Pond Boss Forums AERATION Systems questions aerating a pond

I am wanting to aerate a pond so that it does not freeze for waterfowl. This pond is a spring fed high outflow pond that has a year round max depth of 10' and outflow of approximately 1200 gph. Is it possible to use outflow from pond to power a compressor? Electricity is available but it is about 1/2 mile away, not exactly a feasible option. If the outflow is not an option, what are my other options? I have done some research into windmills and they are out of the budget. Any other ideas? I am open to any and all info you may have. If you need more info on the setup, feel free to email me and I will provide all info I can.

Welcome to the (New & Improved - hard for a Luddite like me to say that) PB Forum, Brian.

1) It IS possible to run an airline 1/2 mile from an electrical compressor to the pond. One of the Aeration Pros could give you an estimate for the system (and tell you what size airline you would need to bury) so you could get an idea if that is possible for your budget. But the cost of 1/2 mile line and burial may likely be too high if a windmill is over the cost limit.

There are several threads dealing with long air runs like this which could possibly give a quicker idea of what would be involved. I haven't tried searching yet with the new software, but I suspect it's not any harder than before.

2) I recall one or two threads inquiring about DIY hydropower such as you are asking about. I don't personally recall any favorable inexpensive solutions. What kind of outflow/waterdrop distance ("head") do you have available?

Hang in there and bear with us, we'll see what we can come up with in the way of helpful info.

Welcome Brian to PB. Here are a couple of prior threads .

http://www.pondboss.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=31317&fpart=1

http://www.pondboss.com/forums/ubbthread...=true#Post51794

It appears that running air line is the way to go. I would like to use two 9" diffusers, 1" air line, and a 110 volt compresser. Do you have suggestions? What kind of life expectancy can I look for? A compesser will only run for several winter months (3-4) continuous per year. The pond is higher than the electrical site. Will I have to install check valves to prevent water from entering air line or would elevating line at pond keep this from happening? What about condensation in line? This system will run for approx. one half mile to a ten foot deep pond. Does this seem feasible? Can you tell me what a rough estimate of expenses would be for a compressor and diffusers? What sizes of compressor and air line would you recommend?

For a 1/2 pond you can put in a F750DP pond aerator. You can visit our website for info and pricing. http://www.boatcycle.com

If you use 1.5 inch schedule 40 PVC as the communication between the equipment and the lake you can run air through it with virtually no friction loss. The actual equation (for 5 CFM which should be plenty) is .01 psi per 100 feet of pipe. This equates to approx. 26*.01 which is a loss of .26 psi per half mile. So long as your psi drop does not go below the specifications of whatever diffuser you have, you should be OK.

Sales info should be done by PM not on the open forum. Thanks.

I use a solar system to aerate my pond. It works great and is cheaper in the long run (up front costs are higher). Check into it and see if that's within your budget.

Sure is nice to let mother nature take care of the issue and not have to pay the electric co.

Jimmy,

Do you have a battery back up so the systems operates at night? If so, what size system (compressor and how many diffusers and types) do you use in your 0.6 acre pond?

We are very interested in having a solar option for our customers but have not been able to find any system that will not be too costly and will operate at night when aeration is needed the most.

Thank you in advance for your reply.

Jimmy's post about solar aerator
http://www.pondboss.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Main=6944&Number=68741#Post68741

Thank you Ryan...Jimmy, are you still operating during the daytime hours or are you able to extend that into the dark hours now too.

If so, do you know what your oxygen levels are? How many of the Keeton diffusers did you install?