Air stones are something that anyone doing hydroponics must have. They give so many benefits to the plants you are growing by adding oxygen to the water and at the same time keeping the water agitated. Keeping the water agitated is important for nutrient uptake in the plants. Always make sure you use your TDS meter to keep track of PPM levels in your water!
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| The Best Air Stones for Hydroponics in 2020 |
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How Many Air Stones Do I Need?
Each bucket you plan to grow a plant in will need at least 1 air stone. If the bucket is to large for the air stone you may need to place a 2nd air stone in, but I highly caution against this since you will be taking up another air hose from your air pump. Instead it is a much better idea to upgrade the air stones size rather than adding in a 2nd air stone.
What Size Air Pump Do I Need?
Make sure you get a air pump that is big enough to run the amount of desired air stones. There are many different types of air pumps out there in the market today and with that comes a wide range in prices as well. What you want to look for is the air pumps L/min ratio. Match this ratio with the air stones you plan to use by adding up the total amount of Jetting volume 7L/min then match this number with the pump you need to buy or go bigger in pump size. Never get a smaller pump and expect to get more out of it.
Vivosun 2 inch Air Stone
These air stones come from Vivosun a company that is well known in the hydroponic industry and offer quality products with great warranties. This Air Stone requires a air pump with more than 8 W to run this air stone. Jetting volume of 7L/min.
These air stones are great for 3.5 gal buckets up to 5 gal buckets
Pawfly 1.6 inch Air Stone
There are 9 in this pack so you get quite a few! They are 1.6 inch air stones that work great in 3.5 gal and 5 gal buckets. As recommended by Pawfly soak the air stone in water for about 30 minutes before usage. I personally never do this step and just learned about this myself! The jetting volume on these stones are 2 L/min.
Pawfly 4 inch Air Stone Bubble Bar
I found myself really liking the bubble bars lately and they can be used up to 10 gal or so and have great results. There are 4 bubble bars that come in this pack and also other options to select from. These have a jetting volume of 1.3 L/min but even though it is slightly lower by .7 L/min the plants thrive.
Pawfly 12 inch Air Stone Bubble Bar
The 12 inch air stones work great for 18-30 gal totes. This is by far the best bubble bar and has a huge jetting volume of 15 L/min! So far I have been using them in large totes and the plants love it.
Air Tubing For Hydroponics
You will also need to get some airline tubing for the air stones so they can connect to the air pump. These come in many different lengths and colors, some are made of different types of material to give it a better connection or reduce algae build up.