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we have been trying several methods (with not much luck) sweeping our pond.
our first pond is so small it isn't a problem, but the new pond is 1000 gallons and not as easy
(small for most of you, but we are moving up in baby steps ) .
we were wondering what others have found to be a good way to sweep the bottom?

thanks, sheryle

I use a pond-o-vac for leaves and stubborn crud but for the most part I don't have to vacuume. When I built my second pond I elected to run 2x turnover per hour instead of the .5x-1x hourly turnover rate that is usually reccomended. The extra flow allows the bottom to remain pretty clean but requires a daily primary filter cleaning. With a high flow pond you have to remember that the residence time is shorter in the bio-converter and you will need more surface area (media). I believe that the pond walls also are more efficent at bioconversion at higher flow rates. I have no proof of this but it seems to be consistent with modern marine aquaria methods. I consider my pond an experiment but it seems to me that it is something to think about.

o.k. this is all new to me,
i don't want to sound stupid, but what???
you use a pump 2x pond gallons, you clean filter everyday, and you use a pond-o-sweeper for leaves, right?
is this the sweeper that you connect to a garden hose? i have two pumps running right now.... one is @375 gph and i am not sure about the other.....
they are connected to two different filter systems....one of them i was thinking of making a skimmer system with ....it feeds the waterfall....

thanks,
sheryle

Hi Sheryle,

Does your pond have a bottom drain? If so, where in the pond is it located and where does the bottom drain go to? If positioned correctly much of the bottom crud should flow toward it. Do you have dead spots in the pond where crud accumulates? If so you may want to locate an air stone or something to try to push the crud toward the bottom drain.

Our skimmers are on seperate pumps from the one that supports our bio-filter. The skimmers provide flow to the waterfall. Ours uses a net and brushes to catch the crud. I find the brushes brushes are just as good as the filter pads and don't require cleaning as frequently.

Though our pond remains pretty clear throughout the season, we do have a few dead spots that require vacuuming periodically. We use a Pondovac. I find the vaccum works nicely though its a little expensive.

I've been experimenting with two items to help push crud toward the bottom drain and to eliminate the dead spots. One being a air diffuser membrane and the other being TPR's (tangential pond returns). I find the air diffuser membrane works nicely. The membrane creates tiny air bubbles which stirs up the crud and then floats it toward the drain. I find our koi enjoy swimming through the bubbles (exercise?). For anyone installing a new pond with a bottom drain I would recommend installing a drain that can also accept a air membrane. We have ours on a timer so we can control when we have it on and off.

The TPR's help create small underwater vortex's that push the crud out of the dead spots toward the bottom. I positioned three of them, two on same side as the waterfall, one at each end of the pond. The third is located on the opposite side of the waterfall wall in the middle of the pond. Again, these are experimental, so too early to pass judgement.

Our pond has a turn-over rate about 1x per hour. Found this works for us.

If your pond does not have a bottom drain you would either need vacuum to keep the bottom clean or you could install a retro drain.
thanks
Steve

nope, no bottom drain, i wish i had found this forum before we built....oh well, the next one ,
so what is a retro drain? the water is still clear, starting to get string algea, am going to order koi clay,
and the crud is laying evenly over the entire bottom. i so far have a 8" goldfish and 2 snails..... any ideas???
thanks,
sheryle

I notice you have some snails. One thing is I always find are small snails caught up in the leaf basket of my pump. So maybe adding a retro drain is not the best option for you.

Basically a retro drain is a bottom drain that can be added to ponds that do not have a permanent bottom drain. Aqua Art is one vendor that manufactures this type of drain. I have to admit I have no experience or no one that has used this drain, so I have no idea on its effectiveness. Bottom drains have been discussed in a few threads in this forum and we all concluded not all bottom drains are the same. Some work better than others.

Without a bottom drain you may just want to purchase a good pond vacuum to help control the crud that accumulates on the bottom. You would just need to becareful to avoid vacuuming the snails.
Thanks
Steve

a pond-o-vac does not hook to a garden hose it is a self contained unit
A skimmer is a very nice thing to have in a pond and cuts maintenance considerably.
I do not recomend a bottom drain to anyone. Unless it is laid out and installed by a proffesional with many years of happy customers. Bottom drains can be installed wrong(poorly) and can acually kill a pond so fast it will make your eyes water.

my snails are about the size of a fifty cent piece..... i had ordered 50 of them last year and they all disappeared except two and somehow they made it through the winter with my fish.....
i am a single income pond owner.... so i am trying everything i can to not have a small fortune in it....
although it is an addiction ...as all of us know...


sheryle

Koigardener seems to have a strong opinion against bottom drains. I on the otherhand would never have a pond without one. In addition I know a number of people who installed there own ponds including bottom drains without any issues.

Yes, the Pond-O-Vac is a self contained pond vacuum. I have a Pond-O-Vac 3. What is nice about this unit is that is contains two chambers. When one chamber fills up with water it automatically switches to the second chamber. While the first chamber empties, the second chamber fills. Once the second chamber fills it automatically switches back to the first chamber while the second chamber empties. This cycle continues to repeat. Therefore, no stopping the unit to empty a container like a shop vac. You can pump the water back into the pond (it comes with a small netting bag which can be used to catch debris). I pump it into the lawn as part of my water change routine. I've been quite happy with this unit even though it is expensive compared to alternatives.

I have not tried any of those units that run off the hose pressure.
Steve

I am not against using B/D's . I hesitate to recomend them because they can fail and most people do not install them with failsafe in mind. Back before koivet lost their database you could read some horror stories about string algae,muck,dead bullfrogs,leaves and even fish clogging them. Then there was the occasional story of pumping the pond dry when a poorly installed fitting failed.
I was toying with the idea of installing one when I rebuilt my pond but I dont have the room for a settling chamber which is the heart and soul of a proper B/D system. I also had the benefit of the internet and found an article by Doc Johnson that mirrored my hesitations. I have a small but managable OCD about failsafe as I had the threory beat into my brain in the Navy and it came in handy when I rebuilt an older boat to fish 80 miles offshore.
IMHO smaller ponds(>4000) can run fine without a B/D. An improperly installed B/D can pump a pond dry. A clogged B/D requires SCUBA and or a partial rebuild. Without proper filtraton you end up pureeing the fish poop which is very difficult to remove. When they are installed by a pro they can not pump a pond dry and they have a self cleaning feature that works (most of the time). They take more thought and equipment than a typical DIY is willing to invest.

I find the Pond-O-Vac 3 to be great, but I think its also one of the most epxensive pond vacuums on the market. Our pond is 30' L x 13' W and a little over 5' deep. The unit comes with some extension tubes where I can reach almost halfway across standing on its long side. Only negative when trying to reach with all the extension tubes attached is that the entire tube is a bit hard to control (with all the tubes its still very light so it tends to bow when trying to apply pressure). Usually I end up in the pond using shorter extensions. What is cool is one of the extension tubes is clear so you can see the crud that passed through.

They provide plenty of hose so if I do enter the pond you can walk around pretty far without the having to constantly exit the pond and relocate the vacuum.

If I remember I thought Bonnie got one for a gift last year.
Steve