How To Choose The Correct Pond Pump
Choosing a pump for your pond or fountain is a crucial step to ensure you maintain proper water movement. Failure to keep the water adequately circulated can result in stagnation, algae buildup, and mosquitoes. In addition, if you have fish, plants, or other aquatic life in your pond, you must keep the water healthy by evenly distributing the oxygen levels and other nutrients.
Types of Pond Water Pumps
There are two main types of pond water pumps: submersible and external (out-of-pond), also known as centrifugal pumps. Depending on the application, each pump offers specific advantages.
Submersible Pond Pumps
Submersible pumps are designed to be fully submerged underwater at the deepest part of the pond. They are placed directly into your pond or in a skimmer box or pond vault. Submersible pumps range in size from 50 to 5,000 gallons per hour. They are easy to install and are sometimes a more economical solution for smaller ponds (up to 1000 gallons of water). They are also quiet and can also be used to drain your pond. If you have fish or other aquatic life in your pond, you may want to consider a model that does not use oil because there is a danger of the pump seal breaking and oil coolant leaking into the water.
Centrifugal Pond Pumps
External or centrifugal pond pumps are a reliable, energy-efficient option. They are installed in a dry location near your pond. External pond water pumps are suitable for larger ponds (over 1000 gallons). Compared to a submersible pump, they are typically louder and more complicated to install; however, they are easier to maintain.
When selecting a pond pump, it’s essential to keep in mind that pumps have different cord lengths. Ensure the cord is long enough to go through the pond and plugin far away from the water. Some electrical codes specify that the outlet for water features must be at least 6 feet away from the water. Therefore, it is recommended that you avoid using an extension cord. However, if you must use one, make sure it’s suitable for outdoor use and plugged into a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) so that it will immediately shut off if there is an overload.
How to Size a Fountain or Pond Pump
Pond pumps are sized by gallons per hour (GPH) at one foot of lift or height. Larger capacity pumps are rated by horsepower (HP). To determine the size pond pump, first, you need to calculate the volume of water in the pond. To calculate the volume of water in gallons, multiply the length x width x average depth x 7.5.
Water Circulation Factors
It is recommended that pond water is circulated at least once per hour. For example, if you have a 500-gallon pond, you need a pump that runs 500 gallons per hour at the discharge height. If your pond has a pressurized filter, you ideally want to turn the water approximately once every two hours. For example, if you have a 1000 gallon pond, you need a pond pump rated at a minimum of 500 GPH. If your pond has a skimmer or waterfall, the water should be turned approximately once every hour. Therefore, if you have an 1800 gallon pond, you will need an 1800 GPH rated pump.
Calculating Head and Lift Height
Two of the most critical measurements in sizing a pond or fountain pump are the maximum head height rating and maximum lift. Head height means the vertical height the pump raises water above the surface of the pond. The pond fountain pump’s top height can lift the water to is called “Maximum Head” or “Max Head.” The “Head” is measured straight up from the water level of the pond. Its length then measures any horizontal/diagonal flow, and 1’ of “Head” added per 10’ of horizontal/diagonal distance. To calculate the lift, you need to measure how far the water in your fountain has to travel from the pump’s location in your rush to the top of the fountain where the water comes out. Then you need to select a pump that lifts higher than that measurement. For example, if that distance is 24”, than you will need a fountain pump that lifts at least 36” tall. The “maximum lift” is the maximum height that the pump will raise the water.
Selecting the Proper Pond Water Pump Tubing
It is also essential to use the correct tubing size because it directly affects the pond pump’s maximum lift capability. If you use smaller tubing than specified, you will limit the pump’s maximum lift and the amount of water circulated.
Choosing the right pond water pump for your pond or fountain requires careful consideration and a little upfront research. However, doing so will go a long way toward keeping your water clean and healthy and your pump operating efficiently.
Container Water Gardens
It’s a small world – container water gardens are the perfect fit!
What’s holding you back from digging a hole and adding a perfectly peaceful aquatic paradise to your backyard? Is it the price? The size? The uncertainty of it all? Will you even like adding water gardening to your list of outdoor hobbies? How do you make a transition into the wet and wild world of water gardening?
If you are timid about getting starting, you may choose to begin with container gardening.
For people with small backyards or a simple porch, sometimes a container garden is the only way to get their water garden to fit. For some, it can lead to the dream of a big yard and a bigger water garden. There seem to be endless ways to accomplish your first water garden. Some examples are:
Wet Rocks or Bubbling Rocks, – these rocks are drilled so that the water comes out of the top and cascades down the rock into a basin below the rock. Many installers will do these in singles and trios. When the proper selection of the rock, you can get a nice soft sound of the water. Check with your local installer for further information and ultimately a proposal. Great for a nice additional to a small landscaped area.
On the market are several types of containers. This would be a category that you would have the ability to add plants and maybe small fish to this container. Traditionally, we only saw the whiskey barrel and liner tub available but now the market offers you other options which include different sizes, shapes and colors of container, container gardening pump, and tubing. Here’s a link to the ones available from Aquascapes.
Now consider plants as they can turn any boring container into a gorgeous work of art, if you educate yourself about how to plant and which plants to use. As with any water garden there are three basic type of plants:
1. Water lilies – recommend only the pygmy water lily which still may be too big.
2. Marginal – perennial plants – which be careful to only purchase the smaller marginal plants. Suggestions are:
Variegated sweet flag, corkscrew rush, Four-leaf clover, water forget me not – Just remember to keep them small
3. Floating plants – Tropical – Water Hyacinth (my favorite) and Water Lettuce (does not like real hot climates) Great for small features.
Gold Fish are an option but remember they will grow to about 6 inches and will reproduce. They will not live through the winter in a fountain or small basin.
What equipment do I need?
You will need a container garden aerator. This is a small pump that will give a gentle turbulence to the water. You want to steer clear of still water as this is a breeding grounds for mosquitoes. Add a small amount of gravel/stones on the bottom of the container. Especially if you have added a few fish.
What kind of maintenance is required?
Maintenance is as easy or as hard as you want to make it. Many of the small containers are small enough that you may use a garden hose to top it off. And if there’s no fish, you may use it to overflow the system for severe cleaning. If debris does accumulate, you can use any of the enzyme-based products (algaecides). Sludge tablets would be a good source and our bacteria container garden tablets. Watch for evaporation and if you have fish, you may need to put a few drops of detoxifer in the water. This removes the chlorine from the water if you have fish.
Enjoy! Be careful, however, because once the water gardening bug has bitten you, there’s no going back! Next step, would be a micro pond kit, then on to a larger water garden. Well, actually, it’s best just to go to the largest water garden you can put into your location and fits your budget. We do have kits for the do-it-yourselfers but best results are locating a installer in your area. Call us at 877 780-1174 and we can help you find that contractor.
Or if just a fountain is your choice for now look at the options on our site.
Fish Care and Treatments
Follow these simple preventative measures:
Water Quality – The majority of issues are caused by poor water quality. Make sure the fish population is under control and don’t be afraid to do partial water changes often and consistently. The general formula for the quantity of fish in a pond is determined by the square feet of your pond and that means 1″ of mature fish per 1 square foot of garden. However, established gardens are sometimes able to handle 1.5″ to 2″ of MATURE FISH per 1 square foot of garden. Make sure when adding water or when doing a partial change that you treat the water with Pond Detoxifier to eliminate chlorine/chloramines and chelated heavy metals. Aerating pond water is also something that can potentially increase water quality dramatically. When speaking of mature fish, Koi can grow to 24 to 36 inches and most gold fish with fins get 6 to 9 inches. It takes close to five years for Koi to reach maturity.
Buy Your Fish from a Responsible Retailer – Never buy sick fish and, if possible, quarantine new fish for a few days to a week before adding them to your pond. Always ask how long the retailer has had the fish. If they have just received them in, ask the retailer to hold the fish for a few days to make sure the fish recovers from stress related to transport and new water chemistry.
Keep a Close Eye on Your Fish – If any signs of disease are seen, start using Pond Salt immediately and start feeding with medicated fish food. If things look like they are getting worse, immediately treat the pond with the appropriate treatment. The longer you wait to treat the problem, the less chance you have of saving your fish. Quarantine your sick fish.
Test Your Water – Test it yourself or have your local retailer test it for any signs of a problem. It is also important to test the water coming directly from your tap as it is increasingly common to have issues including ammonia coming directly from your water source. Click here for test kits.
Feed Your Fish a High-Quality Food – Feeding a high-quality food will not affect water quality and will ensure that your fish are getting all the vitamins and nutrients they need to maintain proper health.
Symptoms/Diagnosis/Treatments
Note Click here at TREATMENTS to see the products available to treat your sick fish. Isolating sick fish in a separate tank is the best approach since you can treat the fish more adequately and not affect the water quality.
THIS IS GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT TREATMENTS. YOU MAY HAVE TO RESEARCH FURTHER FOR THE EXACT TREATMENT YOU MAY NEED. SECURE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FROM www.koivet.com Having access to a microscope is helpful.
Pond Salt information – Is a proven staple in the health care and maintenance of Koi. Pond salt maintained at a 0.2% solution will reduce fish stress and enhance their slime coat and will improve gill function. During periods of stress and disease, healthy gill function is disturbed. This can cause a loss of electrolytes, leading to serious health problems for fish. Pond Salt provides the essential electrolytes fish need to survive. In addition, a salt solution will do a great job at controlling certain protozoan parasites, such as Trichodina, Ich and Chilodonella. Caution: A>0.2% salt level may threaten some more tender aquatic plants.
Symptom: Erratic movement, flashing or rubbing on rocks and surfaces throughout the pond. Fish has white discoloration as if dusted with small white dots. May be flashing, like scratching gills.
Most Likely Diagnosis: Parasite Problem There are several type of parasites.
Solution:
General Treatment: Pond Salt Treatment and Isolation
Targeted Treatment: There are several types of parasites. Removing with Tweezers is a simple solution however, there may be other types of treatments. Such as Parasite and Ich Treatment, Praziquantel Treatment, Using Medicated fish food helps.
Symptom: Growths that look like “cotton balls“. Fish may have white starburst on mouth or body. Loss of Appetite.
Most likely Diagnosis: Fungal infection
Solution:
General Treatment: Pond Salt Treatment
Targeted Treatment: Aquascape Fungus Treatment
Symptom: Open Wounds or ulcers. Fish fins or tail has white discoloration on the edges, may be accompanied by red streaks in fins or tail. Sometimes appears as trailing slime. Fish may be lethargic or without appetite. May swim with fins or tail collapsed.
Most likely diagnosis: Could be Bacterial infection: Tail Rot, Body Slim
Solution:
General Treatment: Pond Salt Treatment
Targeted Treatment: Ulcer & Bacterial Infection Treatment and Medicated Fish Food
Symptom: Red Streaks in the fins
Most Likely Diagnosis: Could be Bacterial Infection, Parasite Problem, Ammonia Poisoning
Solution:
General Treatment: Medicated Fish Food, Pond Salt and water change using Pond Detoxifier
Targeted Treatments: Parasite & Ich Treatment, Praziquantel Treatment, along with the general solution
Symptom: Fins appear to be rotting away
Most Likely Diagnosis: Fin Rot or Bacterial infection
Solution:
General Treatment: Pond Salt
Targeted Treatments: Ulcer and Bacteria Treatment, Medicated Fish Food, Pond Salt
Symptom: Small white spots that look like salt stuck to the body of the fish
Most Lightly Diagnosis: Ich or Parasite problem
Solution:
General Treatment: Pond Salt
Targeted Treatments: Parasite & Ich Treatment and Pond Salt
Symptom: Gasping at the surface of the water
Most Likely Diagnosis: Oxygen Depletion
Solution:
General Treatment: Aerate the pond & agitate the pond surface – Reduce fish load
Symptom: Bulging Eyes – hard to cure or no cure
Most Likely Diagnosis: Bacteria infection
Solution:
General Treatment: Pond Salt
Targeted Treatments: Ulcer & Bacterial Treatment, Medicated Fish Food – Pond Salt
Symptom: Scales protruding from a swollen body like a pine cone
Most Likely Diagnosis: Dropsy – Bacterial Infection – Difficult to treat
Solution:
General Treatment: Difficult to treat: isolation and pond salt and/or treat the pond as a preventative measure
Targeted Treatment: Ulcer & Bacterial Infection Treatment and Pond Salt
Symptom: Difficulty swimming underwater floating at the surface upright
Most Likely Diagnosis: Swim Bladder Disease
Solution: If the fish is still feeding, feed fish with canned peas or Spirulina-based fish food
Symptom: Red or swollen gills
Most Likely Diagnosis: Parasite Problem
Solution:
General Treatment: Pond Salt
Targeted Treatment: Parasite & Ich Treatment, Praziquantel Treatment & Pond Salt
Information provided by Aquascape Inc
Remember: It is sometimes best to isolate the sick fish so that you can salt the holding tank with the proper solution and treat the sick fish and not the whole pond. Remember pond plants are sensitive to salt treatments.
Also you can additionally consult: www.koivet.com
Pond Salt Dosage Rates: 2 cups = 1.0 lbs. approx.
0.1% solution uses .83 lbs. of salt per 100 gallons of water
0.2% solution uses 1.67 lbs. of salt per 100 gallons of water
0.3% solution uses 2.5 lbs. of salt per 100 gallons of water
Winterizing Your Feature
Your pond is an outdoor living ecosystem and unless you live in a part of the country where old man winter doesn’t pay you an annual visit, you will have to prepare for changes in late fall and going into winter.
PONDLESS WATERFALL
1. Leave it running. If you live where temps are mild, you can leave it running. You just need to add water to the basin as you will still have evaporation. Some people choose to run the waterfalls in the entire winter. Some caution must be taken with ponds that have long and slow-moving streams. Ice dams can form and divert the water over the side of the liner. On extremely cold days keep a watchful eye on the stream to be sure everything is running smooth.
2. Shut it down. You have two choices here:
a. If you have a check valve, disconnect the check valve from the pipe and then unplug the pump. You can leave the pump in the pond basin in warmer winter climates. Please make sure the water level is adequate to cover the pump.
b. Or remove the pump with the check valve attached from the basin. Store in water in a bucket in a frost free area.
POND
Discontinue bacteria treatments when the water temperature reaches 50 to 55 degrees. When the temperatures are 35 to 50 degrees, you can use the Cold Water Bacteria. The main reason for using bacteria is to help increase the good bacteria count so the pond will stay in balance.
What do I do with my plants?
Cut back the marginals to just below the water level and cut the lilies to 3 inches above the rhizone. Throw the summer tropicals, such as Hyacinth, into your compost pile. Clean up debris as much as you can from the bottom of the pond. Remove as many of the leaves as you can by using a small rake. Stop fertilizing your plants. For those of you in the south, we recommend you remove your tropical lilies and store them in a water-filled container located in a place that won’t freeze. Then hope for the best. Any other tropical aquatics that you intend to over-winter indoors, should be removed and brought indoors.
Netting the Pond?
In early fall, it is recommended that you use pond netting if you have leaves or pine needles that will fall into the pond. If you do not net the pond, then any material that falls into the pond will have to decompose and as it decomposes, it will produce harmful gasses throughout the winter. Look at the various sizes and types of pond netting we carry on our store.
Some pond owners will leave the net on during the winter to protect their fish from predators.
When do I stop feeding my fish and what happens to them in the winter?
Stop feeding fish at water temperatures of 55 degrees. In the spring when water reaches about 55 degrees you can begin to feed them slowly at first. Fish cannot digest food late in the season and feeding late can be detrimental to their health.
Fish will hibernate in the winter. Your fish will do just fine in 2 feet of water as long as you keep a hole in the ice to allow for gas exchange to take place. They will rest on the bottom of the pond barely moving. In the beginning of the fall season, fish need aeration so you can continue to run your pumps. Then when water temperatures reach 25 degrees and the water begins to freeze you need to add a Deicer to your pond so a hole is keep in the water for toxic gasses to escape. Any debris left in the pond will continue to decompose and produce gasses that can be harmful to the fish.
Choices for Winterizing a Pond
1. Leave the pump running. Winters can be severe and if you live in a milder climate leaving the waterfall pump running will work for you. However, if you live where you have snowfall and below freezing temperatures, you might want to pull the waterfall pump, disconnect the check valve from the pipe and install a bubbler and a deicer to keep a hole in the ice for the fish. The purpose of the DeIcer is to make sure that the toxic gasses can escape from your pond.
Winter scenes are beautiful when you are running your waterfall. Please be aware that you will have to check your water level and the ice forms on the waterfall and ice dams can block the path for water to return to the pond. Just keep an eye on it.
2. Shut Down The Pond
You will want to disconnect and pull the pump out of the skimmer. Make sure the check valve is disconnected from the pipe that runs up to the waterfall. DO NOT just unplug your pump from the check valve leaving the check valve still attached to the pipe as this will leave water in the pipe and check valve. If these components freeze and it may crack the check valve and/or the pipe. Check valve can be left attached to the waterfall pump but not to the pipe. Put the pump in the frost free area in a bucket of water. The water will keep the seals moist. A Bubbler/aerator in the pond will keep a hole in the ice till about 25 degrees. If you have fish, at this point you will need to add the Heater/DeIcer to the pond which will keep a hole in the ice so the gasses can escape.
We recommend the AquaForce Pump and the 300 watt Heater/Deicer. Click on the product and it will take you to the page. Place the bubble so that the water bubbles about 1 inch above the surface. But once the water temps drops below 30 degrees F, the heater should kick in. Place these two items far enough apart to prevent the pump from moving heated water away from the heater. When water temps are above 30 degrees, your fish, especially koi, still need some aeration which provides oxygen for them.
TIP: If you shut down your pond here’s a little tip, we recommend you remove the filter mats, lava rocks and/or Bioballs from the Waterfall Box. Clean them and store them for the spring. Saves you time in the spring and the mats will last longer.
Call us at 877 780-1174 if you have any questions.
Happy Winterizing,
Aquascapes.com
