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RE: bubble makers

math-only aquarium — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 10:12:15 GMT

That is true, but it can occur with any size of bubble as nearly all volumes are divisible. No less, it's not so much the "bends" as it is a drying out of healthy gill tissue. The bubble attaches to the gill tissue and the moisture in the tissue evaporates into the bubble leaving behind a shriveled or damanged gill tissue. This will manifest itself as nitrite posioning or oxygen deprivation and usually isn't too bad in most cases. Much more rarely, nitrogen from the atmosphere can be absorbed by the gill tissue if a bubble does get caught in there (this, theoretically, could lead to the bends). No less, as the gill tissue starts to dry when it comes in contact with a bubble, nitrogen absorbtion is very minimal, if measurable at all. As such, unless you literally fill the gills full of bubbles, bends via bubble wand (or other aerator) is vertually impossible.

MOA

RE: bubble makers

GRUBYGUPPY — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 10:00:13 GMT

I missunderstood the previous post,I thought you were talking about things like bubble wands in the tank,never thought of airstones in the UGF....thought most people now a days used powerheads on their UGF. I personally drive mine with HOB power filters. I read somewhere that if the bubbles were too fine from bubble wands and the like and fish swam through them some could get into the gills and cause the bends type of problem with the fish.

RE: bubble makers

math-only aquarium — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 09:45:48 GMT

Hmm,

Could you clarify the question a bit? I'm not quite sure what you mean.

As to which size of bubbles are best, that depends on what you're going for. You see, the bigger the bubble, the smaller the relative surface area. This results in a higher terminal velocity. In other words, big bubbles move the water faster. However, because of the smaller proportional surface area, big bubbles don't oxygenate very well and usually don't move a lot of water volume around.

On the other hand, very small bubbles have a very high proportion of surface area to volume and thus tend to move greater volumes and aerate better than large bubbles. The downside, of course, is that they don't move very fast and thus represent a lower flow rate (to a degree). As such, the most useful bubbles for UGF's are between 1/4" and 1/8".

Also, I've never heard of a "bends" type of reaction from small bubbles used in an uplift tube of a UGF. However, small bubbles in an exposed column can affect small-medium fish adversely in that each bubble will send out a vibration that the fishes lateral line will pick up. If there are too many bubbles (too fine), the fish's organ will not be able to interpret the different signals and the fish may behave as if it were "dizzy." The behavior is similar to people who have inner ear problems, but it only occurs rarely and with specific sizes of fish (2.5-4.5 inches, generally).

With regard to air-powered UGF's, here's a link that might prove useful:

http://board.fishchannel.com/Topic152887-5-1.aspx?Highlight=air+pump+terminal+velocity

MOA

RE: bubble makers

GRUBYGUPPY — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 15:46:49 GMT

Ok why & what is the difference from running an UGF and not running one when it comes to bubbles?,just currious as I use UGF in my tanks.What is better,large bubbles or small bubbles? I did read somewhere tha too fine a bubble can affect your fish,sort of like the bends to divers.

RE: bubble makers

math-only aquarium — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 18:45:15 GMT

It should be noted, however, that bubbles can cause problems, especially with larger fish, in that small bubbles my cling to fish's skin and will have an effect similar to a burn. This is rare, of course, but it is not a good idea to add an excessive amount of bubblers to an aquarium because of this. Generally, no more than one column per ten gallons unless running a UGF.

MOA

RE: bubble makers

princessotfu — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:55:02 GMT

3. some fish play in them, and get a real kick out of it.

4. some fish (my goldies, on occasion) will use them as an impulse to release eggs. Very useful when a fish is by itself or without a male to stimulate. Also useful if the fish is having trouble and in danger of becoming egg-bound. - not the most important use, by any means, but the one I appreciate most, as one of my fish is difficult when it comes to dropping eggs.

RE: bubble makers

FattFishy — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 14:40:26 GMT

There are two benefits

1. Looks good.

2. Surface agitation from the bubbles allows more oxygen and CO2 to be exchanged.

bubble makers

justin30 — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 14:14:06 GMT

I have used bubble makers or bubble stones ever sence I started

I bought a 4$ mini disc and I love it. my question is what are the bennifits of bubbles in a tank if any.

thanks justin...michigan