https://photos.app.goo.gl/W8ujXoctJhxUYfqN6I have a pump in a creek right below my dam that i can pump fresh cold creek water in to my pond. i installed this to keep my pond full, however i barely have to use it for that since we have been having plenty of rain and pond sealing seemed to help. i am wanting to use it to help fight off a fish kill. last year late one afternoon i found all of my fish in the upper end of the pond trying to get some good water that was trickling in. i immediately turned on this pump and started two gasoline trash pumps to agitate the water.
Question is: i am about to install a timer on the pump to run during critical times. since i saw them suffering last year right before dark i would figure i should run it then for sure. i have also heard the oxygen depletion is worse right at daylight. anyone have any input on how long and how often i should run fresh water in? i understand this isn't taking the place of real aeration, but figured it would work. i was thinking a few hours in evening and morning. the link above is a short video of the water shooting into the pond.
Be aware that some fish fry from your creek can make it through most pumps and populate your pond.
RAH, i have an inlet screen, but you are right. the creek has creek chubs in it which i don't think would be a problem, but there are green sunfish in that creek as well. i really don't worry about them as much as i did in the past. i have lots of hungry mouths in the pond to work on any gsf that might make it in. i caught a few gsf when pond was new, but very rare now.
I would run it from about 11PM to 8AM, that's the critical time for low D.O. When there is low light, the algae and rooted plants are not making oxygen. I wish my creek had water available for pumping now.
John, I agree that seems like the most critical time. reckon why my fish were about to die last year earlier in the evening? It was around 7 pm or so when i noticed it. I went to the pond a little after the feeder went off and noticed food floating everywhere so I knew something was going on. they always clean it up instantly.
Just guessing, but i would say the creek water is probably 20 degrees cooler than the pond. Any chance i could cause a turnover like with a cold rain?
electrician didn't get a chance to install timer today. i found a half eaten floater today. it was a huge male cnbg. that makes me wanna get that timer on even more. i lost a few fish about 3 weeks ago. i had just done some heavy yard fertilizing. no idea if that was the cause or not. i sure hope this cool blast of water will help keep pond healthy enough to stop a fish kill.
Just curious, does the cold water you add from the creek splash and spatter into the pond? Would that increase aeration?
warmouthy- below is a link to a short video of the water coming in. i know it won't take the place of a true aerator, but i am hoping it will at least stop a fish kill. i got the timer installed yesterday. right now i have it set to run from 7-10 pm and 5-8 am. EST. my pond is very fertile and green right now and we are having cloudy rainy days. i worry that it could be getting a little too green. i hope an expert will chime in and let me know their thoughts on my timer settings and water flowing in.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/gCE8aDy6j82WTM3s9
Scott, what I don't know about aeration would fill a lot larger book than what I do know. All of my knowledge is what I've gotten here. You have the equivalent of a fountain which doesn't do much for actual aeration.
Actual aerators work by pumping out small air bubbles which create underwater currents. To make it more effective, I THINK it would work better by installing more hose to extend it further and somehow put the nozzle under water to create some kind of current.
dd1. i agree about it not being true aeration. i wonder what value it has since it is actually cool fresh water and not existing pond water being sprayed such as a fountain does? i have changed the the bushings a few times to get more volume or more pressure. right now i would say it is close to 3 times as powerful as any garden hose.
Dang Scott, that's impressive. I'm just wondering if it would work better by putting the hose under water. But, if it seems to be working, not sure I'd change anything.
Dang Scott, that's impressive. I'm just wondering if it would work better by putting the hose under water. But, if it seems to be working, not sure I'd change anything.
Putting the hose under water would allow the hose to siphon back to the creek when the pump is off, unless a working check valve is incorporated, and a check valve could somewhat impede flow in the pond direction.
I would presume that since your creek water is cold, it is from a flowing stream. If that is the case, the water is super-saturated with dissolved O2 and you should pump it into the pond at about a 5 foot depth. That will replace the stagnant, oxygen depleted bottom water.
Your fish most likely consume oxygen above the thermocline during the day and DO gets low as the sun gets low. Add onto that, the lower water is toxic, and your fish had nowhere to go.
Perhaps instead of just a timer being installed, consider adding a float switch to shut off just above full pool....a float switch could be installed in a catch basin (bucket) below the drain with a 1/2" hole drilled into the bottom, so when the pool level rises above a trickle, the bucket will fill and shut down the pump.
it has a foot valve/check valve on it. that keeps it primed, it has a stainless steel screen on it.
rainman-it is cold water from a flowing stream. the pond has stayed full all this year. i did have to run it a little last year to keep it topped off. being able to keep it full was the main reason for adding the pump, but now it is more for oxygen purposes. i am hoping the 3 hours at dark and 3 hours at daylight keep an oxygen depletion from happening.
i understand your reasoning for the float. no need for it to run and cause it to have too much out flow. it live right here at the pond so it is easy for my to keep an eye on.