What kind of airstone should I use?

While most any airstone will work for our purposes, there are a few things to keep in mind.

First, an airstone which puts out very fine bubbles will saturate the nutrients with the highest levels of oxygen moreso than an airstone which puts out larger sized bubbles. The more oxygen, the better, so choose an airstone which will put out the finest bubbles.

Second, in regards to airstone size, you can choose from the small 1" airstones to the large 6" airstones. They will all work, and of course the smallest are the cheapest. While its not absolutely critical where the airstone is placed, it is important that it is in the deepest level of the bucket to ensure that long roots are getting enough oxygen. The small 1" airstones will need to be weighted down with a small lead fishing weight or a nut to keep it at the bottom of the bucket. For this reason,I prefer to use the 4" airstones. They put out the same size bubbles as the 1" airstones, but have enough weight to them that they will stay placed at the bottom. Airstones that sit in the nutrient solution may eventually become clogged, so keep an eye on them. If they do start to clog, you can scrub them with a wire brush under hot water and they will be able to be used again. To ensure that your airstone is working efficiently, replace them from time to time as needed.

IMO the best thing that I have found for small Bubbles is something called a difuser, (Rubber Hose w/very small holes) This is by far the badest invention in my many years of reaping harvests! Can be found at most hydro stores, if not BG hydro has them.

Yeah I stuck my head out to get chopped on this one, the only ones that work great are the ones from BG, probibly because thats all Ive ever used lol. The bubbles are micro sized, (beware you need a real big air source) the small bubbles DONT churn the water like airstones, and that is a problem. I would like to see airstones match up when your using enough air to raise the water level? BG defusers, have a plastic nipple, I cut them off, and zip-tie the source hose to one end, and plug the other. BG defusers are 2.99, and IMO are way better than air-stones when used properly. I just thought I should say something it wasnt in the original post, not one thing about defusers, you can make your own out off rubber hoses. Also airstones come much larger than 4in, I have some 14 inchers in my res. Not trying to be a know it all, just an old dwc pro trying to help out

Right on, I think the real story is that its, 90% the size air-pump, 10% the stone/deffuser. In the article above it says the smaller the bubbles the better, deffusers surely make the smallest air-bubbles. If the price is a bit outragous, you can always DIY, rubber hose, drill micro holes, make a supply in, and seal the end of the hose walla, micro bubbles. I used airstones for many moons, as soon as I went to a huge pump w/deffusers, I could see a huge growth difference. So maybe you have to have both for it to be a noticeable change? If the experiment would have used the same stones but with small to large airpumps, I think they would have seen a difference also. Thanks for being cool about it though dude, sharing is caring lol, right on.

I use a wendys straw and blow into it.

Spicy2na said:

I use a wendys straw and blow into it.

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fucking made me rofl, mainly cuz im stuck workin at wendy's to aford grow supplies.....

Hey George. Can you give me more information on the airstone, stone/deffuser you used I can seem to find them at BG hyrdo. Maybe I'm on the wrong website. Do you have a part number. Thanks

nwcamo said:

Can you give me more information on the airstone, stone/deffuser you used I can seem to find them at BG hyrdo. Maybe I'm on the wrong website. Do you have a part number. Thanks

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Might I suggest one of these, either by itself or in addition to any air pump/stone setup you might use:


It's an aquarium power head. It sucks water up through the bottom and pumps it out (strongly) where the defector (that can be aimed) is. In the process, it draws air in through the clear tube (which includes a basic filter) through a venturi effect. They inject a relatively substantial amount of air into the water and create enough surface disturbance that they do a very good job at oxygenating a reservoir (since much of the oxygenation actually takes place at that water/air interface).

Power heads are cheap, too. If you're willing to hide from your principles long enough to walk into a Wal*Mart (I did... for one of these, lol), you can get a decent one (170 gallons per hour, iIRC) for around $19-$20 (might be a few dollars more now; it was several years ago when I bought mine).