Why are air bubbles bad for a saltwater tank?

rdub62

rdub62

Member
oxygenation is NOT bad for any type of saltwater tank.
they are actually GREAT for shrimps.
and you have to have air bubbles to breed clowns (in captivity) too right?
i have and air pump for a 10 gallon tank that i use in my 90g community tank. and i have one power head on the opposite side of the tank blowing right through those bubbles, they are blowing around the circulation in my tank. never had a problem.
there are even a couple companies that specialize in saltwater air bubbles. using LED lights of all colors. so idk how they would stay in business if it was bad. xD
 
bmkj02

bmkj02

Member
Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/3059531
Air bubbles help to move the tank water vertically towards the surface, assisting with oxygen and other gas exchanges. If you were to lose power to your circulation pumps and protein skimmer your air stone would keep the DO level from falling to low.

+1. I have an air tube in each of my tanks with no airstone. It helps move the water up for gas exchange and also if power head goes out helps keep the water moving but not as much. If you any reason I have to shut my system down it helps a lot. Airstones are a little different as the bubbles are fine. I dont see any benefit from that. Especially in a Seahorse tank you dont want this at all as it gets trapped under their skin and will cause damage. I learned my lesson the hard way on that.
 
locoyo386

locoyo386

Member
Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/3059608
IMO you are absolutely right. Salt creep is the major drawback to air stones
Hi Joe,
What if you used a buble difuser at the top so that the bubbles do not reach the very top surface of the water and pop?
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by locoyo386
http:///forum/post/3060341
Hi Joe,
What if you used a buble difuser at the top so that the bubbles do not reach the very top surface of the water and pop?
I am not really sure what you mean a bubble diffuser is as I am sure you know just a chamber with a disk with various size holes to defuses large bubbles of air into smaller. Why would they brake before they reached the surface? If you mean to channel bubbles into a chamber and have them defused at the top you are defeating the purpose of having air introduced via an air stone
 
locoyo386

locoyo386

Member
Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/3060350
I am not really sure what you mean a bubble diffuser is as I am sure you know just a chamber with a disk with various size holes to defuses large bubbles of air into smaller. Why would they brake before they reached the surface? If you mean to channel bubbles into a chamber and have them defused at the top you are defeating the purpose of having air introduced via an air stone
What I meant was to put some type of media at the top so when the bubbles reach the top they will not bust drastically and cause salt creep.
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by locoyo386
http:///forum/post/3060393
What I meant was to put some type of media at the top so when the bubbles reach the top they will not bust drastically and cause salt creep.
You could disperse the bubble over a larger area with a piece of media material I assume. Are you planning on using an air stone and a media diffuser? If so I would like to see a pic of your final product and your evaluation of the process

Remember IMO we are not talking about a catastrophic salt creep event associated with air stones only that if there is a draw back to using them it is the added saltwater mist
 
locoyo386

locoyo386

Member
Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/3060398
You could disperse the bubble over a larger area with a piece of media material I assume. Are you planning on using an air stone and a media diffuser? If so I would like to see a pic of your final product and your evaluation of the process

Remember IMO we are not talking about a catastrophic salt creep event associated with air stones only that if there is a draw back to using them it is the added saltwater mist
I have to think about it, since I have always wanted to put one of those long bubbler things they sell for freshwater (there about 18" long and bubble all along the length). I might try this on a new 10 gallon tank (that would make a total of 9-10 gallons, I am running out of space to put them at)
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
I might try this on a new 10 gallon tank (that would make a total of 9-10 gallons, I am running out of space to put them at)
LoL it is an addiction I have in fact seen some wild looking setups with that wand diffuser. Set up at the back bottom of the tank and you see what amounts to a wall of bubbles
 
mantisman51

mantisman51

Active Member
I think common sense would dictate that diffusers wouldn't harm the fish or coral. I went snorkelling in PR and can assure you that as the waves break against the coral reefs, there is mass quantities of bubbles circulating continuously around the coral and fish. It is also revealing that the brightest and densest populations of coral and fish were at the base of the coral heads where the bubbles from the surf were the heaviest. IMO the warning against diffusing a SW tank is an old myth that got picked up as a truism without much thought-"it's just what I've always heard", therefore it MUST be true.
 
locoyo386

locoyo386

Member
I was wrong I had 9-10 gallon tanks. Now I have an empty one and I will be trying this bubble thing in it. Will see where it ends up on the long run.
 
king_neptune

king_neptune

Active Member
Why would anyone want bubbles passing through the gills of their fish?
if you want bubbles for aeration ect...put it down below in the sump...BEFORE your bubble trap baffles, then return it back up top.
Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.
 
cranberry

cranberry

Active Member
Bubbles are like a million little light reflectors.... reflecting light back out of your tank. Too many bubbles and you won't have as much light reaching your corals as you would otherwise.
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
IMO the only time air bubbles can present a problem to fish is when oxygen is at supersaturated levels. The home aquarist can only achieve this level of 02 by administering pure oxygen under pressure in a contact chamber
Actually a study preformed by Dykens and Shick in 1984 conclude that harm only comes to corals and anemone tissues when the levels reach the super saturation point
 
cranberry

cranberry

Active Member
What kind/how many bubbles are we talking here? Micro-fine gas bubbles sticking to gills can obstruct respiratory gas exchange. But I can't imagine someone having that many bubbles in a display tank... and wanting it that way.
 
king_neptune

king_neptune

Active Member
Originally Posted by Cranberry
http:///forum/post/3063589
What kind/how many bubbles are we talking here? Micro-fine gas bubbles sticking to gills can obstruct respiratory gas exchange. But I can't imagine someone having that many bubbles in a display tank... and wanting it that way.
Ive walked into fish stores and walked right out...ive been flabbergasted how/why they let a torrent of practically foam level bubbles swirl around. Diseased, and lopsided...and otherwise poor health fish would commonly accompany such tanks.
Seems to me that too many people out there are adamant about bubble traps ect. in their sumps. And rigorously opposed to bubbles up to p in the DT. It might be just trendy ,
but so is wearing cloths.
 
locoyo386

locoyo386

Member
Originally Posted by King_Neptune
http:///forum/post/3063578
Why would anyone want bubbles passing through the gills of their fish?
How is it different from fresh water fish? Are they different in physiology that saltwater fish can't handle air bubbles? or is it that the bubbles only go through the gills of saltwater fish and not fresh water fish?
 
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