Air pump question

[robabsalom]

hi all i'm a bit of a novice at all this but have a quick question.

I recently bought an air pump and an air line (with the holes in it) to run along the bottom of my tank, to create the rising bubble effect. this seems to work quite well but i have 2 questions.

1. if i turn off the pump will the water run back to the pump and cause damage.

2. although its advertised as a quiet pump its amking more noise than i would like. as the tank is in are living room i would like it as quiet as possible. Id there anything i can do to the pump to quiet it down a bit? and tips?

thanks in advance

 

[rvm]

1. if the pump is lower than the water level, then there is a chance that water will syphon back into the pump and damage it when it is switched off. You can solve this by fitting a non-return valve that can be bought from your lfs for about £1

2.Unfortunately air pumps do tend to make a hum, but there are a few things you can do to lower the noise levels: Use silicone airline instead of the plastic type; make sure the pump is placed on a solid surface and is on rubber feet to isolate it as much as possible.

Also, the bubble tube you have sounds similar to the type I first used, and I found they are incredibly noisy. I now use a hagen air curtain which is much quieter, and also produces a much nicer bubble effect. Have a look here to see one!

 

[BigC]

Yeah!
Always handy to use a non-return valve. On the pump itself have you tried a Rena going by there advertisments they're main selling pitch is the low noise.
See link...
http/www.aquarian.com/cgi-bin/trans.pl/e.../rena_air.shtml
Hope this helps.

 

[OohFeeshy]

I might get an air curtain for my 18g..... Or my betta tank. Probably the betta, actually.

 

[robabsalom]

thanks for your help guys.

I don't really want to buy another pump as i just bought this one. its a newair air pump which does advertise as being quiet.....

if you think changing to the air curtain rather than the plastic tube will make a difference i might give that a go.

 

[rdd1952]

As already mentioned, use a check valve to prevent run back as it definitely will if the pump is lower than the tank top which it almost always is. For anyone looking for a good QUIET air pump, I would strongly recommend the Rena pumps. I bought an Optima from Petsmart and it was so noisy, I took it back. When I returned it, the person at Petsmart when suggested the Rena pumps and said that's what he had. They are more expensive but well worth IMO. I have since bought another one and will probably get another today at lunch for my 29 gallon. They are dead silent and all you hear are bubbles.

 

[robabsalom]

on a slightly different note i am going on holiday in september for 2 weeks and need a reliable automatic feeder. Unfortunately there is no one to feed them for me. I only feed once per day but need something able to hold 14 days worth of flake (once per day).

would you recommend any particular feeder from your experiences?

 

[BigC]

If you live in the UK follow the link.
http/www.theaquariumshop.co.uk/ishop/1029/shopscr286.html