Aquarium filter

Claim 1

An aquarium filter operatively adapted for association with an aquarium for continuously removing water from said aquarium, filtering said water and returning said water to said aquarium comprising: (a) a housing with an opening in the bottom thereof, said housing provided with means for attachment thereof to the outside of said aquarium along one side thereof in cooperative relationship; (b) removable support means maintained within said aquarium filter for supporting filtering material for filtering out particulate matter and the like from said water, said support means including means defining a chamber in the vicinity of said opening, said chamber configured to receive only filtered water; (c) at least one inverted J-shaped tube cooperatively associated with said aquarium and said aquarium filter and disposed therebetween in interconnective relationship, said J-shaped tube adapted for introducing said water from said aquarium into said aquarium filter, said J-shaped tube having an inlet end and a discharge end, said inlet end submerged in said aquarium and said discharge end terminating in said aquarium filter, with means provided on said J-shaped tube for providing a syphon action to maintain flow of said water from said aquarium into said aquarium filter; (d) a plurality of vertically disposed inner tubes cooperatively associated with said aquarium filter for collecting filtered water and returning said filtered water to said aquarium, said plurality of inner tubes comprising a first set of tubes adapted to convey air and a second set of tubes adapted to convey a mixture of air and said filtered water, said plurality of inner tubes extending from above said aquarium filter to below said aquarium filter, passing through said opening in said bottom of said aquarium filter and further including: (1) an air distributor wherein the top of said air conveying tubes terminate, for introducing air under pressure through a controlled orifice to said first set of inner tubes, (2) a vertically disposed outer tube mounted in said opening in said bottom of said aquarium filter in sealing relationship and extending downwardly therefrom, surrounding said plurality of inner tubes and provided with means inside said aquarium filter and near said bottom thereof to permit filtered water to enter said outer tube, (3) a collection chamber wherein said outer tube and said plurality of inner tubes terminate to collect said filtered water in said outer tube and to permit egress of same into said second set of inner tubes, (4) means in said collection chamber for communicating between said first set of inner tubes and said second set of inner tubes to entrain said filtered water by said air, and (5) a discharge chamber beneath said air distributor for collecting the mixture of said air and said filtered water, said discharge chamber provided with a discharge means for returning said mixture of said air and said filtered water into said aquarium; and (e) noise suppression means including a plurality of inner tubes mounted in said discharge means for suppressing any noise generated by said mixture of said air and said filtered water during its return to said aquarium.