Do I need an air pump for a 20 gal. tank?

feederfish

feederfish

AC Members
Feb 7, 2009
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Mobile, AL
Hey AC,

I finally caved-in and bought my first tank as a prelude to something much bigger.

The tank is 20 gallon (24x12x16). I will be running an Aqua Clear 30 power filter.

I plan to use this tank as a quarantine tank in the future and I will be stocking it with cardinal tetras and pearl gouramis until I get something bigger.

I am wondering if the filter will provide enough oxygen/air exchange to the water or should I consider a small air pump and bubble wand/air stone to further benefit the exchange? Worth it or probably not?

Also, this is not a planted tank, just lots of fake plants (like 8 or 9).
 
feederfish said:
Hey AC,

I finally caved-in and bought my first tank as a prelude to something much bigger.

The tank is 20 gallon (24x12x16). I will be running an Aqua Clear 30 power filter.

I plan to use this tank as a quarantine tank in the future and I will be stocking it with cardinal tetras and pearl gouramis until I get something bigger.

I am wondering if the filter will provide enough oxygen/air exchange to the water or should I consider a small air pump and bubble wand/air stone to further benefit the exchange? Worth it or probably not?

Also, this is not a planted tank, just lots of fake plants (like 8 or 9).
Click to expand...

If I were you I would get another filter (sponge) to go along with it. Not only will it provide air, it will also help with different types of filteration. :thm:
 
The Aquaclear filter alone will be fine, although there is nothing wrong with adding another filter, airstone, etc. if you'd like. I personally prefer the less cluttered look in my tanks, and can't stand the sight of airline tubing, so I don't use anything but HOB or canister filters.
 
I think I can hide a sponge bio-foam sponge filter. Nice suggestion that I didn't look into enough before. I like getting extra filtration for adding some air. =D
 
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You do not need airpumps if your filter is creating enough surface movements to ensure oxygen is adequate. Get a battery operated airpump however for emergencies and power outages. A box for the filter media connected with a tubing towards a battery operated airpump will make a good temporary filter during power outages.
 
The air pump is not necessary and most of the time it is used just for a pleasing effect in the tank. The addition of another filter would be beneficial though. Always better to run more than one filter on any given tank so if one filter should go down for any reason you will have the other one to pick up the slack until the other filter is up and running again.

Marinemom
 
Got to agree with Marinemom. Having redundant filters, even if one of them isn't big enough, it will be better than nothing if your main filter goes down. As for the air pump, get it if you want it, but I don't think your tank "needs" bubbles. I only use mine when I feel like firing up the bubble wand for fun. I don't consider it functional in the least, purely aesthetic.
 
I always try to add an extra sponge filter if I can hide it completely. As a bonus, it makes your life so much easier if you decide to add another tank. Zero cycling time if you re-use one of these filters from your existing tanks. Also useful if you need to set one up urgently.
 
you seldom NEED an air pump

most of the time your HOB filters provide more air than a pump anyway
 
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