*source below
"Although water molecules contain an oxygen atom, this oxygen is not what is needed by organisms living in natural waters . A small amount of oxygen, up to about ten molecules of oxygen per million of water, is actually dissolved in water."
"Rapidly moving water, such as in a mountain stream or large river, tends to contain a lot of dissolved oxygen, whereas stagnant water contains less.
Bacteria in water can consume oxygen as organic matter decays. Thus, excess organic material in lakes and rivers can cause eutrophic conditions, which is an oxygen-deficient situation that can cause a water body to "die."
Article about fish, though the principal is similar with plants as they too consume the dissolved oxygen from the water. Why overwatering wreaks havoc. Water remains "stagnant" at the bottom of a pot because the plant has already consumed the oxygen, but the water is still there. Doesn't take long for anaerobic bacteria to take hold at this point, at which acidic pH conditions, root rot, and gnats are nearly guaranteed.
Pretty much, where there is movement/flow of water, it will be oxygenated. Sure, a fish pump can "technically" move air better than a water pump (designed to move water, not oxygenate it). However, the very act of the pump causing consistent and steady movement to the water will provide oxygen to it.
Aerobic = oxygen
Anaerobic bacteria literally cannot be the predominant bacteria species in the soil web in an environment with oxygen.
It's not about whether or not you have certain bacteria, but what is in the majority and what is in the minority.
We all have anaerobic bacteria in our soil, its just not dominant. It's a minimal fraction of the anaerobic bacteria, if anything. By providing air to your water, you will oxygenate it and therefore make it impossible for anaerobic bacteria to gain dominion here.
You should be just fine using the water pump, and you'll know if your tea is bad or not. Much like compost, teas will either smell sweet and earthy, or it'll smell like shit.
Wanna know if you have good compost/tea? Super easy trick. Ever find yourself stoned as fuck huffing on a handful of dirt or a bucket of oxygen infused shit for 5+ minutes? You have good compost/tea.
If you don't zone out on how amazing your compost smells, your compost needs to decompose more. If your tea smells bad for any reason, dump it, and sanitize any equipment that came into contact with said tea.
All of that being said? Teas are superfluous friend. Much like with normal gardening, it takes more than a few months to produce results. First harvests are rarely phenomenal, but they produce the basis for which the subsequent harvests will come.
Living soil is no different. Think of the soil web as a city. It's small, recently built, and few people have taken residence. A few "years" later, it isn't a recently built small town. Now it's an established town. Given time, proper care, and resources, it expands to a full blown metropolis. Meticulously and perfectly controlled by microbes so tiny that there are billions in a fingernail's worth of soil.
Haven't used teas since 2013ish.
Reality is that for the most part, teas are a bandaid that mask the symptoms but don't actually solve the problem. The problem being, imbalance in the soil web.
Living soil is about cultivating a soil web that is vibrant and full of life, and the byproduct of that happens to be seemingly "perfectly" grown plants.
Cultivate a soil filled with life, and life will follow. Drop some good genetics into a soil that has been alive for months/years in a bed, and you'll definitely see results.
All the best.
Source:
https://www.usgs.gov/special-topic/...ce_center_objects=0#qt-science_center_objects
