# Oxygen Effect?



## occjmm (Nov 30, 2007)

Just wondering... if I left the water level a little low and allowed water to enter sort of like a waterfall would the air-bubbles be bad for the fish? I figured it might add a little oxygen to the water...


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## caferacermike (Oct 3, 2006)

Micro bubbles can get trapped in the gills of fish and actually prevent them from removing O2 from the water, basically suffocating them. However I believe this to be very rare. The real devil here is that salt water binds bubbles much more effectively and over time will cause your water to look white unlike freshwater that releases bubbles almost immediately.


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## Birdmann_az (Dec 27, 2007)

Do you deem the bubbles coming from air pumps to be micro bubbles??


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## caferacermike (Oct 3, 2006)

No, but small stray bubbles could be. I certainly would not allow bubbles from an air pump or water fall to enter any powerheads. Even with the waterfall idea above I doubt there would be a real problem, but keep an eye out for problems over time.


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