LOULOU

hello, ive just bought a new tank, a juwel rekord 70 if any of you guys knows what that is. it comes with a pump, heater and filter system. we just havent got anything gonig into it that is actually bubbling in the water. are we meant to we have it up and running but there are no fish in there as we only got it yesterday. can anyone help please, also if i do need something what is the best. emma.x

atmmachine816

You don't need an air pump unless your filter requires it to opperate. Besides that all it does is makes ornaments move(they usually tend to break), or oxygenate the waater, if you have live plants you don't really want one of these.

LOULOU

no, the filter and pump system doesnt need it to work. its just every tank i see has bubbles going , is that just decoration? ive just been on the website for my tank. i can buy an add on to my pump for extra air? i just wanted to no was it vital to have? i messed up with my last tank, and dont want to do the same with this one. have you heard of the juwel rekord 70? x

vin

It's your choice. I have a small air pump and air stone with live plants and decor and they and the fish are fine. The fish seem to love to swim and play in the bubbles. As long as you don't get one that is too strong you should be fine.

mistycheri

I also have a bubble wand in my tank. Some medications require good oxygenation when using them, and I also like the look. My fish also like swimming thru the bubbles. So, actually the choice is yours.

atmmachine816

Ya it's not necessary just if you plan on having a heavily planted tank then you don't want it because it adds more oxygen to the water and the plants want CO2.

Gunnie

Most tanks with air bubbles is personal preference. It's not the actual bubbles you see floating to the top of the water the add oxygen to the tank, but because they disturb the surface when they hit the top, that's what causes the oxygen exchange. Anything that churns the surface adds oxygen to the water. Unless you are using CO2 for your plants, then it's okay to have some kind of bubbler in your tank. I have many tanks with live plants and sponge filters which run on an air pump, and they do fine. The CO2 injected tanks need the surface to be still to keep the CO2 in the water for the plants to absorb it. If the surface is moving, the CO2 gasses out. I don't use CO2 in any of my tanks, and probably never will, but that's another topic.

For your tank, as long as you have adequate filtration, and heating, your tank set up is okay for now. As you learn more about the hobby, you will want to try new things. If you see a decoration that you like that adds bubbles to the tank, I say go for it.

LOULOU

thanks everyone. im looking forward to getting my new fish on sunday.there are so mant to choose from in the tropical fish shop i go to. the man that runs the shop is very good he has so much good advice. also we are going to stick to him for getting the fish as i wouldnt want to go to various different places for the fish. once again thanks. i will keep you informed of my progress.

Skadunkadunk

I would use the air pump because it doesn't produce algae and it will give the tank oxygen, meaning less maintenance. But if you get live plants they will produce the oxygen, but also algae.

0morrokh

Wait a sec...have you cycled your tank?

LOULOU

its cycling at the moment.x

atmmachine816

Make sure it's finished. If you have an airstone then I would say use it because it keeps the water moving more so less junk settles on the bottom and the filter picks more of it up.

Shorty

I have a bubble curtain (I think it is also called a bubble wand) in my tank - it is long airstone that fixes to the back fo the tank with sucked and the air bubbles up along it making like a curtain (Doh!) of bubbles. I also have plants on my tank and they have no adverse effects from it - in fact they are growing like billy O in there, plus the fact the fish love swimming through it - especially the harlequins, they also swim against the flow from the filters Silly little fishies - they are lovely though

If you feel like having bubbles - GO for it

LOULOU

the trouble is my husband doesnt like the noise the pump makes with the bubbles. without it in the tank its quite peaceful. its a very big filter system we have in the tank and i was kind of hoping that would be enough. also i have just bought one of those syphon gravel cleaners are they any good ? oh i also bought one of those magnetic tank cleaners. all i really need to no is will the fish survive with just the filter circulating the water

0morrokh

Yes, the fish will be fine.

vin

I hung my air pump by it's cord to eliminate the excess vibration thereby reducing the noise output. Just be sure that if you use an air pump that you use some sort of check valve or put a loop in the hose to create a 'trap' to prevent the water from backing up into the pump in the event of a power failure......

smillermom

I have 4 tanks and only have an air pump on one. I agree with your husband, the drone of the pump gets very annoying. I llike it in the one tank as it is very pleasing to watch but the other tanks have alot of movement due to the type of fish. Personally preference!

jack11

I have, i bought a new rekord 60 today. How many litres or gallons is the 70? What are you planning on keeping in it?

Jack

Doug

I realize this is an old post, but it is a good one and came in handy for me. Because of it I had the guts to try unplugging my bubbler. For me it's the noise issue and I think the tank even looks more peaceful without it.

The ryukin goldfish I keep in a 40 high were swimming around like mad. As soon as I turned off the bubble wands, they immediately settled near the bottom of the tank. This makes the case that the bubbles and activity level of the fish may have less to do with oxygenation, and more to do with fish agitation. I believe this because the oxygen couldn't have left the water that quickly that they would suddenly calm down.

However, to find out for sure if the bubbles do anything for oxygenation, I will have to monitor them for a couple days. I will be looking for listlessness and/or gasping at the surface.

Why they enjoy swimming through the bubbles I have some idea... ever jump into a pool? The bubbles feel pretty good!

This ought to be a good way to check the bubbler or no bubbler issue in terms of neccessity because it is a 40 high tank with inherent little surface area at the top (tall narrow tank). There are other mitigating factors though, like I prefer to keep the water a little low to get the water trickle sound and being cold water fish I don't run a heater which would reduce total o2 content.

As I write this they are picking at the gravel and plastic plants (no live ones) more than they were with the bubbler on. Interesting... behavioral psychology for fish!

Doug

The fish aren't gasping at the surface, and the water temp has been as high as 82 degrees. In fact the water level has been a bit high so there isn't even much splashing from the water cascading off the filter. Looks like the bubbler isn't really neccessary.