The Puffer Forum

Hello again!

I just replaced my HOB filter with a new canister filter yesterday. I was worried about aeration of the water, but I was sure I would be fine because I had the output nozzle making a good amount of disturbance on the surface. My brother called me today to tell me my fish were all in a corner of the tank, with their mouths opening wide and closing (or gasping for air). I had him immediatly take a glass and use tank water to agetate the surface of the water until I could get to the store. I purchased a Top Fin Powerhead 30 because it said for use to aerate aquariums. I have the air tube outside my tank, and the powerhead underneath the water. I have never dealt with these so Im not sure what it is supposed to be doing. If I keep the powerhead within 7 inches of the surface, it creates a bunch of tiny bubbles. If it goes deeper than that, all that comes out is water. Where does it need to be to properly aerate my aquarium? Is the water aerated no mater where the powerhead is? The little bubbles fill the whole tank immediatly making a dense "fog" with them, so Im hoping thats not what I need. Thanks for your help everyone!

Not familiar with that one but usually just putting it near the surface to create agitation of the water will be enough. The bubbles are probably just to help aeration a bit more.

riggers wrote:Not familiar with that one but usually just putting it near the surface to create agitation of the water will be enough. The bubbles are probably just to help aeration a bit more.

Will it still aerate the water if its at the bottom of the tank though, with no bubbles at all?

rengnath wrote:

riggers wrote:Not familiar with that one but usually just putting it near the surface to create agitation of the water will be enough. The bubbles are probably just to help aeration a bit more.

Will it still aerate the water if its at the bottom of the tank though, with no bubbles at all?

Not so much, although it would still create water circulation you'd be better trying to get surface agitation.

riggers wrote:

rengnath wrote:

riggers wrote:Not familiar with that one but usually just putting it near the surface to create agitation of the water will be enough. The bubbles are probably just to help aeration a bit more.

Will it still aerate the water if its at the bottom of the tank though, with no bubbles at all?

Not so much, although it would still create water circulation you'd be better trying to get surface agitation.

Alright, that makes since. I just wasnt sure, the box came with no directions, and the number on the box went to a Petsmart employee (and we all know how helpful they can be)

Thanks for your help!

Hi rengnath,

I tend to have mine blasting along the surface, bubbles from the venturii and all. It's very noisy and you could run just under the surface so it's not so noisy and you might get away without the air tube. Just depends on how much noise you are prepared to tolerate. If the surface is rippling then that might be ok for you. There are dissolved oxygen kits you can get to check your O2 levels, btw.

One of my puffer tanks is at 30C, so I need as much oxygen in the water as possible and my way works for me. The tank is in a room where people don't tend to hang out so the racket is acceptable

It's actually noisier than my lfs with two protien skimmers and a load of powerheads etc on eight tanks

I don't like either the nose or the mess of the spray that bubbles create. so I have no real surface breaks that I can avoid. Good circulation in the tank and good surface movement can and will provide plenty of aeration other than in overstocked tanks.

The trick is that "good circulation" is not always easy to achieve. It can take days to weeks of observation before you have it really fine-tuned, but watching the fish, and the substrate for places where debris settles out will both give you good hints. For me it is still a trial and error process..

Hello soggydrysuit!
And hello again, RTR!

Thanks for both of your posts.

The powerhead is definetly noisy. Im going to try and put in an empty corner of my tank to just push water around and disturb the surface.

The bubbles just seem to be way to much, even when I put them on as light as possible. They fill the hole side of the tank that the powerhead is on, and they are dragged down to the canister filter inlet and then I get air pockets in there.

I will definetly keep the powerhead just for circulation, because I know how important it is to have some water movement for puffers. I have to keep him entertained and he seems to like it.

Would it be ok if I turned off my powerhead to see if my fish start gasping for air? Is it bad for the fish if they are slightly deprived of oxygen for a short while? I just want to see if in fact there is not enough oxygen in the tank, because I was not the one who saw the fish "gasping" and Im not sure if what my brother is telling me could be described as gasping because he said the puffer fish was still swimming back and fourth, and the scat was just near the top. They both tend to be beggers for food though. So would it be ok to turn of the powerhead for a while to see what happens?

Or could I just do it with a dissolved oxygen kit? I assume it just like a test kit for ammonia or nitrate?

Im just not sure how much oxygen is a amount.

If the bubbles are persistent, it is a symptom of high DOCs (dissolved organic compounds) which can also hinder gas exchange significantly. This may be part of your problem. Scats are among the messiest fish in the world. I would never keep one with a puffer. How big is your tank? Scats are voracious and will out-compete the puffer easily. They need large tanks and massive water changes, massive flow and short-term filter cleanings. They are very hardy, but don't mix well with other fish IME. Not even Oscars can compare in bioload to a Scat.

But I do not really object to oygenation obsevations IF you are going to be around all day and able to check the tank frequently. Not all fish have equal O2 requirements - some may start gasping near the surface while others are still swimming around normally. If anybody shows symptoms, end the test and get the aeration back up.

HTH

The bubbles have calmed down significantly in the past day. I have the powerhead at the top of the tank, directing flow upwards to disturb the surface, with the bubbles on as light as possible. I think I will try turning the bubbles off completly on Christmas day since I will be home all day so I can observe the fish to make sure they dont suffocate.

I didnt think the scats were that messy. The scat competes with the puffer, imo; but the puffer always wins atleast when it comes to feeding. It was one of those fish I saw at the store, asked about it and they told me "it would be fine." Maybe I will have to look at finding him a new home soon.

I am going to do a 50% water change next week. I have only the new canister filter running now, so I want to give it a while to establish some bacteria before I interrupt it with a water change to see if that helps.

If the fish are still fine after turning the bubbles off completly on the powerhead, the next thing I will try is to turn off the powerhead at night while I sleep, and on during the day with a timer to see how that works. I will monitor the fish closely in both situations, as I would be really mad at myself if I killed my beloved fish over an experiment like this one. I will keep you updated.

Thanks!

It's the scat's pooping that is the problem--they're poop machines, worse than goldfish or Oscars! I'd be doing 90% weekly WC on that tank. When's the last time you did a WC & how much? When parameters are off, the fish will also gasp at the surface. What are your parameters now?

Last time I got the water tested (2 weeks ago) the ammonia was 0ppm, nitrite 0ppm, and nitrate was < 30ppm. I usually do a water change of 5 gallons each week, which keeps the nitrate stable. I havent checked it since I got my new filter. I wont be able to take in the water till saturday to see what the parameters are currently.

The last time I did a water change was Wednesday 12/16. I changed the water, causing a change in salinity so I gave time for the benificial bacteria to adjust. On Sunday, 12/27 I replaced the filter in the tank. Im trying to wait until at least Sunday to do a water change, to allow time for the new filter to grow colonies of bacteria. I had a hang-on-the-back Aqueon 55 that I replaced with a Fluval 205.

I got a call from my brother on Monday 12/28 saying my fish were at the surface of the tank, opening and closing their mouths. I had him aerate the water by using a glass to pour tank water in to disturb the surface. When I came home, the fish were fine again. I came home with an air pump, but i took it back to exchange for a powerhead. The air pump was making a large amount of bubbles, but now its alot better. The water is crystal clear and the fish seem happy.

I will post my water parameters ASAP, Pufferpunk. I will go home tonight and do a water change of 5 gallons, while trying to maintain the same specific gravity to try and not disturb anything in the tank. I will keep you guys updated, along with posting up some pictures of my tank.

Merry Chrismas to everyone!

How big is the tank? What percent change is 5 gallons?

You need to add the marine mix to the water you use to replace water removed, and have the salt mix dissolved before you add it to the tank.

I would bet that none of the LFS staff has ever seen a mature Scat. taking their woed for compatibility is a shot in the dark. The fish you risk are yours, not theirs.

The tank is 30 gallons, so 5 is a little more than 15%. I dont want to do too large of one yet, until the filter is established. I do add marine mix, I believe I just picked up a bag of instant ocean. I use what ever is on sale. I have the specific gravity around 1.015 right now.