Pond pumps - any words of advice please?

hethmar

Im getting confused working out the litres in there. Is there a definitive method. One site gives me abotu 7500 litres, another site 15000 litres!

Anyone please - average 15 ft x 9 ft x 2ft?

wallbash

approx 7645 litres

Froglet

Hethmar,with no fish in the pond,you really do not need a pump.They are a danger to tadpoles and newts,i have seen newts stuck in a pump and it is not a pretty sight.Also if it is a nature pond and you have silt and mud in the bottom that the plants grow in,then the pump will soon get clogged up.

No matter what size it is,if you have enough good strong growing plants,liles and oxygenating weed,it will soon clear.Just make sure there are no leaves and rubbish rotting at the bottom,that alone will cause an overgrowth of the algae that causes green water.

I have had a nature pond for 10 years,an average size,but apart from the first month of green water,once the plants grew,it has been as clear as anything.without the need for a pump or filter.

If you want a fountain to freshen the water,a solar pump would be ideal, and only need running in the summer months.

hethmar

Im afraid it does get a lot of rubbish in it We had some years when we didnt use a pump and it was crystal clear in there but now after 20 years:( The current pump has a filter on it which stops small creatures getting sucked in. Id be looking for the same sort of thing on the new one.

hethmar

wallbash wrote: »

approx 7645 litres

I got that on the first chart then the second chart tells me to multiply lengthxwidthxaverage depth x result by 50?100 and then x 1000!! Which came out 15000

Froglet

hethmar it is length x width x depth x 6.23 which will give you no. of gallons.

After 20 years of build up in a nature pond you would be much better off having a good clean up of the bottom and removing all the sludge,leaves etc that has built up,than getting a pump which won't remove it anyway.Yes it will look worse initially but it will soon settle.2 ft depth is not a lot and you will probably find it isn't that now.Are your plants in pots or growing in the bottom? ideally they should be planted into the mud.

hethmar

Hi Frog, Ive used 2 ft as an average at it varies from only about 9 inches at the shallow (frog spawning) end to about 3ft in the middle.

The plants are all free of any pots.

Froglet

It sounds perfect for amphibians.The depth is great for overwintering .Have you plenty of lilies and surface cover? .This will help eliminate the algae that cause green water,as it shades from the sun and new plant growth at this time of year should use up excess nitrates that it feeds on.

Try a water change,take some out,checking for insects first,or pour through a net and top up with some declorinated.That too will reduce the amount of the algae.

Here is a link to the solar pump i mentioned.Honestly,you will be much better off,and so will they,without an electric pump.

http://www.1000waterfeatures.co.uk/sunjet-solar-150-pump-water-feature-p-9688.html?src=list_btn&cPath=1_213_1297&RSPHPSESSID=0ujju5nun1rbrlbjp43knncl44 or this one


http://www.1000waterfeatures.co.uk/180lph-solar-water-pump-kit-with-battery-backup-p-11192.html?src=list_name&cPath=1_213_1297

hethmar

Im not sure a solar pump would get enough direct sunlight as the water is really very dappled by surrounding trees, overhanging willow (which was originally just a stick off another willow stuck into the mud to cover some frog spawn - now a mature tree). There is a bank one end covered in ferns of various types and to one side some old fallen timber which we leave for the insects to inhabit - and currently a little family of field mice.

Froglet

I understand your dilemma.Would be a waste of money if not enough sun to run it,but that is a plus if it keeps the green water levels down.I still think that it is caused by rotting waste build up in the pond,causing excess nitrates.

If the whole bottom of the pond is mud,how did you manage to run a pump previously as they should always be placed on the bottom of the pond ?

I'm sure if you are patient the right balance will take over again when the plants really take off.A pump on it's own will not get rid of the green water anyway,only a uv and filter would do that.Without fish to feed,and the high output of waste they cause,a filter is not needed.

It sounds a lovely pond,i wish mine was as big.