Breaking the surface...

[Corrado93]

Hi
I am getting tired of my AC 300 HOB. On my 75G, i have a fluval 304, xp2 and AC 300. Both the outputs of the canisters are located beneath the waterline so there is no "break" in the water surface.
Obviously the AC 300 breaks the surface of the water and therefore makes noise and causes bubbles.
I am sick of the noise and even more the bubbles it makes.
So my question is this...is it bad not to have the surface of the water break?
Both the fluval and xp2 cause enough movement to agitate the surface significantly....and i also have a powerhead which agitates the surface even more. Is this enough for aeration of is it better to have water breaking the surface?
thanks
C

 

[davidtcb1]

I'd say you don't really need the 300 on there since you've got two canisters. Sounds like you have sufficient surface agitation with the two outputs of the canisters and the powerhead too.

 

[spiff]

Also filling the tank to the max helps minimize that surface disruption effect. It will also make it easier for the filter to work so its flow will increase as it won't have to suck the water up so high

 

[davidtcb1]

Also filling the tank to the max helps minimize that surface disruption effect. It will also make it easier for the filter to work so its flow will increase as it won't have to suck the water up so high

True, it should be silent or almost silent if you keep the water level up.

 

[Toby_H]

I agree with the above... if you keep the water level full then Aqua Clear HOBs aren't that loud at all... if your not keeping the water level all the way up stop blaming the filter and stop slacking off

But to answer your question... if the water surface has an oily film on it... then this film can/will prevent the gaseous exchange... if the surface is being agitated enough to prevent this film, then it's agitated enough to support the gaseous exchange...

So in short, no you don't need water spilling into your tank to oxygenate it... you just need the surface of the tank to be moving...

 

[Corrado93]

I agree with the above... if you keep the water level full then Aqua Clear HOBs aren't that loud at all... if your not keeping the water level all the way up stop blaming the filter and stop slacking off

But to answer your question... if the water surface has an oily film on it... then this film can/will prevent the gaseous exchange... if the surface is being agitated enough to prevent this film, then it's agitated enough to support the gaseous exchange...

So in short, no you don't need water spilling into your tank to oxygenate it... you just need the surface of the tank to be moving...

i do water changed every Saturday. and i do fill my tank. however, by Thursday, enough water has evaporated that the AC starts to make noise and what bothers me eben more than that is the bubbles in the water that it starts to create.
thanks for all of the replies , its appreciated. the AC is a goner!

 

[Toby_H]

When we say "do not top off with tap water"... this message is meant for the person who does not do regular water changes. For those of us who do regular water changes, there is no harm in topping off mid week.

And sorry that I worded my post to suggest you are a slacker... Especially in the winter time evaporation loss is faster than my water change schedule... So I see where you're coming from.

 

[spiff]

You can fix your problem by attaching something for the water to follow down to the waters surface. Like a piece of plastic cut from a 2-liter soda bottle. If you afix it to your "downspout" thingy so that the plastic touches or almost touches the water surface, it should completely minimize both the noise and turbulance. You can either have a large sheet folded over the inside surface of the down-ramp, or a small piece afixed to the end.

But something like an inert piece of cloth like material would work too. As long as the water had something to travel down instead of falling through the air, it should be fine.

 

[Corrado93]

You can fix your problem by attaching something for the water to follow down to the waters surface. Like a piece of plastic cut from a 2-liter soda bottle. If you afix it to your "downspout" thingy so that the plastic touches or almost touches the water surface, it should completely minimize both the noise and turbulance. You can either have a large sheet folded over the inside surface of the down-ramp, or a small piece afixed to the end.

But something like an inert piece of cloth like material would work too. As long as the water had something to travel down instead of falling through the air, it should be fine.

I know what you mean, my Emperor 280 is designed this way, im not too crazy about the filter but i like the way that the water flows into the tank much better than the AC.

C