Pond pump articles on this website ... summaries
Take a look down the list for something that may interest you ... then click on the link supplied to go to the article
Pond Pump Basics ... make best decision
The water pump is the heart of any water garden feature, and without a good one, your garden pond will be starved of critical, life-giving oxygen. If you plan to populate your garden pond with fish and other aquatic life, you need a good water pump. But be aware that all water pumps are not created equal. Here are some points to consider: Unless you plan to have a pure water garden with only aquatic plants, you'll need a quality water pump. And even then, its often a good idea to have a reliable pump gently circulating water through your system.
Learn the basics then choose a pond pump with confidence
Pump head & What It means To You
Every pond pump driven by electricity is fitted with a motor. The motor is normally rated in watts or kilowatts. This is a measure of the amount of energy the motor can generate at absolute maximum and at 100% efficiency. Make sure the delivery pipe from the pump is not kinked or is being restricted by a build up of algae inside the pipe.
Learn what the term "water pump head" means
You may not be familiar with the term "water pump head." Basically this refers to the pressure that must be generated by a water pump in order to run a fountain, waterfall, filter, and other pond components. Most water pumps used in ponds are of the centrifugal design. In this type of pump, an impellor spins at a high speed, creating pressure by centrifugal force. This pressure pumps the water to whatever height is necessary to run your pond components, including a waterfall if you have one. An important consideration with these pumps is the fact that the speed of the impellor rotation is normally constant, which means the energy and pressure of the water pumped is constant. In practical terms, this amount of constant energy can be divided as follows:
How To Specify Your Pond Pump ... Flow rate
In your garden pond, the pond pump flow refers to the amount of water required to give you the waterfall effect you desire. Guessing is no good here. You need to know the correct pond pump flow and pump head for your application. Not enough flow, and your waterfall will be an obvious disappointment. On the other hand, too much flow will waste your money (in electrical use) and can make for a noisy waterfall that will annoy you and your neighbors.
Why Your Fish Pond Pump Must run 24/7/365
Never switch off your pond pump for more than a few minutes if you keep fish. A pump in a fish pond serves a very important reason. Of course it circulates the water and it drives a fountain or a waterfall. Yes of course it adds character and movement to your system. However its most important job is to provide life-giving oxygen to bacteria in the fish pond biofilter. A pumps works like your heart ... the heart continuously replenishes your vital organs with freshly oxygenated blood. A pump in a pond does the same. These bacteria in the pond filter use the oxygen just like you and me ... the oxygen oxidises the toxic chemicals like ammonia. These toxic chemicals in turn become nitrates which act as fertilizers for the pond plants.
Don't switch your pond pump off if you keep fish
How To Save Money Using 2 Pond Pumps
Two submersible pumps in a pond are almost always better than a single pond pump. This might sound strange but it is true as I will explain. Let's take my own personal situation .... My pond is outside my bedroom window and I have a very nice waterfall. The sound of the waterfalls when sitting close to it is absolutely soothing and enticing but at night the waterfall "noise" would keep us awake and we need our sleep. I switch this waterfall pump off every night and the fish do not suffer. They do not suffer because I have a much smaller pump feeding the biofilter continuously.
how to measure flow rate For waterfall Pumps
You need a pond and waterfall pump that gives you the desired flow to suit your needs. In simple terms the amount of water you would like to see flowing over a waterfall is dependent upon the width of the overflow lip or edge. If you have a wide waterfall lip then obviously you would need a larger amount of water from the pump to flow over the edge. If the water flow was a trickle then there would be little point in having such a wide overflow. The rule of thumb is 250 gallons per hour of water per inch of overflow edge.
How to test for the flow you need for a waterfall
How to select Your Pond pump With or Without Waterfall ...
This page tries to make it easy for anybody to choose their own pond pump correctly. Too many people have made the expensive mistake of selecting a pond or waterfall pump based upon general rather than specific information. You cannot easily guess the right pump that suits your pond especially if you have a waterfall. There's nothing more disappointing than eagerly waiting for that flow over your waterfall to find that you have a trickle rather than a tinkling, soothing cascade (or if it's what you wanted ... that roaring torrent becomes like a river in drought). You need to know 2 vital bits of information if you want to feed a waterfall ...
How to avoid a mistake in choosing a pond or waterfall pump
Waterfall and stream pumps ... beware sump pumps
Garden pond waterfalls need high volumes of water, so pump running costs can be high. Be aware that a waterfall pump is different from other pond pumps. They are more powerful, and good pumps are designed to run continuously at low electrical cost. A poor one, on the other hand, will quickly become expensive to run as your power bill goes up month after month. In general, the operating requirements for waterfall pumps are the same as those for other pond pumps. You will need to understand and determine the waterfall pump head, as described in other articles on this site. Modern waterfall pumps and biofilter pumps are different in that they don't contain sponges, thus allowing for higher water flow rates and "dirty" water.
A sump pump is expensive to run and has short life
Submersible pump selection hints
A submersible pump specification can create problems for many people ... you will hear terms like maximum head, maximum flow and pressure drop when people talk of submersible pump selection for ponds and water features. We help you out here. Your submersible pump .... In any pond, fountain or water feature it is generally necessary to install a submersible pump to achieve the following. A submersible pump provides oxygen for fish ... the water pump in circulating the water over a waterfall or through a spray or a drop from one level to another allows oxygen to become dissolved in the circulating water.
More tips on using submersible pond pumps
What exactly is a Submersible Pond Pump?
A submersible pump operates below the surface of the water, inside the pond itself. You can usually find a low cost submersible pump that will be inexpensive to operate, and will be the right choice for most garden ponds A submersible pump is the best choice for most garden pond applications. Many models are available these days, and most makes are reliable for use in garden ponds. It is critical that you purchase a pump that will be both reliable and economical to operate. The life of your fish and your pond filter are dependent upon a reliable pump, and your bank balance will suffer if you choose an inefficient pump that gobbles electricity. After all, a submersible pump runs 24 hours per day, 365 days a year.
A sump pump is usually not a good choice for your garden pond waterfall
You see sump pumps being advertised as pond waterfall pumps all the time, and it's a big mistake ... Sump pumps are designed as pumps to empty out a basement that's flooded, or a flooded crawl space beneath your home, and as such they work fine. These types of pumps are made to run intermittently--some even have a float attached--and therein lies the problem. As we learned earlier, a garden pond pump has to run 24 hours a day, 365 days per year, and be both reliable and economical to operate.
air pumps and secrets of Japanese matting for koi fish ponds
This web page is really aimed at koi fish keepers rather than the casual garden water ponds enthusiast. Nevertheless the points made are just as valid for small water ponds as well as large water ponds. Based upon my experience few small water ponds actually use air pumps, neither do these garden fish ponds really need them. The reason is that the demands for oxygen by both the fish and biofilter bacteria are less urgent.
Air pumps and Japanese matting
Hozelock Cyprio Air Pump 45 litres per minute
High performance air pump suitable for most fishponds and koi ponds.
Hozelock Cyprio air pump suitable for most fishponds and koi ponds.
The Hozelock EasyClear Clearwater and Fountain Pumps
The EasyClear made by Hozelock Cyprio in the UK is the first pond product of its kind ever developed and solves almost all the small to medium sized pond keeper's problems in one fell swoop. The EasyClear is a pump, a bio filter and an Ultra violet light all in one and unlike most other UV units everything is completely submersed in the pond water
Hozelock EasyClear Clearwater and Fountain Pumps. All In One Pump, Biofilter and UV
