Alternate Ways To Oxygenate A Tank?

[Plecc]

Hi all,
 
The area i live in has really hard water,
So unfortunately I get bad limescale/mineral deposits above the water level, typically anything in range of the air stream from my air-stones.
 
When I clean the tanks it's not too hard to remove the worst of it, but there is always a thin layer left behind.
So as soon as the area dries again it starts looking pretty messy.
 
I have tried running my outlets higher so the water breaks the surface but it just tends to make more noise and mess than the air stones.
i have also played around with different types of venturi but they're not much better than the above.
 
does anyone have any sneaky tips for how I could get some oxygen into the tanks, still get some surface agitation but avoid bubbles breaking on the surface?
The bubbles spit little bits of water everywhere as they break, this appears to causes the majority of the deposits.   
 
sorry if this all sounds a bit over the top! but it really does make the open top tanks look a bit rough.
 
Thanks all,
 
 
 
 

 

[BaylorPerez]

air pump, air filter (undergravel filter) and manual water changes. Those are what i think of as my water has high calcium so i use a air pump to help with the air control(O2 intake of tank) as well as i have it placed under my filter so the water that comes from the filter becomes oxignated

 

[jag51186]

I don't think you need actual surface agitation to the point of bubbles breaking to aid in oxygenation. Typically just moving the water around at the surface a bit (waves/ripples) will aid in oxygenation. But, you will probably still end up with hard water deposits. I think it just comes with the territory regardless.
 
Could be wrong on this though.

 

[Plecc]

Hopefully i may have found a solution to my problems!
 
I managed to get off work early today so I headed over to one of the LFS's. i was taking a look at some of the powerheads and noticed this thing from Eheim called the "Skim 350"
Its a small power head stuck to the side of the tank with suction cups just like any other, but instead of the typical intake it has this floating surface skimmer insert, quite a clever design.
 
It's probably been around for a long time, but I have never seen anything like it myself.
looking at it in the shop, It looked like it would make a horrible gargling noise as it was running, fortunately they had one setup and running in the shop....Totally Silent!
I was too intrigued to pass it up, and for just over 20 quid, i cant really complain.
 
I checked out a few videos on youtube, it looks quite promising.
 
I will let you know how I get on with it!

 

[OldMan47]

Good for surface skimming but the hard water deposits you have been describing will not be affected by surface skimming. What it comes down to with hard water is that the water's mineral content is high enough that any water left behind as the water level drops contains enough minerals that the deposits you see are just the minerals in that wet surface as it dries and the pure water evaporates. It is best dealt with by mechanical means such as scrubbers or even a razor blade on a glass surface.