Fluval 405 Spraybar for aeration

Hebily

Hebily

My Tank \/
Mar 15, 2009
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Racine, Wi
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My Cool looking volcano bubbler keeps having issues (ok, nothing horribly major, just enough to get annoying), so I've been considering more and more going with a more natural setup. I'm seriously considering getting a spraybar and suction cupping it to the top of the tank along the side that is furthest from the suction, pointing down, to create a waterfall effect and cause gas exchange. I'm running a Fluval 405 on a 50 gallon seaclear tank, and I don't have a spraybar yet. I'm wondering if anyone has run a similiar setup, and can answer my many questions.

Some of my questions are:

How much splashing should I expect?

Are all the holes on the fluval spray bar in a line, or are they skewed?

Would the water come out as a hard spray, a mist, or somewhere in between?

How long is the spraybar? (I've only seen pictures of the package online)

This wouldn't greatly affect my current, would it? (i've got the standard 'diffuser nozzle' that came with the filter on it now, pointed at the wall, near where one end of the spray bar would be.)

Would this have similiar surface agitation (gas exchange) to an airstone w/ a pump that is rated for a 60 gallon tank?

Has anyone had one of these fluval spray bars break, and cause a problem?

Is there some reason that I haven't thought of that this just won't work?


I am sure that I've got other questions, but I can't think of them right now.

Thank you for your help.
 
I wanted a more dispersed flow. Nozzle was great in a smaller tank but it just blows my plants in the direction I don't want it. Plus it would help my CO2 diffusion through the tank; won't have to fight against the flow of the filter's output nozzle.
 
If return flow is ever too high in a canister filter you can always buy a PVC Y-gate with a built in ball valves ($2.75) at your LHS and split your return flow hose into two hoses dropping the flow pressure by half at opposite ends of the aquarium. I plan to use one in my DIY 600 GPH canister filter I should have built in the next few days.
 
So Has anyone ever used one of these? Will I have to be the first? Go-Go Gadget Guinea Pig!
 
I've used a spraybar on mine, but it was a diy, not stock, so I can't answer most of the questions in the first post. Mine is 18" long made out of a 1/2" pvc pipe (just to give a comparison on the stock one). I've placed it at the back center on the tank, with the outflow pointed down, to more or less blow the poop out from behind the rocks. For some reason I thought I had a diy thread of it here, but I guess not, but it was made along the lines of this (just took off the outflow nozzle and replaced it with a spraybar):

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=146412


The flow is pretty strong when the filter lever is cranked all the way up, in fact enough to blow little fish down :), but I have it in with africans and they seem to like swimming in it. I do have it submerged under water, but I'd imagine it would be just as effective as a "trickle down" of sorts above the water line, at least to cause enough surface agitation (and maybe even break the strong current in the process).

BTW I would go with a spraybar over an airstone.
 
Lol. My male pearl gourami loves swimming into the current from the output nozzle. I aimed it at the wall, to diffuse it a bit... and he get's between the nozzle and wall...
 
I have had the spray bar for a couple days, and in case anyone is wondering, the answers to my questions are:

How much splashing should I expect? Depends how you aim it. You can achieve agitation with no noticeable splashing.

Are all the holes on the fluval spray bar in a line, or are they skewed? They are all in a straight line.

Would the water come out as a hard spray, a mist, or somewhere in between? Holes are larger than expected, water comes out at a quick drizzle. Aimed straight forward from the back wall, the 'jets' make it about 3/4 of the way to the front of the aquarium with the water level about 1 inch below the spraybar.

How long is the spraybar? (I've only seen pictures of the package online)
There are two sections that are each about 1 foot long. You can use one section, or both.

This wouldn't greatly affect my current, would it? (i've got the standard 'diffuser nozzle' that came with the filter on it now, pointed at the wall, near where one end of the spray bar would be.) I'd say the force of the current is lower, but with better mixing of the water. It took the fish a while to get used to the change, but they seem to like it.

Would this have similiar surface agitation (gas exchange) to an airstone w/ a pump that is rated for a 60 gallon tank? It doesn't 'boil' the water's surface like my aerator did, but I feel like it has just as much surface agitation, just without the bubbles. (Ooooh, waves - with the water level at the spray bar holes, and the holes pointed forward, it looks like a choppy day on the lake.)

Has anyone had one of these fluval spray bars break, and cause a problem? Well, it hasn't broken yet. If it does I'll try to remember to update this thread. It seems pretty much 'break-proof'.

Is there some reason that I haven't thought of that this just won't work? So far, it's working wonderfully. I may never use an airstone again.
 
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