I'm sure this question has been asked and answered a ton of times but I can't find anything recent on it...does anyone know how I can quieten a new air pump. Filter has a gentle hum which is fine but the air pump is giving me a headache!
It's a buzz getting louder and louder as it vibrates..any ideas?

Try resting the pump on a cloth or face flannel, this will absorb some of the vibrations and hopefully keep it a bit quieter.

I've tried. It's on a wooden floor with a towel wrapped round and I can still hear it
it's much louder than other pumps I've had...

Try sitting it on some big phone directories and use the towel?

I've got a method for making an air pump quiet and it works every time. It doesn't mater what the brand of air pump or how it's installed... Unplug it and put it with your other unused aquarium supplies. If you have the recommended 10X filtration turnover rate, then you don't need to use an air pump on your tank.... Unless YOU like to look at the bubbles.

There's an idea!

Why am I not surprised about an advice like that, Bak2it?

Its probably also a brand thing - some brands are just noisier than others. Especially Walm*rt airpumps seem to have that troubles, or some whispers aren't all that "whisper".
I always have had big REna 400 pumps, and they are as quiet as can be. When I needed a smaller one for a smaller tank, I found a tiny Rena. The small one is just as quiet as the big one, for the same price than the horrible Walm*rt pump would have been!

Some pumps just can't be fixed....

Maybe I should think about getting another pump. It was quite expensive ( Its a G4 Lung 1oo Five plan -Japanese make-I'm in Japan)but they don't tell you on the packet if it's going to be noisy of course not...

Well I turned off the pump for a bit as I really couldn't stand it but I doooo like the look of bubbles and more I think the fish enjoy playing in them so I'd better find another pump....sometime...

I take 'em apart. Inside, the air pump is driven by a rubber bladder that is pumped in and out by a lever arm that is pulled by a magnet.

Sometimes, after they get older and have been banged around a bit, that lever is no longer perfectly balanced. You can diddle with it - there are screws in there that can adjust the "in and out" setting and you can bend the metal a bit too.

If you are thinking of dumping the thing (That was GREAT! Bac2It! ) you might want to try. I have occasionally messed them up that they are worse than ever and I can never get them back, but about 80% of the time, I can get them quieter. It takes a delicate touch and a lot of diddling.

Another suggestion is to hang a hook and suspend the thing in the air from the cord. This helps for pumps that are vibrating on the floor or surfaces.

An old member here, Mike, used to use a glass jar. The pump was suspended in a sealed glass jar with the cord coming out through the lid - and then hung. This, he stated, isolated the noise and made them quiet.

That's interesting daryl. Suspension might work. DIY if I was able!
Thanks everyone.

I have mine suspended in the air, but my cat likes to bat at it sometimes! It still makes a little bit of noise though. The noide thing was driving me nutso, so I totally understand where you are coming from Trinket!

LOL bak2it, that made me

Hmm I might take apart my air pump also. Whenever I set it to "High", out comes this horrible loud vibrating noise. I suspect one of the vibrating components made contact with the plastic casing.

I have a Rena and barely notice it's there. VERY quiet.

Where would you put the hook if you suspend it in the air.daryl/jen? My plastic tubing is long enough to do that but the motor part is so heavy I can't figure out the logistics of that..