# Air stone at night only?



## mauiwowie (Feb 9, 2014)

Hello all I have a 55gallon tank with 10 African Cichilds and 2 Pleco in it and I was wondering if it's enough to have an air stone/bubbler going from 10pm-8am every day? I have it on a timer. I'm just not a fan of the noise from the bubbles but I want to aerate the tank. The only movement the tank has is a 306 fluval but the flow out creates no surface agitation because I have the output hose low in the water

Thanks!


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## Kalost (Feb 27, 2013)

Dont like the sound get plants.


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## mauiwowie (Feb 9, 2014)

Kalost said:


> Dont like the sound get plants.


_I was hoping for a more helpful comment than this but since I'm new I'll chalk it up as you trying to be helpful._ :-? 
I was asking if the air stone only at night was sufficient. I'll look into plants but as my limited knowledge understands live plants are a lot of work and I'm not sure I'm ready for that.


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

Fish need a lot of oxygen, as do the bacteria that are responsible for the nitrogen cycle. IMHO aeration is the most overlooked issue in the fish hobby, not just by beginners, but even many experienced aquarists could avoid plenty of problems by providing better aeration.

Regarding the noise issue, once you have invested in a nice quiet filtration system with a near silent pump, you are left with the noise created by the bubbles that are essential for your aeration. I am afraid that is a necessary evil. If you set up everything so that there are no bubbles and no noise, there will be no aeration, and aerating the tank only from 10pm-8am is not sufficient. Aeration is required 24x7. That said, there is hardly a noisier way to aerate a tank than a bubble wand - those things drive me bananas! You already have a very quiet canister filter. My recommendation would be to use an Eheim diffusor as outlet of that filter. This Eheim part should work just fine with your Fluval. I won't lie to you, the diffusor is not silent, but it is very, very quiet - especially compared to a bubble wand - and it provides excellent aeration. You can read more about it on my site.

Since Kalost brought it up, life plants don't do as much for aeration than most people give them credit for. You need a densely planted tank full of stem plants to really have an effect, and stem plants don't go well with mbuna. On the other hand, life plants are not as difficult to keep as you have been made to believe. If you wanted to have a go at them, I would recommend you getting a few Anubias plants and wedging their roots between two rocks. Don't plant them in substrate. They will grow very slowly, but they will grow, and they will require no extra care such as special lighting, fertilizers, or anything like that. They also look fantastic in any tank - at least that's what I think :wink:


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## mauiwowie (Feb 9, 2014)

fmueller said:


> Fish need a lot of oxygen, as do the bacteria that are responsible for the nitrogen cycle. IMHO aeration is the most overlooked issue in the fish hobby, not just by beginners, but even many experienced aquarists could avoid plenty of problems by providing better aeration.
> 
> Regarding the noise issue, once you have invested in a nice quiet filtration system with a near silent pump, you are left with the noise created by the bubbles that are essential for your aeration. I am afraid that is a necessary evil. If you set up everything so that there are no bubbles and no noise, there will be no aeration, and aerating the tank only from 10pm-8am is not sufficient. Aeration is required 24x7. That said, there is hardly a noisier way to aerate a tank than a bubble wand - those things drive me bananas! You already have a very quiet canister filter. My recommendation would be to use an Eheim diffusor as outlet of that filter. This Eheim part should work just fine with your Fluval. I won't lie to you, the diffusor is not silent, but it is very, very quiet - especially compared to a bubble wand - and it provides excellent aeration. You can read more about it on my site.
> 
> Since Kalost brought it up, life plants don't do as much for aeration than most people give them credit for. You need a densely planted tank full of stem plants to really have an effect, and stem plants don't go well with mbuna. On the other hand, life plants are not as difficult to keep as you have been made to believe. If you wanted to have a go at them, I would recommend you getting a few Anubias plants and wedging their roots between two rocks. Don't plant them in substrate. They will grow very slowly, but they will grow, and they will require no extra care such as special lighting, fertilizers, or anything like that. They also look fantastic in any tank - at least that's what I think :wink:


Thank you VERY much your post was VERY helpful! :thumb:


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Just curious why you would not put the output nearer to the surface and omit the air stone?


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

Obviously I can't speak for the OP, but in my experience a bit of surface rippling might give you adequate aeration, but you will not have optimal aeration. With a venturi device like the Eheim diffusor you will have oxygen at saturation levels at all times. I take care to run all my tanks like that. It simply gives me peace of mind that the system has spare resources to pick up the slack in case anything goes wrong.

For example if you have a big fish dying while you are out of town for a few days, in a tank that has just barely adequate aeration there is a good chance that the ammonia resulting from its decay will cause the next fish to die, and everything goes south from there. If you have oxygen at saturation levels, there is a good chance that your bacteria cultures can multiply fast enough to detoxify the ammonia and avert a disaster.

Apart from that, in my experience fish in oxygen rich water are generally healthier and deal better with injuries or other minor illnesses. I have had Frontosa crash into rocks leading to gaping wounds. I have also had fish deal with issues like an infected eye. I know that in my beginner fish keeping days those fish would have been beyond redemption, but with clean water and lots of oxygen it is amazing how often they can make a turnaround. I have pretty much stopped using medication, because I find it often has side effects that weaken the fish, and does more harm than good.

Sorry about the rant. Aeration is a bit of an obsession of mine


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## mauiwowie (Feb 9, 2014)

DJRansome said:


> Just curious why you would not put the output nearer to the surface and omit the air stone?


I have my output just below surface again b/c I want a nice quiet tank....
I'll try and see how it works.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

OK I thought you meant half way down or something along those lines.


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## mambee (Apr 13, 2003)

+1 on the Eheim diffusors. They are cheap and no cost to run. (no separate air pump running 24/7)


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