Micro Scrubbing Bubbles.

Dtackett · Dec 4, 2015

So Elegant corals likes to push this idea. im not so sure about it. its got obvious positive affects (the reason we use airstones in micro tanks) but when we do it in small tanks its not designed to fill the tank with micro bubbles like this would. they talk about running them through the return which would flood your display with Micro bubbles. these are the effects they say it has on your tank.

Allows the corals to release excess slime and waste...
Allows the coral membrane to breathe and allow for better osmosis and ion exchange with the water column...
Oxygenates the water and de-gasses excess CO2 in the water column out of the system. (Skimmers and a little ball of chaeto is not sufficient... sorry...)
We recommend 8 to 10 hours a day counter cycle to the display tank lighting to maintain a more consistent and stable pH level.
The correct pH greatly improves the calcification rates of all hard corals...
Oxygenation also assists in higher beneficial aerobic bacterial loads as well as decrease the bad anaerobic cyanobacteria that many hobbyists struggle with.
The micro bubbles also get under (with proper tank flow) dinos and the cyanobacteria and carry them to the over flow to be removed by an efficient skimmer.
If fighting dinos, cyanobacteria, or other Reef Tank Pests

Wouldn't the micro bubbles also build up in the rock areas preventing good bacteria? wouldn't they also irritate the corals as they got stuck under them, specifically with plating corals like a monti cap? wouldn't they also irritate the fish as they get in their gills?

Lets discuss this.

KritikaL · Dec 4, 2015

cool idea will follow

Jizu Puentes · Mar 17, 2016

Following along. I know a lot of people have decided to start it but I know air bubbles would form under some of my ledges.

Lowstorm · Mar 17, 2016

I'm going to be running this soon, but I'm still cycling so.... dunno. I figure if I do it from the start it'll be awesome.

Breakthecycle2 · Mar 17, 2016

So three months and no one has tried it?

CoralNerd · Mar 17, 2016

I'm running the bubbles at night and the corals seem to be growing quicker.

Breakthecycle2 · Mar 17, 2016

Can someone elaborate on how this works and how to achieve it?

revhtree · Mar 17, 2016

Following

Lowstorm · Mar 18, 2016

I can try... the theory is that flooding the tank with manor micro uber small bubbles will help with co2 exchange, help the corals shed their slime coating (and I'm thinking old cells), and really oxygenate the water. To do it you get a woodstone bubbler and set it up under either your return or if you don't have a sump a powerhead. The action from the pump breaking the already small bubbles makes them even smaller flooding the tank with them. Most people do it during lights off. Because the bubbles are so small they don't pop much to send out the salt spray the bigger bubbles give.

That's... well... the very basic theory. I'm figuring that corals like it because they really are adapted to highly oxygenated water, and our boxes don't provide the bubbles that they really get on a reef crest. This is a way to provide that during a time that we don't have to see it.

CoralNerd · Mar 18, 2016

The air pump should be placed where it can draw in fresh air, don't place the air pump in the sump. I've had a long air tube running down the hall as I placed the pump in a bathroom window sill. My wife was just asking when I will be picking it up.

I'm using the micro bubbles method, along with bacteria, to rid my tank of dinoflagellates and the tank is now basically cured.

traumajeff · Mar 18, 2016

@The Macro Guy does this in his tank. Seems like results have been positive for him.

https://www.reef2reef.com/index.php?threads/215848/

hart24601 · Mar 18, 2016

Very interesting.

Toadfish · Mar 18, 2016

Following. It seems a solid theory, but I'd worry about the accumulations of air and lift irritation to corals.

Lowstorm · Mar 18, 2016

Alright, I set mine up. My tank is good for experimenting at this point, since I have nothing in it but a light cleanup crew, and I've been feeding the tank almost daily for 2 weeks.

I ran it for about 20 minutes. I have a Lees wood diffuser under my return pump. My return pump isn't catching all the bubbles, but they're small enough there's no spray in my sump. There's also, amazingly enough, no spray in my tank. I flooded the tank with bubbles!

So, I mentioned I've been feeding my tank, right? Well... The little bubbles picked up all the leftovers (there's not much, good cc)... and amphipod skins from them shedding, and hermit crab skins, and some cheto that got misplaced into the display... it was amazing how it just whipped everything up into the flow even better than my wavemakers do.

The bubbles did get under my overhangs, but my rocks are very porus. They just formed big bubbles and worked their way up to the surface, where they did pop-bigger bubbles, possible issue with spray from that, but there's not many of them.

My water is, amazingly, a bit clearer 5 minutes out. There's still stuff floating from being lifted up, and its all making its way to the overflow now. The bubbles got into almost all my little holes in my rocks, so that'll be a great bonus-it'll clean and lift the smaller chunks that I don't see and fish/cc miss during dinner.

reeferfoxx · Mar 18, 2016

Would this have an adverse reaction to fish and their gills?

MrsNemo · Mar 18, 2016

Ok I have one of those skimmers that skim the top of the water to clear dust and stuff off. I have mine set half way so I have bubbles come out instead of just return water. Fish and corals seem to like it. It has never affected the fish and I have had it for a couple of years. My water is crystal clear.

ermartin · Mar 18, 2016

I tried this but i was getting so much salt spray on my lighting lenses. I was running it for like 10min a day via my return pump. they recommend much longer but there was no way for this to work at least for my setup without having to do a cleanup of the lights every other day

Lowstorm · Mar 18, 2016

I can't see it hurting the fish at all.. They live in the ocean, where there's so many bubbles! Plus most people do it at night, when the fish are hiding and sleeping.. I dunno.

reeferfoxx · Mar 18, 2016

I wouldn't mind giving it a try, but I would like someone to confirm that our fish won't be effected. Running it at night seems more out of mind out of sight. I'd hate for the fish to be struggling in such dense micro bubble 'hell'(if that were the case). It's one thing to have micro bubbles in the ocean. It's also another to have all the micro bubble localized in one small area.