Well, the air lift project was a bust...even with max air and saltwater it won't lift enough water to make a difference.
Atleast now I know.
I played with the airlift idea too. Just forgot to post the info. I used an old under gravel riser with both a bare air line and with a diffuser. The most that I got was either 1 3/4 or 3/4 inch of lift. I was going to do a cheap setup with just Fiddler Crabs. I can't find native mud skippers or anything like them but I came home with a bunch of Fiddler Crabs a few weeks back. (Turns out that Stone Crabs or Blue Crabs love to eat Fiddler Crabs.) I have the pumps and timers, but the tank and time are not there. I am leaving on a three week trip this coming monday so it isn't going to be me to be the first to build it