What's the purpose of moving muck around? Are you going to pump it to one one side of the pond?

One thing to keep in mind is that the definition of good varies considerably between people, especially between buyers and sellers. $175 sounds to me like something's wrong, since the pump new is probably $1400-2000 and hoses are about $50-100 each for 50ft discharge or 15ft suction.

Worth checking out if you know what to look for, certainly! The seller may just be ignorant of its value, but think about what condition something would have to be in for you to be willing to sell it for <10% of your purchase price.

Kris