Is an Air Pump necessary for Goldfish?

[SandyCheeks]

Been wondering if it is necessary to use an air pump in my tank with 2 fancies. When I have used the air pump in the past, the fish eat the bubbles and start having floating poo with bubbles in it. Feeding them peas helped, but I worried that eating bubbles could lead to other problems so stopped using the air pump.

The tank is a 30 gal with 2 waterfall HOB filters (Fluval C3 and Aqueon C30) and it seems that there is a lot of water movement on the surface. From my understanding it's the movement of the surface that oxygenates the water, right? My fish don't go to the top to gulp air and do not seem to have trouble breathing. Are there any other reasons to use an air bubbler, if the filters are oxygenating the water? (sorry if I am using the wrong terms here)

 

[Scottyhorse]

Nope, they should be fine with that.

 

[SandyCheeks]

Thanks! It's confusing sometimes cuz almost everything I read about setting up a tank says you need to have an air pump.

Maybe a dumb question, but is there a possibility that air pumps could be bad for some fish? Sometimes I wonder when I see things like bloating. The only experience I have is with my little bubble-eaters.

 

[Mebbid]

From what I've read too much oxygen in the water can be harmful to fish although I'm not sure a bubbler is capable of doing that.

 

[ArtesiaWells]

I'm curious as to the last poster's comment regarding too much oxygen and it being "harmful" to fish...

Is there anyone that can confirm/debunk this? I ask because recently I saw something online that talked about goldfish in particular getting "pop eye" from "excessive bubbles" which sounded a bit hokey and out there to me...

I do have a ton of bubbles pouring from my two 18" Petco bubble bars at the back of the tank, plus the flow from the two power HOBs, and now I'm beginning to wonder if all this air is actually harming them...

 

[Coursair]

Too much water movement can throw Fancies around the tank. I never used bubbles with mine, just lots of filtration and water changes. Cool water holds more oxygen as well.

Bubbles do not cause Pop Eye.

 

[ArtesiaWells]

Too much water movement can throw Fancies around the tank.

Yes, I have seen that first-hand...lol...they seem to have a time trying to flap their fins through the "current" of my tank, but it's not disturbingly difficult for them...if it was, I would have definitely done something to change that and make them more comfortable...

I never used bubbles with mine, just lots of filtration and water changes. Cool water holds more oxygen as well.

Yes -- indeed, I am aware the cool water holds more oxygen and that good filtration is what's essentially needed for water surface agitation. However, beyond just the looks of the bubble walls, etc., I have always thought it's just better for the fancy goldfish to "breathe"...

Bubbles do not cause Pop Eye.

Thanks for clearing this up; I thought it sounded off the wall, but as I said, I read it online -- I'll see if I can dig up that source...

 

[Mebbid]

I'm curious as to the last poster's comment regarding too much oxygen and it being "harmful" to fish...

Is there anyone that can confirm/debunk this? I ask because recently I saw something online that talked about goldfish in particular getting "pop eye" from "excessive bubbles" which sounded a bit hokey and out there to me...

I do have a ton of bubbles pouring from my two 18" Petco bubble bars at the back of the tank, plus the flow from the two power HOBs, and now I'm beginning to wonder if all this air is actually harming them...

This is the source that I read the aeration information about

Aeration and Oxygenation | Aquarium Basics | Columns | TFH Magazine®

This is the particular passage in the article that I was referring to

Too much oxygen in water can lead to the potentially lethal gas bubble disease, in which gas comes out of solution inside the fish, creating bubbles in its skin and around its eyes. (Excess nitrogen, however, is a far more common cause of this disease.)

I'm not sure if an air stone is capable of producing the effect however.

 

[jlk]

This is the source that I read the aeration information about

Aeration and Oxygenation | Aquarium Basics | Columns | TFH Magazine®

This is the particular passage in the article that I was referring to

Too much oxygen in water can lead to the potentially lethal gas bubble disease, in which gas comes out of solution inside the fish, creating bubbles in its skin and around its eyes. (Excess nitrogen, however, is a far more common cause of this disease.)

I'm not sure if an air stone is capable of producing the effect however.

No harm using airstones and airstones actually help to prevent the rare possiblity of gas bubble disease via agitation of the water. Gas bubble disease is basically the same thing as 'bends' in humans. To induce gas bubble disease, you would need to vigorously dump/spray water into the tank (particularly cold water). Easily avoided by simply keeping the end of the water changer/hose below the water surface when refilling and keeping bubblers running when refilling.

Temperature matching the water helps as well. As it was already mentioned, the colder the water, the more dissolved oxygen it can hold. I honestly dont believe its possible to have 'too much' oxygen in our tanks as its scientifically impossible to increase oxygen content beyond what the water is capable of holding in respect to temperature and pressure. No one is pushing pure O2 into their tanks, keeping that at 32f or maintaining them in hyperbaric chambers. Any excess oxygen would simply be released into the air if you did introduce it into a tank. No worries about bubblers!

 

[ArtesiaWells]

This is the source that I read the aeration information about

Aeration and Oxygenation | Aquarium Basics | Columns | TFH Magazine®

This is the particular passage in the article that I was referring to

Too much oxygen in water can lead to the potentially lethal gas bubble disease, in which gas comes out of solution inside the fish, creating bubbles in its skin and around its eyes. (Excess nitrogen, however, is a far more common cause of this disease.)

I'm not sure if an air stone is capable of producing the effect however.

YES -- this is the exact problem I was reading about...

JLK: Goldfish can't get "diseases" from too much oxygen/bubbles?

 

[jlk]

I am not sure what you are asking here. Can fish get diseases from using a bubbler or airstone (or a powerhead or fountain)? Unless your moving the item from a tank/pond with sick fish, there is no disease risk to your fish.

 

[ArtesiaWells]

I am not sure what you are asking here. Can fish get diseases from using a bubbler or airstone (or a powerhead or fountain)? Unless your moving the item from a tank/pond with sick fish, there is no disease risk to your fish.

I'm asking based on that link the last member who posted before me provided -- that "oxygen causing bubble eye" phenomenon was what I was referring to...

 

[marsh]

Pop eye is a symptom more so than a disease so causation is not clear an that statement seems off to me

Anyway I have been confused by air stones being good vs bad too but in a Betta tank.

Basically, if you DON'T choose to filter or heat a Betta tank, then the least you can do is provide a bubbler. That's my opinion and I no longer use one, but I keep the air pump and plan to turn it into a sponge filter in a future tank. Maybe to raise red cherry shrimp or guppy fry?