Reliable Air Pump?

[Steve Walker]

Currently using an old Interpet Airvolution 3 on the cichlid tank, because the Tetra APS 300 has bust its diaphragms. Again. The Airvolution sounds as if it is on its last legs too. All it is doing is running one bubble curtain, albeit one under nearly two feet of water.

 

The design of these things doesn't seem to have changed since I was at school - and they were rubbish then. The rubber diaphragms inevitably fatigue and tear and need replacing. There used to be piston pumps too, but they were very expensive and had very high electricity consumption compared to the vibrating diaphragm type. They're collectable antiques now, but not really what I want.

 

Are there any other options? Any other air pumps on the market which work by a different mechanism? Or any with more durable diaphragms?

[Huge_Vitae]

Had one of these running for 2 years in my 6ft tank. Very quiet and high out put, you cannot isolate any of the four outlets so I plumbed them all together. Still a diaphram but cheapenough to buy a couple.

Edited July 16, 2010 by Huge_Vitae

[Steve Walker]

That is cheap! Right, I'll bookmark that one, thanks.

[chesters1]

i sold my heavy duty one 15 years ago its still running fine in the local tackle shops 6ft tank although its designed to do 30 ,cant remember its name but it was solid alloy and beautifully made and totally silent

[Steve Walker]

Was that a piston type, Chesters?

[chesters1]

not sure i will ask for the name when i visit the shop next .

it was small for a pump designed to do 30 tanks about as big as 3/4 of a loaf of bread all told ,nice curved top that hid the air filters .

air pumps seem to be old hat now its all power heads etc ,air in reality does little in tanks bar open gaudy treasure chest lids

airs ok in an outhouse but the sound of running water indoors using air or spraybars gets the toilet in constant use mine were all under gravel filters due to the size of the fry so i used air as the lift, power heads were too powerful even turned down their jets making the fry use more energy swimming than they got in food.

my fish came from sluggish dark rivers not torrents

Edited July 19, 2010 by chesters1

[Steve Walker]

I've just got a bubble curtain at the back of the cichlid tank, under the rockpile. It was originally there to get some circulation through the rockwork, avoiding dead spots, but the tank is now very heavily stocked (wonder if you can put cichlids on the pill?) and warm and without the aeration I think the oxygen levels get a bit marginal. That's with the outflows from the internal and external filters aimed at the surface, too.

[chesters1]

i got completely carried away and wasted lots of dosh ,bought the complete Aquarist section of a local garden center doing a refurb ,chucked their air pump it was a very noisy and big jobbie.

then wasted money on reverse osmosis because drinking water is so polluted then even went down the nasty ozone route to keep it fresh as the osmosis pump could only make 30 gallons a day .

my ever increasing electricity bill decided it had to end

sold most but who wants second hand tanks with the price of new ones today most were skipped the framework stayed in the garage when we left ,made a pretty penny on young ones though geophagus were expensive to buy then and bloody hard to raise to a saleable age ,discus too

only one pretty tank indoors the other 30 were bare with the minimal of stuff the fish needed to breed and then the fry to grow on to a decent size ,one male 2 females per tank ,some rocks a few flower pots and a plastic cage for chopped lettuce etc

still you cant say been there done that till you've been there and done that and i'v done lots of silly things as well as ok ones in my life

Edited July 19, 2010 by chesters1

[corydoras]

Was that a piston type, Chesters?

My Dad used to have one of them. Two pistons and a big flywheel. I wish I had it now.

[Renrag39]

If you want reliable then you have to get the flywheel piston type, they're the only one's that'll cut a constant 2' plus backpressure without lunching themselves. If you want aeration, bodge a spraybar up, block half the holes and aim across the surface with the bar half submerged and holes at the water line (cuts the noise). Another option would be to use the spraybar as normal but run it into a wet/dry filter and hey presto, more surface area for O2/CO2 exchange. They're easy enough to bodge up, a shallow tray mounted on a small frame or simply resting on a brace bar. Ugly, but only you get to see under your hood. Very efficient too, ideal for cichlids or any high density tank.

 

Regards,

Renrag