Pond Boss Forums AERATION Should I aerate? Aeration??

I think I have a areation problem.

http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=260419#Post260419

What size pond is this?

1 acre

Have you had your water tested? You can buy a water test kit for around $20. This would be a good starting point.

Got a link for this $20.00 kit?

I tried this.
http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Main=19343&Number=256882#Post256882

Yesterday afternoon I put an old shower head on my air hose for my air compressor with some weight and a coke bottle for a float to keep the head out of the mud/muck. I ran it from about 4:00 pm till about 10:30 pm and I started again today at about 5:00 pm and will quit at about 9:30 pm. This setup seems to make to water boil some and I hope it's adding some oxygen to my pond.

I'm not an aeration expert by any means, but be careful that you aren't just stirring up more anoxic water by dropping the unit near the bottom - that's where the least oxygenated water hangs out and that may just compound your problem. Have you noticed any bad smells from the pond? If so, that seems to be a telltale sign that you're just bringing up the nasty stuff and that may not be what you want to do right now given the apparent oxygen issue you're having. Consider raising the aerator to a depth of just a few feet or so - perhaps 3 - 5 feet - as you get started on this.

As well, I think that for a diffuser to really do the trick of oxygenating your pond, it needs finer bubbles that will help the water cycle more effectively. Remember that the bubbles are not what is really making an impact on O2 levels, but rather it's the water displacement/movement as the diffuser causes the water column to turn over, carrying freshly oxygenated surface water to the bottom as the cycle occurs.

You may want to wait till some experts chime in on this.

I don't think the head is more than 3' - 5' down in the pond and the place it's at is about 8' deep.

Numerous people that have used your compressor technique have burnt up their air compressors and were coming to me for a replacement. When I first got started in aerating ponds, I called Campbell- Hausfeld the air compressor manufacturer. An engineer there told me they don't make their compressors to do what you are doing. Their compressors are designed to pump-up and rest, pump-up and rest. Even with an air storge tank this use is out of warranty. Using them for aeration will dramatically shorten their life span. Look for a continuous duty compressor.
A shower head has too large of holes for efficient aeration/water movement. The smaller the bubble the more water that is moved. Lots of activity at the surface can be deceiving regarding how much water is actually being moved up from the bottom.

#2. We have discussed this several times before but here it is again. We don't bottom aerate to put a lot of or even very much oxygen into the water. We aerate to efficiently and cheaply bring large amounts of water from the bottom to the surface using the air lift technique. Relatively little oxygen goes into the water from the bubbling due to: oxygen is very insoluable in water, 2. air has only 21% oxygen in it, 3. the bubbles are in contact with water only a short period of time and not usually long enough for good oxygen transfer.

Our goal is to get the 'bad' water off the bottom and to the surface. At the surface, it degasses and "nature" reoxygenates it; primarily due to plant activity - phytoplankton and other misc vegetation with a little help from atmospheric air.

http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=4454

Try this