# Airstone Use



## brondie (Jun 6, 2006)

Hi,

Are airstones beneficial or cause problems with the fish? How many hours a day can the airstones be kept running and is it OK to leave them on overnight? Would they help with low dissolved oxygen in the water? How can one find out that and what is the remedy?
Many thanks....


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## Ringo (Apr 10, 2006)

I leave my airstones running always, never really thought wether it would cause problems or not (don't think it does)

And yes it is okay to leave them on overnight.


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## book_em_danio (Jun 12, 2006)

Airstones are fine. In fact, anything that causes ripples in the surface of the water increases the d.o.


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## harif87 (Jun 5, 2006)

book_em_danio said:


> Airstones are fine. In fact, anything that causes ripples in the surface of the water increases the d.o.


Yeah airstones are used strictly for that purpose, to cause surface agitation thus allowing an oxygen-CO2 exchange with the water and air. Run that sucker all day and all night if you want, it wont do any harm.


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## Guest (Jun 19, 2006)

But if you have a filter a air stone would only be for decorative purposes because it won't increase oxygen levels because if the filter is strong enough for the tank it will provide the nesscary oxygen.


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## Puffer Pita (Jun 16, 2006)

Airstones also increase water circulation, which some fish really like. I've also found it beneficial, especially in my planted betta tank, to use one to increase the water circulation to combat algae. Algae thrives in stagnant water so the more circulation you have, the better for a planted tank, IMO.


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

Algae thrives in moving water also. And co2 is key for combating algae. Increased o2 (via an airstone) in a planted tank is hindering plant growth. Water circulation is good for planted thanks though. A powerhead is better than an airstone for circulation.

As a side note, not all filters add o2 to the water. Canisters, for instance increase circulation but do not add o2.


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## violet (Mar 17, 2006)

To add to what Simpte said, even a tank with a HOTB filter may not cause a lot of surface agitation if the water level is very high. The return just kind of glides back into the tank instead of making a waterfall. A lot of floating plants can also make surface movement sluggish.

This may be an atypical situation but I have one tank which is heavily planted, CO2 added during the day. I run a couple of airstones at night while the CO2 is off to minimize the build up of CO2 which can't be used. Without light, both the fish and plants give off CO2 and the pH drops.

violet


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