Anti-spray aquarium airlift tube elbow

#The present invention generally relates to animal husbandry in the form of aquatic animal culturing, aquarium aerators and or to a terminus for a commonly known system of liquid purification or separation, structural installation, closed circulating system for an aquarium.

#An unfortunate consequence of the use in aquariums of popular undergravel filter plates, aeration lift tubes and standard exit elbows is that a stream of aeration bubbles is carried by the water flow from the standard exit elbow and subsequently across the surface of the water in the tank. The work of aeration and flow already having been accomplished within the airlift tube, the resultant wide stream of aeration bubbles, although not necessarily unpleasant to look at, serves little purpose.

#The surface stream of aeration bubbles, while at the same time as serving little purpose, in fact, can be very harmful to both the function and the appearance of the aquarium as will be explained.

#FIG. 1 is a see-through perspective of an anti-spray airlift tube elbow.

#FIG. 2 is an exploded see-through perspective of an interlocking air baffle.

#FIG. 3 is a perspective of an airlift tube height adjuster.

#Referring now to the drawings wherein like parts are indicated by like numerals, the numeral 1 indicates an air baffle created by the use of stacked, sequential opposing shelves, each shelf of which does not completely reach from one side to the other of the outer cylindrical tube 5 which contains them.

#Airline tubing inserted through airline tubing holes 2, is passed through the inner cylindrical tube 3, which has in turn been placed upon an existing airlift tube 18 by compression fitting the lower opening in the inner cylindrical tube 6 over the top of the existing standard airlift tube 18. Preferably fitted with an air stone, air pressure is then applied to the airline tubing and water flow is created from the airlift tube due to the buoyancy of the aeration bubbles, as is already very well known how to do.

#Water and aeration bubbles, upon entering the anti-spray airlift tube elbow FIG. 1, continue to flow upward until reaching the top of the inner cylindrical tube 3. The aeration bubbles at this time, due to their natural buoyancy, will seek the top of the water level which will preferably be somewhere beneath the bottom shelf of the air baffle 1 and somewhere above the water flow exit jet 4. Water that is free of imploding aeration bubbles will then flow downwards between the inner wall of the outer cylindrical tube 5 and the outer wall of the inner cylindrical tube 3 due to the natural acceleration of gravity.