Thank you very much Anthony Big hugs from Malta. I just modified one little sponge filter as I have some Angelfish wiggles and i actually wanted to put an air stone as well in the little tank, but I don't have an extra air pump so this way it seems I did both. Thank you again! :)
Thank you sooooo much!! One of the only videos on RU-vid that gets straight to the point with step by step instructions. You got a new subscriber now because of so. Take care and stay well.
Thank you so much this was a huge help im new to tanks and filters and everything. This really was a clear step by step and I was able to get it done ❤
Hi do you have any links for filters and air stones that ship to the UK. Really helpful video though does any airstone work or does it have to be a certain size?
I’ve been trying to figure out how to assimilate the air stone with the new sponge filter that I installed last night in my 10 gallon Betta tank. I love the sponge filter so much more than the hang on the back one I had. What a nice difference. Great video with step by step instructions.
If your betta is the only fish in the tank you wouldn't really benefit from the using an air stone since they breath from the surface unlike most other fish.
Ive just done this step by step with you (a bit of pausing and rewinding lolx) and its great thank you, you explain it very well, compared to some sites, so thank you.x With Love from the UK.x
Great tutorial! I have a sponge filter fit for a 10 gal tank and had to add a few more steps to make the stone fit in the filter (just shortening everything because the stone was too big) but thanks to this simple easier to understand tutorial it works great!
Bubbles dont put O2 into the water no matter what the size of the bubble is. What "puts" O2 into the water is the gas exchange that occurs where water meets air. The agitation of the bubbles on the water surface is what increases the level at which CO2 and O2 exchange.
So...does air stones create more surface area for the gas exchange? Or outside of sound and surface splashing, does it reduce it due to smaller bubbles?
@@debraricci6227 Good question. Neither. The bubbles break the surface tension on the water. The surface tension is what slows down the gas exchange. Once the surface tension is broken the CO2/O2 exchange rate happens much faster.
I have a small tank and the sponge filter I had was way too big, but it had 2 parts like yours. I cut the sponge in 2 and remove one half and it works very well.
Ah! I didn't think to cut the part of the middle tube to attach to the top of the inside of the filter! The way I got around it was to cut the centre hole out of the top of the filter (leaving 4 spokes) and fed my airline directly through attaching straight to my air stone. Your way seems a lot neater so I will try it next time - thanks!
with my sponge filter this method was incompatible so i just have my sponge filter as one unit and my air stone attached to airline just gets lowered into the sponge filter till i feel it hit the bottom, its ghetto but im thinking of a way to engineer it to be more secure
thanks for this. my sponge filter was smaller and the air stone was slightly bigger than the inside compartment so i had to make some adjustments so it could fit. but it works like a charm and my betta is a happy camper!
THANK YOU. Fast becoming THE standard video for doing this right. ONE down, three to go! PS: can you tell me what BRAND that black air stone is? A link even - nobody seems to have them in my local area.
Idk if you'll ever see this, but you sir are a hero. When im at my darkest, and no one to turn to for sponge filter air stones, you are there to save the day.🫡 I have a >10 gallon sponge filter from Aquaneat i just bought, and they have zero air stones to use in the filter. I ended up buying top fin air stones from petsmart hoping that they would, but they arent compatible with other sponge filters.i followed your directions, and i also had to cut out the bottom part that anchors to the weight, but it worked afterwards!! Thank you so much🙂
The filters that point to aquariumcoop already come airstone ready. Also wouldn't the tubing already fit the top base where the little piece you cut off fits into? It may just be that this video came out before they had those specific filters. My fail I did something similar with a walmart airstone, lowered air with a valve and the stone now sounds like it's spitting water every now and then. The pump is rated for my size tank but even w/o airstone it throws more air(louder). I do want to try one of those no-clog air "stones" (I believe it's felt and plastic) nevertheless it's annoying having to hear the regular ones.
I like the reducing the noice with the airstone set up. Can this mod be done witht the double barrel sponge filter? Really like how you explain and demonstrate. Good stuff.
Very helpful! I am confused though how the air gets into the bottom chamber when the air stone just sits on the bottom without being connected like the tubing would be...?
He didn’t show it but he did attach it. You can see the tube connected to the air pump at the end when it’s in the tank. That’s why he reattached the little tube on the top at the end
With the larger sponge filters there's no need to put up with air bubbles bursting all over and the noise of an air pump. Fit a piece of 1" pvc over the outlet on the filter and chop it off around four inches or so from the surface. Place a power head on top and plug it in. More water flow, more surface agitation, almost no sound and the best part is the power head will likely outlast two or three air pumps and a bunch of air stones.
@@debraricci6227 I thought that explanation was fairly simple. Get a pond filter similar to the one shown above. It will likely be around the size of a coffee can or a bit smaller. Remove the clear tube. A piece of schedule forty 1" pvc should fit over the outer raised area snugly. Get a power head. Most come with a tapered water inlet that should fit into the pvc. Cut the pvc short so the power head is just flush with the top of the water. Plug it in. It will move several times more water than the air pump and be almost silent. I used two of them in a fify five gallon tank that was heavily stocked for years alternating rinsing them out in old tank water weekly.
Why don't they just make them so the bubbles are tiny in the first place? That would be a big seller I'll bet. I have been trying to do this all night.
The airstone improves the performance of a sponge filter. Instead of large intermittent bubbles the airstone produces a constant stream of smaller bubbles that continuously draws water through the sponge.
thanks for this vid, I got my co-op order today and had no idea how to attach the airstone when I saw the new sponge! new sub 😊 what do you think of how fine these new sponges are compared to the old ones? the difference is huge!
Thank you I appreciate that! The sponges are definitely a lot less coarse but in my experience with them in my other aquariums they are able to get super small particles out of the water resulting in a slightly clearer tank :)
DCA - I'm in the Duke City as well. Just getting back into the hobby after a few years and moving house. I'd like to get together to share ideas, knowledge etc. Whaddya say? One question I have is - can you add a stone with a power head attached to the sponge filter?
I have a 1” air stone in the sponge filter. Would adding a 2” be better? The sponge filter I have is for a 60 gallon tank. The sponge is 5.5” high and with the air tube is 8” high. A 2” air stone would take up a little less then half of the inside tube. I was wondering if it mattered what size air stone you have inside.
I did this to both my sponge filters and i'm going to be buying new ones. I noticed that will the air stone it wasn't catching uneaten fish food like it was before I cut the air diffuser out.
What wasn't mentioned was (1)to consider the need for a non- return valve above the filter and (2) to squeeze the filter when under water to get rid of air in the sponge.
Good mod. I’ve been modifying my ATI sponge filters with air stones for years. Far easier to modify the ATI then the cheaper sponge filter you demonstrated on. That said, if you don’t modify those cheaper sponge filters then you’ll notice them clogging a lot quicker - at least that has been my experience. Curious why you don’t use lids on your tanks. It will help reduce evaporation and eliminate any jumping fish from taking a fatal plunge.
I’m really trying to learn... I thought more surface disruption the more it will release CO2 hence the more oxygen, but what i get from this is, the more bubbles from the air stone get the tank more oxygen from bubbles but disrupt the surface more, it’s like they both equal out! My goal is, I have a sponge filter, I’m a beginner and have a planted tank have have shrimp and snails in it, I hate the big bubbles that splashes on my light and leave hard water spots, but the smaller bubbles seam like they would leave more. I wanna keep as much CO2 in the tank for the plants without adding CO2, what have you found best to keep CO2 but keep from splashing? Air stone or no air stone?
Going to be using the modification when I set up my tanks again in two weeks. The box stores do not carry the sponge filters. The mom &pop stores charge $20.00 for one filter. I ordered the three pack of sponge filters on Amazon for 16.00 bucks and change. I also am going to add some charcoal to the inner corridor where the air stone is placed. Thanks for the information.
so the type of sponge filter I had was just too small with too short of a core. DIY fail lol. ate the $20 for some HQ aquarium coop sponge filters & airstones
I just run the tube through from the bottom. I couldn't connect to the bullseye as the connection point was too wide for the tube, so I broke the middle of the bullseye to run the tube direct from the pump to the air stone at the bottom of the filter.
Pre-filters on HOBs and canister filters are popular. Since this is a filter by itself could it be used as a pre-filter and to extend the reach of the intake to the bottom for an HOB? Is it possible to adapt tube sizes to fit this onto an intake?
They work great for Pre-filters on HOB's. They connect up to mine with a PVC Female Adapter . Really extends the cycle of the HOB and adds so much surface area for bene bact. My snails love it too.
Duke City Aquariums I just took an amonia lvl test and it’s at 3.0 THATS HIGH so should I do a 75-65% water change and add some bacteria and increase filtration