Chris Palma wrote in message ...

The sense I'm starting to get from the group is that airstones aren't all
that popular. I have a few in my 75gal, and like them, but if they aren't
a good idea I suppose that I could just remove them. I recently buried
all of them under polished river stones to slow down the flow a bit, do
you think that makes any noticeable difference to the noise level in the
tank?

I know this is a huge can of worms I'm opening, but the other "sense of
the group" I get is that most people think that canister filters are much
better than hang on the back power filters, like the AquaClear I use. Is
there a simple reason why canisters are so superior?

--chris



On Wed, 24 Mar 2004, NetMax wrote:

Finally, someone who agrees with me. Aquariums are far noisier
environments than they should be. Much of the pneumatic hammering is
from your airstone and may have very little in common with the audio
volume from your airpump. Multi-diaphram pumps would be better if they
operated in sequence, but they operate in tandem, in opposite directions
(to reduce pump vibration) which probably worsens the effect inside the
tank. Whatever air pump you choose to use a damping chamber would
probably help, but it hasn't been invented yet (sealed 300cc container
with airline connections on either end and loose baffling material
inside).


NB: This email address is dead. If you would like to email me directly,
please use: cpalmaATSYMBOLastro.psu.edu


really, the best solution seems to be to get the filtration/air out of the
tank altogether and use a sump system. It seems to me to be the way to go if
you are serious. the other advantage is that I am filtering around $250
gallons of water for the cost of a large container and a water pump that
cost me around $100 Australian, total cost around $160. cheaper and better!