Airstone/Bubbles in a sand tank

[megastealer]

Hi, I was wondering if an airstone (I think that is what they are called) would go fine in my 29g goldfish tank... I want to give my goldfish something to play in, and I have seen lots of videos of goldfish playing in bubbles on youtube.

I am a bit worried about it kicking up sand though - how much disturbance do these cause? Have any of you had one in a sand tank?

Also, where could I get one for not too much money? I'm always looking to save, and you all have been out and about shopping for deals so I figured you might know. How much would one of these cost?

I don't really want a whole wall of bubbles, maybe just something about the size of one fancy goldfish... kind of a square size. And are the pumps for these noisy?

I'll lay out the questions so they are easy to answer:
1) would it kick up sand?
2) Do you know of a website/store that has a good price on these?
3) What would be your estimate of how much it would cost?
4) Is there a good bit of variety in sizes?
5) Are the pumps noisy?

[bluebluecow]

hi

Can only answer 1 and 4,

1 i dont think they kick up sand, i have a wall of bubbles in my tank and dont see sand in ttank and my airstone is buried under the sand in places.


4 sometimes the pumps can be noisy i find sitting it on a bed of foam rubber, like a coaster helps reduce noise from the pump, its the vibrations being amplified by the shelf that make it noisy.

I love my bubbles upstairs instead of an airstone i have a hydro 4, i think it is, this is a light combinded with pump and air, the pump is in the water draws air down a tube into the base of the light the bubbles come out round the light, i have a red light and looks cool at night, this comes with base with suckers on so can be on side of tank or bottom, it worked out cheapr then a good pump and airstne

Liz

[VIP]

hello Megastealer!

4) yes they have different size or air pump for different size of tank.
5) it tends to be a little noisy, but its really not that bad. I stop mine at night sometimes, and dont always turn in on every day either.


somebody gave me a small one...( not sure what brand it was...) I didnt find it that noisy.But i had to buy an other one becasue i wanted to have a whole bubble wall at the back of my tank...Got it for suuuuuuuper because it was misplaced on the shelve,with a smaller one ( <up to 10 gallons>, which was like 15 $ less then the big that i wanted...)i mad some pretty eyes to the cashier at Petsmart and...got it for the same price tthat the small one ...LUCKY ME!

Anyways, i have a WHISPER <up to 40 gallons> from TETRA company...it work pretty good, and its VEEEERy quiet too !

I found that its not really the pump who makes a lot of noise, but more the air pushed in the tank water...

I was a little hesitant to leave the bubble wall in my tank actually, cause i found that it must be very disturbing for the fishes... not the sound, but the vibration. if i put me ear on the glass of the tank, it is pret-ty loud in there. Maybe the smaller one are more quiet in the water ... but i do not know.

right now i am next to tank (in wall tank) and it makes the sounds of a refrigerator...nothing to bother me.

[stunner]

1) My airstone didn't kick up sand, but it eventually made a little crater in the sand where it sat
2) Don't know
3) This gives you an idea of some of the prices/sizes. Don't know if it's cheap relative to other places or not though: [Only Registered Users Can See Links.]
4) yes, plenty of variety
5) I never really found my airpumps too noisy and the tank was running my room (pretty well at the foot of my bed). If anything, i found the constant gentle hum of the pump soothing! haha