air in the lines... help please

[DallasFish]

Hi All -

I need some help from you wise gurus (or wise guys ) please.

On my 55g freshwater tank I have set up an Eheim 1250 pump feeding a chiller. The water is drawn from the tank via a homebrew intake tube, runs down through the pump, chiller, and then back to a spraybar into the tank.

The problem I'm having is air bubbles in the line. I think the problem is in the u-tube coming over the tank on the input side. I have read that I can drill a hole in the top of U and silicone a one-way air check valve to let the trapped air out. Does that work? Alternatively, I also read that some have hooked airline tubing from the top of the "u" to the venturi input on a powerhead. Would that work better?

Thanks much!

[rkilling1]

Is this a closed loop setup or are you running a sump?

[DallasFish]

closed loop, no sump

[DallasFish]

Update:

I got the power head and connected it via the venturi opening to the top of the U-joint. And I've found the problem is gone. The air is removed and no more air bubbles.

The only issue now is the power head is relatively noisy on the glass. Its a Top Fin for 30G. I may have to hunt for a quieter-running one...