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.

To give a specific example ... lets assume the overflow lip of your waterfall is 6 inches then you would need a pump that would deliver the following volume of water ... 6 x 250 = 1,500 gallons per hour

If you already have a pump and you're not happy with the amount of water flowing over the edge you can try a couple of things ...

  • Place stones or largish pebbles close to the overflow point ... this will effectively reduce the width and make the flow look better

  • Buy a second pump for the waterfall and use the smaller pump to run a biofilter ... read this important article about how 2 pumps can save you money here

  • Make sure your pipe is as short as possible and if narrow increase the diameter by replacing the pipe.

Here's how you find out how much water you need to pump using another practical method.. test how much water looks best for your waterfall .....

  • Place a hosepipe into the waterfall inlet

  • Adjust the flow until you are happy with the effect

  • Without closing the hose fill a known volume container from the hose pipe

  • Calculate the flow rate by dividing the volume of the container by the time taken to fill it. This week's free calculator could come in useful here.

This calculator would also allow you to weigh the container as an alternative to knowing its volume. For water use the following:

  • 1 US gallon weighs 8.83 lbs

  • 1 Imperial gallon weighs 10 lbs

  • 1 litre weighs 2.2 lbs

If one hose does not deliver sufficient water then use 2 hose pipes.

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