Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I have a 80L FT in my house and am currently hoping to keep it aerated using a spray bar and a return loop from my pump. There is lots of water agitation, but I do not know how much dissolved oxygen that really translates to...I haven't a DO kit.

Is a mechanical aerator always necessary or can water agitation do the trick in smaller tanks? I can't find much info on DO requirements.


Thanks!

How much aeration you need is really dependent on how heavily you've stocked the tank and what kind of fish you have. In an outdoor system the temperature would play a more important role as well. If you haven't stocked heavily you'll probably be fine with what you have.

For Trout, keep Dissolved Oxygen above 5 mg/L. Many other fish can handle 3 mg/L but below this growth slows. I'd probably just shoot for the 5 mg/L level anyway. The few times I've measured D.O. it's been at least 7 mg/L and this is without additional aeration (just mixing from circulating the water). I usually have light fish loads. The warmer the temp the less oxygen the water can hold.