air stone??????

K

ken the newbe

Guest
i have a 45 gal tank 50lbs cured l/r and 10lbs l/s
canister filter/ uv light / power head
skimmer is off at this point while im trying to cycle the tank
tank is 2 weeks old
should i have an air stone or something to agitate the surface water
 
otter

otter

Member
Originally Posted by FalynHarris
air stones are a no no,
Why is that? Fresh water tanks use them quite frequently.
 
eroticaquatica

eroticaquatica

Member
Some people say that the bubbles really aren't good for your fish and might actually kill them. There, however, isn't enough solid evidence to support this theory, but I do agree that too much bubbles and craziness would stress out the fish, which can result in disease and eventually death. Hm, so I guess there is some reasoning to the bubble theory but nothing concrete. Good Luck! :)
 
reefkprz

reefkprz

Active Member
Air stones in a marine tank aren't needed because if the environment is set up right you have enough flow to turn your tank over for oxygen exchange at that point added bubbles would just blow all over your tank and be unsightly. because of the higher temperatures often seen in reef tanks about 80deg as opposed to the 70-75 degree range (on average) the waters ability to hold oxygen decreases and the low turn over provided by air stones cant compensate.
 
eroticaquatica

eroticaquatica

Member
Oh and I forgot to mention, that contrary to popular belief, air stones don't actually contribute to the oxygen saturation, its the surface agitation of the water that really oxegenates it, as you have metioned, ken. I would recommend a couple powerheads for water flow.
 
lanceafer

lanceafer

New Member
Another reason you dont want them....salt creep. I had a 20 gal tank years back and we had some air stones. They made the back of the tank look nice and hid all the wires. after about a week we found rivers of salt down the back of the tank. It got to the piont that once a day we would scrap off the tank and put the salt back in. I know I know should have done more research but we had no clue really about how to keep a saltwater tank.
 
K

ken the newbe

Guest
right now i have no surface agitation and i have a canister filter-where would the oxygen exchange came from? power heads are just pushing water around under the surface
i have a skimmer which is off right now due to im trying to cycle -the tank is only 2 weeks old
 
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