 Report Share Posted September 5, 2016 12 minutes ago, gassman said: I was just thinking about gettiing more water movement in my tanks...i have several large tanks...all sumped...no air pumps. .i just dont like the continual noise..LOL. . On each tank i have pvc inlets that spray water across top of each tank and other holes pointed down so i get circulation thru bottom of tank (if that makes sense ) I haven't had any worries yet...just been thinking about it. ..as every tank i see lately has airation. .. the noise comment +1 - yeah gotta find a way to control that one. aeration and circulation can be different things - for me I want circulation. I want to move the water column so water a ferts move around to all the plants in the tank. I am not looking for any gas exchange or aeration or O2. just dont wat to use a pump to do this. but it sounds like you are achieving both with your pump set up, circulation and aeration - I think many folks do it like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grubs Posted September 5, 2016 Report Share Posted September 5, 2016 32 minutes ago, gassman said: I was just thinking about gettiing more water movement in my tanks...i have several large tanks...all sumped...no air pumps. .i just dont like the continual noise..LOL. . I use wavemakers in my big tanks for this. The Aquael "reef circulators" are cheap, efficient, and very quiet. In a planted tank you do need to clean off leaves that get stuck onto the intakes every now and then. Donny@ageofaquariums 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donny@ageofaquariums Posted September 5, 2016 Report Share Posted September 5, 2016 Yea I love my aquaels too. Low wattage. No noise. And so far, no breakdowns. Cant beat air power though when your setup needs to expand rapidly on a very limited budget. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slipshodman Posted September 6, 2016 Report Share Posted September 6, 2016 On 9/5/2016 at 9:12 AM, Bitis said: also use the air to move water from one tank to another. Sorry Gassman i don't want to hijack but did want to ask @Bitis , could you share a pick of how you achieved that please Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bitis Posted September 6, 2016 Report Share Posted September 6, 2016 @Slipshodman. Hi, the pics below is about the best I have on my phone as a friend of mine wanted to see the same. The advantage is that I can move fish between 4 tanks without any issues, share 1 heater for all 4 and can still isolate if required. The sponge filter moves the water to the next tank and the white U-bends allow the flow back. The U-bend is filled with water and as one side increases it flows through to the tank to ensure same level of water. Slipshodman, clickme and IsaRich 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clickme Posted September 6, 2016 Report Share Posted September 6, 2016 the next question @Bitis is, a little info about the pump. that is a fantastic amount of water you are able to move from tank to tank. how are you able to raise that much water and spit it out in to the next tank. bloody brilliant dude - really love the ingenuity of this. please consider starting a thread in diy and showing us some detail. there are just so many uses for this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bitis Posted September 6, 2016 Report Share Posted September 6, 2016 Thanks @clickme. I will take more photos tonight. What I also do is on the rearing tanks I add a canister filter on tank 1 where the fry are bigger and then use this method to share the water to rearing tank 2 and 3 where the fry are small. That means I don't have to worry about fry being sucked into a filter as the sponge filters move the water. It means I can improve overall filtration and load tanks if required. The pump I use is aqua one pond One o2, not sure of the model, will have to check tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aquaholic99 Posted September 7, 2016 Report Share Posted September 7, 2016 If the tanks stocking levels are low, it won't matter if you don't have air back up or power filter back up. The tank will just sit there for as many days as it takes for the power to come back on. Air can be pushed quite long distances with fairly low friction loss which can be useful for those complaining about pump noise or trying to filter a pond 30m away from a power point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aquaholic99 Posted September 7, 2016 Report Share Posted September 7, 2016 @Bitis - you can increase efficiency of your water bridge with gradual curves or wider diameter. It's also much cheaper to bend your own pipe than use elbows. Longer legs on your bridges allows you to water change without having to re-prime them. I started with air lift and gradually moved onto powerheads, expanding into multiple tiers. Eventually automated water change. These are old photos of drained tanks. Here I am using a single Aquaclear 802 powerhead to filter almost 50 tanks. All the work is done in raising the water to the top tier so to maximise this energy usage I use gravity to trickle filter the water on the way down too. The flow does not have to be fast. The tanks are linked by water bridges and I have home made overflows. The last tank on the bottom also has a drain hole to waste (vegie patch) so I can drip in new water in constantly 24/7 instead of doing manual water changes. New water displaces old water so its very simple Slipshodman, Bitis and ageofaquariums 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clickme Posted September 7, 2016 Report Share Posted September 7, 2016 (edited) dont want to hijack this thread mate, start a new one. worth it. this is awesome and economical - so many questions. Edited September 7, 2016 by clickme clarity about starting a new thread Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gassman Posted September 11, 2016 Author Report Share Posted September 11, 2016 wow...ask a question...and... ...a coupla good setups and styles there...will be gettin air pumps..cant see any negatives... ....and the u bend pipes to transfer the water from tank to tank have to "start" as a "syfon" ....?? http://www.qldaf.com/topic/121659-moving-water-with-air-saving-on-heat-and-electricity/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nazegoreng Posted September 13, 2016 Report Share Posted September 13, 2016 I run all my tanks on sponges/air. All the fish I keep prefer little to no water movement though (bettas) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
