Question about Air Pumps & Filtration for my future CRS breeding tank.

1824 Views 4 Replies 4 Participants Last post by shrimpzoo, Jul 28, 2012

shrimpzoo

Discussion Starter · Jul 28, 2012

I currently have 2 air pumps from Marina which are both Marina 50s:

"Marina 50 Air Pump: has a single outlet and is ideal for aquariums 5 to 15 U.S. gal. (10 to 60 L)"

but there are different types of Marina Air Pumps such as the:

Marina 75 Air Pump and Marina 100 Air Pump and Marina 200 Air Pump.

Apparently, each of them state that they are "ideal" for aquariums "# gallons" to "# of gallons".

http://www.petland.ca/fish/pumps-and-accessories/marina-air-pump-available-in-4-sizes.html

I'm failing to see what makes each of them different from one another to make them "ideal" for different aquarium sizes. Is it that each one has a different amount of air flow?

Should I consider upgrading my current air pumps for my new tank (which will be 30 gallons)? I've been using my current air pumps for my 10 gallon tank.

I was thinking that I would hook both my Marina 50 air pumps to two separate seapora sponge filters (I'm going to re-use my small Breeder Sponge Filter - 30 and get a second bigger one).

I know there is nothing wrong with over-filtration and upgrading my air pumps, but I don't want to needlessly invest in these things if they'll make little or no difference. So I want to know whether or not I should or shouldn't bother.

I can understand that if the size of the sponge filter is larger it would be more ideal for larger gallon aquariums... but I fail to understand the air pump advertisement.

If anyone has any suggestions or comments your input is appreciated and thanks for reading. I just want to try make this breeding run as smoothly as possible lol. I apologize for my OCD :icon_redf

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specks

· #2 · Jul 28, 2012

Those airpumps probably differ in air output capacity. As tank volumes get bigger, the deeper water creates more pressure therefore needing for a stonger pump to be able to overcome the resistance. You might not need to upgrade. Just hook it up to your sponge filter and put in in your new tank. Its the bubbles that create a vacuum and draw water through the sponge. If the pump is able to push out a steady mass of bubbles then an upgrade wont be necessary.

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acitydweller

· #3 · Jul 28, 2012

These models vary by the psi they produce. Larger tanks typically will have higher psi demands drive multiple devices (ugf) over longer distances or longer bubble wands for example. You can consider getting a larger pump and a airline splitter to allow for future scalability.

Just to give you an idea, I use a medium size airpump and an airline spliter to drive. Multiple sponge filters across two 5.5 gallon shrimp tanks rather than run multiple pumps.

I tend to shop for pumps that run quieter and find running a larger one over multiple smaller ones to be more reliable, not to mention simplifiying the number of accessories needed.

Btw, this post is more suitable in the equipment forum as the question is equipment oriented and not shrimp specific. You'd reach a wider aquaria audience by posting there rather than asking shrimpers

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diwu13

· #4 · Jul 28, 2012

+1 to acitydweller.

I use a 100G airpump to drive sponge filters in only 2x 10G tanks. The reason I bought a 100G airpump was for a future (hopefully) shrimp rack and have it power everything. The cost between a whisper 10g and 100g airpump isn't that large either. The whisper series air pumps are very quiet as well.

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shrimpzoo

Discussion Starter · #5 · Jul 28, 2012

I think I'm just going to get the Marina 200 Air Pump. It has duo output so I can use 2 sponge filters (re-use the old one and use the new bigger one I'm planning to get) in my 30 gal.

Thanks for the replies guys.

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