Noisy aquarium pump

LisaO

Have a small (38 litre) cold water tank with a couple of goldfish in it. It came with a built in pump & filter in the lid but this packed up a couple of months ago. Now have a separate in-tank filter & a small external pump connected to an airstone. They're doing the job fine - water is crystal clear & AOK but the pump is so noisy! I have moved it so it is above water level, put it on a thick felt pad & sponges, etc, but it continues to buzz/hum all the time. I have to turn it off at night as it keeps OH awake & drives him mad! Any suggestions how I might quieten it down or of a better alternative?

The filter unit has a venturi? type fitting - water circulates up through the filter & is ejected at top. Could I link this to an airstone or would that not provide sufficient aeration?

Jackob

I have had my goldfish for the last 25 years, so I guess something works!! I have used many filters over the years and the one I have now is by far the best. Its called a stingray and only cost atbout 40 euro. The one thing I find with all of them is that they must stay a couple of inches below the water level or they will start to hum!!! Also, if the filter is full, it will also make noise, I clean out the filter once a week, totally dismantle it and clean with a toothbrush and change the sponges once a month. One a fortnight I do a complete water change, much to the surprise of any Aquarim owner I mention it to!! But they all agree it must work as Finn is 25 and his "brother"only died a few years ago when he was 20!! The difference in Finn since I got the new filter is amazing, hes so active again, flys to the top of the tank now and sticks his little head out to be fed!!! Best of luck with your goldfish!!

LisaO

I had a look at the Stingray but still a little confused - am I right in thinking it is just a filter? Or does it provide aeration as well?

The tank I have previously had a filter built into the tank lid - basically it drew water from tank up & then out of a long bar with holes in it over a filter pad. Water filtered through pad & then dripped back into tank. When this unit stopped working I bought an in-tank filter - Fluval No 1 I think. Shop said I would need additional aeration so I also bought an Elite 800 external air pump which sits outside the tank & is connected via tube to an airstone. It generates plenty of air (lots of bubbles & water movement) but is annoyingly noisy.

I am now wondering do I need the air pump at all? Can I rely on the outflow from the filter to provide sufficient aeration? I am happy with the filter as it keeps tank very clean & I do regular water changes, approx 1/3 tank every 10days. But I understand that goldfish are very demanding so would not want to be depriving tank of essential oxygen.

Any further opinions would be very welcome

Jackob

yes the stingray is just a filter. Im afraid i dont know anything about air pumps as I have never used them. Hopefully someone more experienced will be able to help you. Best of luck:D

Pimp Ninja

Some air pumps can be quite noisy. The best way to minimise noise is to hang it from something.

Has it always been this noisy ?
It is possible that the airpump you have has become faulty, and may need a replacememt membrane.
If the airstone itself gets too dirty, it can get clogged and cause the pump to have to work harder, increasing noise.

From discussions Ive had previously with other hobbiests on the subject Ehiem seem make the quietest ones, however they can be quite expensive.

You can get away without an airpump/airstone if there is enough of a disturbance to the surface of the water. Depending on the strength of your filter - pointing the output of the filter at the surface of the water so it creates ripples might be enough.

eden_my_ass

I bought a filter unit off Zooplus.co.uk, part of a range they do (green color, can't remember the name, should be lots of them on the site)..anyway it has a little feed in line that sits above the water line to suck air down and fire that out as it filters, very quiet and easy to take out and clean.

p.s. there is a zooplus.ie but ordering is usually cheaper off the uk site (maybe not lately with currency difference but it was)

edit - it was an Eheim Aquaball, don't think it was too expensive

LisaO

Thanks for all the replies. Had a good look at my set-up today & have now removed the pump. Cleaned out filter & it puts through a good rate of water so will try to get tubing to connect to the filter outlet & run that to an airstone & see how it goes. Hopefully it will provide enough aeration as the tank is now silent