# Too much Air?



## ladiibjs (May 27, 2012)

Just wondering, can you provide too much air supply to your tank. It's a 20 gallon tank, I have a red tail shark, mollies, danio's, and some barbs. I put in a stone bar that runs almost the hole botton of the tank. I was wondering, even though it looks wonderful, is it harmful to the fish?

Thank you for your advise.

Betty:-?


----------



## Absntmind (Apr 26, 2012)

No, I do not believe you can have to much oxygen in the tank due to an air stone. The bubbles themselves do not add O2 to the water, but the surface disturbance/movement. From what little I know, I believe your fish will be fine.


----------



## Fishguy2727 (Dec 22, 2011)

The bubbles themselves do aerate, they are surface area just like the top of the tank, the oxygen doesn't know or care where it diffuses. 

The only way to have too much aeration is if the flow it creates is too strong.


----------



## fish monger (Dec 29, 2011)

Have seen posts that say you can have too much aeration for live plants. I don't know what level that would be though. Supposedly reduces the amount of CO2 available to the plants.


----------



## ladiibjs (May 27, 2012)

Thanks for the info ...wasn't sure


----------



## Tigris (May 10, 2012)

What fish monger said, if you have a nicely planted tank, you don't need as much O2 from an airstone because the plants release oxygen gas into the water when they photosynthesize


----------



## ladiibjs (May 27, 2012)

I have some plants, not as much as I would like. That is still in progress...but thank you for that information I totally forgot about that wonderful process plants do for us.


----------



## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

If you have live plants, i wold not use any bubbling device. And restrict surface disturbance. This increase in air/water surface has two detriments to plants: it drives off CO2 (which is usually not in great suply to begin with, and plants need it as a macro-nutrient), but it also increases the oxygen. This is known to make it more difficult for plants to assimilate nutrients. And some minerals (iron in particular) will bind to oxygen and cannot then be taken up by plants.

Byron.


----------

