Oxygen
- Thread starter Silvertongue700
- Start date
it depends on too many different circumstances IMO including what kind of fish and what kind of setup you have, size of tank/fish etc
Some of the delicate species that will struggle in a current created by wavemakers/filter output will be happier with the airstones moving the water. Heaters like water movement. Its just too many circumstances when it comes to deciding if it will benefit your tank or not IMO i like the airstones in every single tank of mine but the betta vase. Even if I have wavemakers and strong filters running.
i have a daphnia culture tank running on 2nd try (first one had no airstone) and only have airstone running just the full length of stone itself emersed in the water because daphnia do not like current and can easily die but water needs some oxygen for them to thrive so eh im trying that method right now and seems to be doing so/so for few months now. Better than without water movement as its lasting longer than the first try that only lasted a week the only difference was adding the airstone.
It is not the airstones that oxygenate the water. The bubbles circulate the water and the oxygen exchange happens at the surface.
Oxygen exchange takes place at the interface of air and water which includes the bubbles which increase the interface.
The amount of surface tension breaking turbulence needed, depends a lot on what type fish you keep.
If you have a community tank with a Betta, a couple gouramis, and some small surface dwelling live bearers, the tank should do fine with an air stone or 2, and some average filtration.
If you have a tank with Geophagines, African Tiger fish, or stream dwellers like Denison barbs, or some danios.
A half dozen air stones may not be sufficient for their oxygen or water flow requirements.
This is the surface turbulence I use for riverine, high oxygen consuming cichlids, and tetras, but it would stress a Betta or probably an Angel fish to death.
If you have a community tank with a Betta, a couple gouramis, and some small surface dwelling live bearers, the tank should do fine with an air stone or 2, and some average filtration.
If you have a tank with Geophagines, African Tiger fish, or stream dwellers like Denison barbs, or some danios.
A half dozen air stones may not be sufficient for their oxygen or water flow requirements.
This is the surface turbulence I use for riverine, high oxygen consuming cichlids, and tetras, but it would stress a Betta or probably an Angel fish to death.
That settles it! Thank you for sharing duanes.
After seeing this I don't care what my cousin has to say about too much equipment, I'll go as overboard as the budget permits (and save up some more if more is needed) on aeration equipment like spraybars for the tank where my future roseline sharks will be.
Although the photo above isn't India where rose lines come from, (it is in the highlands of Panama).
It is the similar type habitat they do come from.
A fast flowing cool tropical stream.
If it was me keeping them, I'd use a longish ( minimum 55 gal tank) with a powerhead on one end of the tank, creating a flow along the length of the tank.
With a venturi tube, kind of like the tank below.
The bubble cone above, is not from an airstone, but from a venturi tube (no moving parts), like the one below. https://hosting.photobucket.com/alb...94974-1.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds
The same effect can be had using a powerhead with an airline attached to the venturi aperture built right into the powerhead.
It is the similar type habitat they do come from.
A fast flowing cool tropical stream.
If it was me keeping them, I'd use a longish ( minimum 55 gal tank) with a powerhead on one end of the tank, creating a flow along the length of the tank.
With a venturi tube, kind of like the tank below.
The bubble cone above, is not from an airstone, but from a venturi tube (no moving parts), like the one below. https://hosting.photobucket.com/alb...94974-1.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds
The same effect can be had using a powerhead with an airline attached to the venturi aperture built right into the powerhead.
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