bubble curtain?

[jeff_purdon]

does anybody in here use or recommend a bubble curtain or air stone in thier puffer tank? i dont have one in mine but i'm just asking out of curiousity

[Nick]

I don't use them in most tanks, but especially not brackish, they make lots of salt spray.

[jeff_purdon]

ok cool thanks. i'm guessing this is a matter of opinion. anybody else?

[The Bruce]

i hate the way they look, how often do you see a curtain of bubbles in the wild, if you like the look thats cool, but i just hate when i overhear pet store employees saying that you need them for oxygenation, then sell them a HOB filter with it

[Agnate]

I had one in my 28 gallon bowfront when I had Bumblebee Gobies, and I liked it. There was some salt spray from it, but I still thought it looked good.

The thing I hated was that every time I wanted to clean the tank, it would screw up the arrangement. Mind you, I was using those flexible spongy-tube things and a flow control to get SOME bubbles (as I didn't want a lot of them).

It's all about your aesthetic preferences, though. If you like the way air curtains look, use'm. Just try to get a balance of air movement to keep your tank serene and beautiful.

[jkpfr]

Please excuse my ignorance on this topic, but I thought it was necessary to have some type of oxygenation in your tank!? If not an air stone, then what else?

[plurmaster]

When your filter push down water it carries oxygen down. Plants also produce oxygen.

[Nick]

Pretty much any HOB filter creates more than enough surface agitation. It's when canister filters are rigged so that they don't create any, or when in tank filters that only move water at the bottom of the tank are used, that supplemental agitation via a bubbler is needed.

[jkpfr]

Wow, I feel like such a newb!

I guess I assumed that in fresh/brackish you NEEDED some form of additional agitation because you do not have all of the other fancy stuff running(powerheads, protein skimmers, refugium pumps, etc.)

So the verdict is: As long as I have a strong enough HOB filter, I can take this stupid airstone out of my tank and my fish will never notice the difference!?
-Please confirm-

And sorry, I do not mean anything against those who like bubblewands and such. IMO, the more natural looking, the better.

[Nick]

Confirmed.

[jeff_purdon]

ok i am going to claim ignorance as well here and just clarify that even though my water level in the tank goes up past the bottom of the filter where the water comes down its still not needed?

[jkpfr]

I was kind of wondering the same thing...

[plurmaster]

confirmed!!

[Agnate]

There are variances on this, though. Sometimes your particular combination of plants/agitation might need additional oxygen (in the form of extremely tiny bubbles) added to keep your fish happy. You'll know this, though, by the amount of heavy breathing they do. If you watch your fish at all, you should be able to tell when they're breathing heavier than normal.

[inkyjenn]

i have an air stone in my tank, but its for aesthetics, not for function.

i like the bubbles