Can anyone give me a lowdown on air pumps?

Yo fellas,

My current air pump pushes 2 gallons per minute and produces an alright amount of bubbles, but I think more would definitely be better.

I've been hunting about looking for the best pump and spoke to an ebay company, who said that diaphragm pumps are the best to buy - even though i've read that the diaphragms need replacing and that they are considerably more expensive than other pumps.

Can anyone shed some light onto this please?

I was also wondering what strength air pumps other people use? I'm not sure whether to upgrade to a 4 gallon per min pump or a 10 gallon per min?

Thanks a lot for any help =)

Here is a good high power pump. If you are using feeder tubes then you may not need more bubbles than an aquarium pump makes, but if you are doing passive DWC you want to really put the bubbles to work and this will do it! It does get warm, I have a fan right on it. The airstones you use matter too. I like the 12 inch ones that are sort of pyramidic shaped with the top flat. I get them at Meir's for 2.99. Much better than the ones from Walmart with the flat stone inside the white plastic frame, IMO.

http://www.discount-hydro.com/productdisp.php?pid=412&navid=8

i've got 2 hydrofarm 45L/min pumps. at 3.8L/gallon that's 11.8gallons/minute each.

i paid $40 each at a hydro shop.

my pumps are kinda loud and get warm but not hot. the higher output "commercial" style pumps are all much louder, a big deal if noise is important...

the higher output pumps are usually less efficient. my 2 45L/min pumps add up to 90L/min from 40watts whereas the hydrofarm 110L/min model pulls 112watts by itself. that's partly why the bigger ones get hotter.

DuraPump Water Pump - 185 gph
DuraPump Submersible Water Pump - 185 gph

Do an Internet Google Search to find
DuraPump Water Pump - 240 gphDuraPump Submersible Water Pump - 240 gph
Price: $20.99 to $22.99










$17.97/EA Each from Home Depot

I use that one the most, they last for years.

and I use this one too, it is a DUAL outlet pump:

Aqua Culture: 20-60 Gallon, Double Outlet Aquarium Air Pump,

cool guys, thanks for the responses - still unsure what the hell a diaphragm pump is though!

A diaphragm pump is a pump that uses a flexible rubber disk (the diaphragm). The outter rim of the diaphragm is held in place while the center is moved back and forth by an eccentric lobe (like a cam shaft) which is driven by a electric motor. As the diaphragm is pulled in, air enters the pump, when the diaphragm is pushed out, so is the air. A dual diaphragm, obviously, uses two diaphragms and is driven by a magnetic actuator, but still works the same way. Hope this answers your question

forgot to mention...In my experience, diaphragm pumps are used to pump a liquid horizontally only, they create very little pressure and can only move a fluid vertically a couple of feet. I've never seen a diaphragm pump in an industrial application used to pump air, but apparently they're used quite often with hydroponics?

OPPs, did you say AIR Pump?

$12.99 for Dual or two airstones






VERY Quiet, $9.95 to $19.95, depending on size.

Any place that sells Aquariums has them, like PetCo, Pet Smart, Walmart. They will have the airpumps and tubes and airstones.

cheers rose and thanks a lot redi jedi, that's a great help. After reading it I wonder if the company was trying to rip me off or something, a 20l/m diaphragm pump costs more than a 50l/h normal piston pump =S

You do know that 20 litres per minute is alot more than 50 litres per hour? so obviously the 20 lpm pump would be more than a 50 lph....

redi jedi said:

You do know that 20 litres per minute is alot more than 50 litres per hour? so obviously the 20 lpm pump would be more than a 50 lph....

Click to expand...

duh sorry mate I meant litres per minute for both.

here's a link to the site to give you a better example of what I mean: http://www.allpondsolutions.co.uk/pond-air-pumps-and-accessories-899-0.html

The guy told me that the 20l/m diaphragm pump on the left was better than the 50l/m normal air pump in the middle - unless he means just in terms of staying in good condition, I don't see how the diaphragm can be better?

Cheers mate

sophanox said:

duh sorry mate I meant litres per minute for both.

here's a link to the site to give you a better example of what I mean: http://www.allpondsolutions.co.uk/pond-air-pumps-and-accessories-899-0.html

The guy told me that the 20l/m diaphragm pump on the left was better than the 50l/m normal air pump in the middle - unless he means just in terms of staying in good condition, I don't see how the diaphragm can be better?

Cheers mate

Click to expand...

diaphragm pumps are usually way quieter and don't produce nearly as much heat. from the page provided, the 50L/m diaphragm pump draws 40watts while the gold 50L/m pump draws 45watts making the diaphragm pump more efficient.

I don't see the diaphragm pump being better also...I have a 65lpm piston pump, its been running 24/7 for a couple of weeks now and it might be a few degrees warmer than room temp and as for noise...well...its no louder than the little aquarium pump for my fish tank? The piston pump does have large rubber feet which dampens out almost all the vibrations, the vibrations are really what causes most of the sound. A diaphragm pump doesn't vibrate as much as a piston pump so hence they would be quieter, but considering the piston pump is like half the price of a diaphragm or you can get a 150lpm piston for the same price as a 50lpm diaphragm..it's a no brainer bro!!

comes down to price and availability really but the diaphragm pumps most use are aquarium style pumps, very quiet and produce no heat.

i use two styles, 45L/m active air piston pumps and 60 gallon aquarium rated diaphragm pumps.

my piston pumps are louder because they vibrate a lot more and they can be even louder if they're not dampened. i keep mine on a plastic tray on a padded chair and i can still hear them on the other side of the wall they're beside. you have to touch them to feel their heat, but running 24/7 mine definitely get warm - a small but consistent heat source making me spend more on a/c.

my diaphragm pumps i set right on a filing cabinet and can't hear them over my fans even 2 feet away. running 24/7 there's a fraction of the heat the piston pumps make.

that's just my experience with my pumps. there may be differences between brands, sizes and especially efficiency ratings.

Great posts guys thanks a lot - I emptied my piggy bank today and got a 150 quid out of it haha, so think i may invest in a 50l/m diaphragm pump as i'm doing a stealth grow so the less noise the better!

Peace n love!

I'm with Roseman here...I use the Aqua Culture dual....I own 3, just bought a 4th.....
Sneaky here...when one of them goes bad, I put it in its box, and return it to Wal Mart and get a new on fer free.... he he he I do the same thing with my HPS bulbs at Lowes!