how to quiet a noisy air pump?

dakota954

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Mar 13, 2015
22
1
1
United States
I just bought a whisper 300 air pump and I have it running a small air stone and a bubble wand with LED lights. I have the air pump on a shelf above the tank and it's very noisy. I was thinking of building an insulated box for the pump to dampen some noise but then wouldn't the air pump not be able to get any fresh air? Any ideas on how to quiet this pump would be greatly appreciated I have the tank right next to my bed and it's pretty annoying to listen to
 

deeda

Silver Tier VIP
MFK Member
Mar 26, 2008
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Air pumps by nature are not quiet. You can try placing the air pump on a towel or piece of filter foam to see if that helps but don't block the bottom of the air pump to allow air circulation.
 

souzie

Peacock Bass
MFK Member
May 13, 2014
746
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Ontario, Canada
I lined the inside of my stand with acoustic foam and sat it on another piece of foam.

It dampens the noise alot but you can still kind of hear the vibrations...hard to explain...LOL
 

FishNCash

Goliath Tigerfish
MFK Member
Aug 1, 2009
4,776
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I put the pump on piece of soft sponge or thick towel. This reduced a lot of the vibration noise.
 

jmolter86

Gambusia
MFK Member
Apr 6, 2015
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bristol, pa
Give it a week or 2 and you will get used to the noise and not even remember it's there.
If you want to try and quiet it, set it on something soft. I use poly foam that is normally used for canister filters or pond filters. One side is blue one side is white but you could use anything soft.
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mudbuttjones

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Jul 29, 2014
1,375
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Wisconsin
If the pump is too small for the accessories it's going to make more noise. The depth of the tank makes a huge difference. Pumping down 20+ inches puts back pressure on the diaphragms and makes the pump vibrate more.

I have a whisper rated at like 40 gallons I don't remember the model #. It's driving one air stone and is dead quiet.

They also break in over time and get quieter

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skjl47

Goliath Tigerfish
MFK Member
May 16, 2011
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Tennessee
Hello; If there is not enough outflow of air the pumps can make make more noise than normal due to what I suspect is backpressure. I sometimes have to add an extra gang valve an bleed off some air to the atmosphere.
 

skjl47

Goliath Tigerfish
MFK Member
May 16, 2011
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Tennessee
hello; Another thought; I often hang the air pump from something so that it does not touch anything.

A simple way to do this is to make a loop in the power chord and hang the pump with the loop. If the pump is heavy this is not the best idea. (likely not a good idea anyway to do an electrical chord this way. So i strongly suggest that you do not do what i have done even though it has worked on smaller pumps. )

I have hung them with heavy rubber bands or the small bungee chords. I have found this to work for a time. Some sort or secondary string or line needs to be used for when the rubber gives up with time. Some pumps have small holes in the base where a line of some sort can be attached. Nylon chord can work as can kevlar fishing line. The chord will catch the pump when the rubber bands give up. (Ask me how i know about this.)

My current solution is to have my air pump in the basement and use a long run of tubing thru a hole in the floor near my tanks upstairs. To keep a siphon from draining my tanks when the power goes off, a check valve can be placed in the air line or I simply run a loop of the air hose about two feet above the top of my tanks over a nail. (Ask me how i know to do this.) The tubing i use is the type used for running oxygen to people from an oxygen tank. This tubing has internal ribs to help prevent it from being pinched shut by wheeelchairs and such. It will not slide over aquarium valve fittings without modifications. I use a small dremel tool with a thin stone to ream the ribs from the inside of the ends of the tubes.

Good luck
 

Longshot

Gambusia
MFK Member
May 28, 2012
308
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16
Central Texas
I hung my air pump from a elastic string. I can't hear it even when I stand next to the pump.

Putting too much resistance on the pump will also increase the vibration.
 

shookONES

Casper... the not so friendly ghost
MFK Member
Jul 12, 2005
4,961
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Totowa, NJ
Muffle it. I run check valves and dense ceramic air stones and they are all pretty much silent.
 
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