I need to buy an air pump. Which should I get?

Its depends on how deep your pockets are..

A linear air pumps is better i gues as its quieter and have a longer diaphram lifetime. but it costs lots of money. R2000 +

A membrane air pump is around R 900, you need to keep it above water level and will have to replace the membrane / diaphram yearly at about R10 each.

i use the boyu acq 3.

It runs my BD, 95cm down, and a airlift which aids in circulation/ moving the water in a certain direction

I was looking at this one. dont know anything about air pumps.



where else must I look to find a linear one and a boyu acq 3.?

The pump above is a linear air pump.

The Boyu series are membrane / diaphram / electrmagnetics air pumps, are cheaper than the linear air pumps but they are noisier and consume more power than the linear air pumps. I use these air pumps as they are cheaper and easy to maintain. Some models are better than others. I have basicly tried the whole series and have settled on the Boyu ACQ-008.

The Boyu ACQ-003 that david mentioned is the best of the smaller boyu airpumps. They cost in the region of R 420 while the bigger ACQ-008 costs R 740. The Boyu-005 is the worst. Its noisy and over heats. I lost one of mine 3 weeks ago when it melted some of the skrews insideand internal plates inside...it was during our 42.5'C weather.

If you can afford the more expensive linear air pumps that you are looking at then go for it. They consume less power for air produced and air quiter.

What is important regarding airpumps:
1. What are you going to use it for?
2. How much air do you need.
3. Can you get spares for your choosen model.

this one is called the Hailea HAP-120 Hi-Blow Diaphragm and costs around 1800.00. I dont mind paying but would like to buy a good one.
My last one lasted around 6 weeks and has packed up.
It looked the same as the one you were looking for spares for. It might be the diaphragm but I want a stronger one anyway.

What is the air pump going to be used for? Air diffuser on bottom drain? How deep down?

Stumble what ever you pick just make sure that you can get parts for it. What i have seen before is that people by these airpumps of R3000 + and then 2 years later they cant find a diaphram spare.

You also find airpumps that claim x liter of air a minute but it cant handle pressure, so at 1.5m down they suddenly look like a 2w airpump in a fish tank.

The one i posted the other day is ACQ-009A thats a very powerfull pump producing 160l of air a minute capable of pushing air from 3m down under pressure.

A couple of years ago the Top Pond air pump was very popular. Im not sure if its still around. They where sold by Happykoi.

Then there is also the waterfall airpumps (the make is waterfall) but i know they cant handle pressure.