Air pump question

I recently aquired an aquarium air pump :
1.) I can't find a stainless or brass airstone anywhere - can I use the standard stone ? It appears to be made from sand granules. I will obviously sanitize the stone.

2.) I also can't find a syringe filter. The pump has a built in filter - can I use it as it is or should I make a filter ?
Palmer recommends a filter from "a tube and wet cotton wool" - wet cotton wool is normally impervious to air - how does this work ?

Why haven't you done a Google search? There are about 50 homebrew sites that carry the stainless steel aeration stones on Google.


Air Stone 2 Micron - Fermenting Equipment - High Gravity

Aeration - Fermenting Equipment - Equipment

Stainless Steel Aeration/Carbonation Stone. 0.5 micron*::*Aeration Equipment*::*Homebrewing Equipment*::*Bader Beer & Wine Supply, Inc.

You should use a HEPA filter. There are a number of sites on Google for the HEPA filter also:

Aeration - Fermenting Equipment - Equipment

Syringe Filters (now with luer lock inlet)

Tisch Syringe Filters

I know there are various places to get one and in the long run I will but it will take two weeks to get here and the shipping charges make it expensive.
Im hoping to find an alternative untill then.

If you pick up the sand air stone and it can handle a couple minutes of boiling, I'd say it should work. Being mostly silicon the stone should be inert. I'd make sure the binding agent can handle the sanitization.

I would think if it works for fish aquariums it will work for beer. I believe the aquarium standards are higher than our food standards...

order one, and until then just shake the fermenter to get the job done. Honestly, I got one of those pump setups, use it one time and never again. My brew days are long enough without waiting an extra 30 + minutes for a pump to do what I can do better in 30 sec. Just my $.02

30 minutes ? As long as that ? I thought it would be quicker.
The last thing I want is for the stone to ruin my first AG because it breaks up or leaves peices behind.
Our local gas suppliers charge a monthly rental for an oxygen cylinder so its out of the question untill I can buy one.

you can get the mini "propane-torch" style oxygen tanks at Lowes or Home Depot, check with the soldering equipment. Supposedly you get 10 or so batches from one 8 dollar tank.... that's what i use.

30 seconds of oxygenation, and you are good to go.

Brewmasters warehouse has the regulator kit i use:

http://www.brewmasterswarehouse.com/products/Oxygenation-System-0102046

Trouble is - Im in South Africa - no Lowes - but I need to still check some of the bigger hardware stores here.