Internal Underwater Pump Noise Stresses Fishes

[FishFriends]

Hello all,
 
I am back to the hobby after many years (decades really). About a month ago we bought a small 45L/10G aquarium. It came with a internal filter, which is a bit noise for us humans out of the water, but much much worse for the poor fish, with that underwater power pump right there inside their tank. We put our ears touching the aquarium glass and the noisy is really horrendous. Actually it is beyond noise, it is vibration really. It must stress the poor fishes out.
 
(I even have personal experience with underwater noise, as I am a snorkeller and occasionally a scuba diver and I can attest that sounds travel much much faster and stronger underwater than above it. For instance, we can always hear a motorboat from underwater much sooner than from above water.)
 
If possible I would like to provide a more peaceful, tranquil environment for the fish, and also keep our living room noisy free for us humans as well, of course. But I don't know what would be the best route nowadays, regarding new equipments. I guess an external filter would be quieter for the fishes, but probably noisier for us humans. Would a good air powered filter be enough? We have only a few small fishes (3 small Honey Gouramis and 4 Neon Tetras).
 
I was thinking about these:
 
Filter: http/www.amazon.co.uk/Oxygen-Noise-Breeding-Corner-Filter/dp/B007VCH1FM/ref=pd_sim_sbs_petsupplies_2#productDetails
Photo: http/ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31iQYbxnhPL.jpg
 
Air pump: http/www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000S5JMVU/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_2?pf_rd_p=103612307&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000S5L4VQ&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_r=1T2DHDKFG76DAAY88GYH
 
I could also hung this small air-pump from an elastic band (old trick from my previous fish-keeping time). Or put it inside a sound proof box. Or both! (Hung it inside a box??

)
 
Or do I really need to go for an external filer? But are they absolutely quiet? We have the aquarium in our kitchen dining area, and it would be nice to have dinner without noises. Other problems we have with external filters are space and cost. They seem designed for bigger aquariums, and we have just a small one, with a few tiny fishes.
 
Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

Sorry, I meant:
 
... it is a bit noisy ...
... the noise is ...
 
(Too many copy/pastes

  )

 

[techen]

I believe that tank bred fish have no problems with this noise, They grow to get used to it and as you'll notice. Tapping the glass causes them to freak out but filter noise does not seem to effect them whatsoever.
 
Anyway, All filters will make this hum and there's no way around it am afraid! 

 

[FishFriends]

Thanks for the reply DO,
 
The tank I had all those years ago was totally quiet. I put the air pump inside a cupboard, and hanging by elastic bands, and I even managed to stop the air-line from transmitting the noise:  I set one airline from the air pump to a soft plastic bottle, and another from the bottle to the aquarium. The bottle worked like a car muffler, interrupting the noise transmission, and the aquarium was totally quiet.
 
I read in some forum (here?) that nowadays there are "silicone" air-lines, that transmit less noise. Would they work as well as my soft plastic bottle?
 
I could use an air-powered filter again, but my question is: Can an air-driven filter work really well? And as a good biological filter too?

 

[DrRob]

The best biological filters generally found are the slow flow/large surface area filters. Sadly they're fairly rubbish for mechanical filtration. Examples include the good old undergravel filter and the Mattenfilter, which I'm a fan of as it's easier to maintain, although it's a pain in the tank.
 
Noise wise, turbulence creates noise. In the wild the flow of rivers and streams can be just as noisy, if not noisier than our filters are at times.
 
As for externals, I've generally found them to be far quieter than internals.

 

[FishFriends]

Thanks for the info DrRob,
 
Good to know that a slow flow filter could do a good biological work as long as it has a large surface area.
 
Maybe the weak mechanical filtration could be helped by a weekly siphoning? Specially considering that my aquarium is under-stocked and we plan to keep it under-stocked?
 
Mattenfilter: Very interesting! Thanks for that. I'll think about it. Though i'm nor sure i have the skills and time to DIY it right now. But I'll definitely keep that in mind. Why is that "a pain in the tank"? You mean ugly?
 
You do have a point regarding natural noises in the wild, like the flow of a river, over some rocks for instance, but an electric motor noise is very different, unnatural, and really loud underwater. I don't know if you have an internal filter, but if you do, if you put your ear against the aquarium glass you will hear how loud it is. Or, if you ever snorkelled, you know how well sounds travel under water, being much denser than air.
 
About externals, my concern is that they will then be noisier for us humans, as we have the aquarium near our dinning table. And they tend to be bigger and more expensive. We just have a small 45L aquarium, in a small corner of our small kitchen-diner, space is also restricted. That is way I thought about a little and quiet air-pump. They would be also cheaper.
 
Do you think this filter would be enough for a lightly stocked aquarium? http/ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31iQYbxnhPL.jpg We have only 4 Neon Tetras and 3 Honey Dwarf Gouramis. Powered by the 100 air pump linked to my opening post?
 
Thoughts?
 
Cheers,

 

[DrRob]

Yes, they're sometimes ugly, although not always, they also take up tank space which is a deal breaker for some.
 
Personally I find most modern externals to be the quietest filters, far quieter than your average air pump.

 

[Puffer_Nat]

I use this external filter on my 55 litre tank and it seems to do the trick and runs very quietly. You'll probably want to add some kind of fine mechanical filtration media to it though as it doesn't come with any but that's easy enough to sort out

 

[FishFriends]

Thanks Puffer_Nat
 
That would have been a serious contender. Do you think this filter is quieter than that air pump in my opening post? And does the tubes transmit the pump engine noise to the water?
 
Amazon says it is "Currently unavailable", but I found it here.
 
http/www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/180751497429?limghlpsr=true&hlpv=2&ops=true&viphx=1&hlpht=true&lpid=108&device=c&adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1&ff11=ICEP3.0.0&ff12=67&ff13=80&ff14=108
 
Unfortunately 2 days ago, before seeing your post, I ordered the air pump and filter (about £20 in total). But if they turn out to be noisy, or bad at filtering my aquarium, then I will seriously consider the one you've found. I think it is the only external filter for a small aquarium. Pity I didn't find it sooner... Oh well...
 
Thanks anyway, that looks like a very good find.

 

[nortonmad213]

my ehiem external is by far quieter than my air pump.
plus as dr rob said it takes up far less tank space than an internal

 

[Puffer_Nat]

That's actually the same air pump I have as well and yep that filter is certainly quieter than the air pump and as far as I can tell it doesn't seem to transmit a lot of noise into the tank. It really is a fab little filter