air pumps

[jadeguppy]

Okay, I have delved into the culturing game and I have a question for other culturers. What air pump(s) do you use? Between the phyto, brine shrimp, copepods, etc. I have too many plugs. The thought that I plan to add more types of phyto and copepods as well as run shrimp hatcheries has me thinking that there must be a better air pump that can run more of these off the same pump. I don't want to break the bank, but there has to be something better than what Walmart sells.

[spk]

hey there,
I use a pond airpump that pushes out a rather large amount of air.

[Scottt]

I have a Coralife SL-38 (the white one) http://www.marinedepot.com/air_pumps_co ... mp-ap.html
Its been on pretty continuously for 2 years. Half of that in a really salty environment. It still pumps air like a champ. You can replace the internal parts that wear out I think too. I had 40+ air-stones hooked up at one time; that was about the max it could do. I love this pump.

[jadeguppy]

Cool thanks.

[Anthony Calfo]

If/when your needs warrant it (dozens of outlets), we typically use a regenerative air blower (Gast is extremely popular) for driving a PVC manifold loop around your culture tanks or the room. These are very energy efficient and can be sized to provide mere dozens to many hundreds of air outlets as you like. Try some key phrase Google searches for "fishroom air blower" and the like. If you go this route, I can offer more advice on the actual plumbing and install. Kindly, Anth-

[jadeguppy]

I wish I could spend hundreds on one, but I can't. I did a search like you suggested and saw linear piston air pumps suggested. Would something like http://cgi.ebay.com/AQUARIUM-PISTON-AIR ... 3ca46a5716 work for 10-20 culture tubs without producing a ton one noise?

[Scottt]

That must be the one I have, but with a different name on it. They are a little noisy, similar to an external water pump. I put mine in a cabinet, or a closet, then run a 1/2" vinyl line to the airline-valve-manifold.

The white-nylon valves for $0.90 at FAF www.florida-aqua-farms.com work best for me. I tried those, and the more expensive brass ones, as well as a chrome one. All the metal ones corroded quite fast. The gang-valves from my LFS were just junk too.

The regenerative blowers Mr. Calfo refers to are great, but for larger setups. I purchased one after reading his book, and will use it when my fish-farm gets big enough.

[jadeguppy]

Do you mind posting a pic of your tubing.set-up? Also, where did you get yours and what brand is it? I just noticed that the guys I linked to want more for shipping than the item.

[aquagrrl]

I use the super cheap ones that walmart sells. Very inexpensive so easy to replace. A blower would be nice, but I suspect with the way I work, it would end up a tangled mess if I had airhose only coming from one source. The biggest downside is the number of outlets you need for electricity.

[Scottt]

Do you mind posting a pic of your tubing.set-up? Also, where did you get yours and what brand is it? I just noticed that the guys I linked to want more for shipping than the item.

I got it on ebay for ~$70. It was advertised as the coralife one I linked to in my first post of this thread.

Here's the pump. They come with the little brass screw in fitting. I brought it to the hardware store, and got 20' of vinyl hose that fit it, along with a hose clamp.


I ran the vinyl to the 3/4" pvc pipe, which has all the valves threaded into it.


These are the various valves available: Plastic works best for marine applications.


My breeding setup is pretty noisy currently. So I just leave the pump on the floor (although, some say you should put it above the tanks in case of back siphoning in a power failure. But, in the past I have put it in another room, or cupboard, when noise was an issue. I'm supper impressed with the little pump, it's worked great for me.