Weissguy, the price point may seem high, until one starts to think about what they have invested in the pond. The Lake Life Pump is designed for best use in ponds larger than 3 acres, up to 15, maybe 20, depending on the depth. For even a 10 acre lake, pushed to its limits via feeding and/or fertilization, when the Lake Life Pump prevents one fish kill, its more than paid for itself. A typical 10 acre lake, stocked with fingerling fish, the owner would pay somewhere in the neighborhood of $500 for the fish. By the time that fishery matures (and about the time it would be ripe for a summer stratification-related fish kill) the fishery would be worth something to the tune of $25,000.
fishwhiz, you are right...the upper layer of water has a high BOD. I do take issue with your comment about the hypolimnion (the lower layer of water) being aerated with a straw. The hypolimnion is the problem, especially with southern lakes. That lowest layer of water has a low BOD simply because that layer runs out of oxygen quickly and it CAN'T have a BOD. Consequently, all the dead "stuff" accumulates on the bottom and when that summer "turnover" occurs, the pond dies...literally. The fact is that when a pond stratifies, the lower layer is much, much thicker than most people realize. It normally encompasses the bottom half of the lake. Because of that, at least 1/3 of the lake is full of "dead" water. And, the temperature can be 20 degrees colder than the upper layer. That water is so heavy that it's tough to mix it from the top down and dangerous to mix it from the bottom up. In its purest definition, "aeration" is simply adding air to water. But there are many systems in the marketplace. They are all good. At same time, pond managers figured out that aeration systems for recreational ponds and lakes have very little to do with aeration. They effectively move the water. That's what they do. They continually move water vertically, so nature can do what nature does.
When I first started studying Ray's lake years ago, I was suprised at just how productive it was. It is literally teeming with threadfin shad, gizzard shad, bluegill, redear sunfish, golden shiners and, of course, largemouth bass up to 15 pounds. In warm months, it has tilapia added to it. EVERY time I looked at the crazy lake, the 18" plankton bloom was somewhere between pea soup and olive color...even in the winter. When I started asking questions, I learned that Ray's staff fertilized the darn thing about every two weeks, starting when the temperature hit the low 60's. Then, I asked him how many feeders he had. Ten, going off twice a day. When I found out the lake doesn't flush with rainwater very often, I knew the stage was set for water quality deterioration and, inevitably, a fish kill.
Well, that first visit was during July that year and I was trying to wrap my brain around the whole thing...lots of fish (I had seen them during an electrofishing demonstration), fertility, feeding...my heart rate was a little too high.
I was watching the father of bass fishing set the stage to kill his own fish.
During that trip, he said he had something to show me. We climbed into his Triton boat, docked next to his house, and we headed off, up the lake, toward the dam. (Here's an aside...this may sound goofy, but I try to use all my senses when I evaluate a lake...what I see, what I hear, what I feel, what I smell). I noticed his lake had a bit of a "sweet" smell to it. Believe me, I have smelled the musty, pungent smell of bottom water, the odor of a watersnake, bass...and so on. This was a new smell. I saw an inordinate number of dragonflies, mayflies and aquatic insects. But, the lake was chock full of everything that eats that sort of stuff.
As we made our way to the dam, I saw this bulky-looking gadget floating near the dam. We approached it and he said, "This is my Lake Life Pump." Then, he told me his now-famous story of his fish kill years before and how it affected him. He told me how this pump gently pushes water downward, effectively making his entire lake one layer of water. The skeptical scientist/biologist in me wasn't buying into it. Then, he pulled a rod from its holder in the boat. At the business end, a silver spoon was tied on. He said, "Watch this." By then, we had backed away from the unit and he cast directly to it. He let the spoon drop, all the way to the bottom, 22 feet down. The line went limp, he turned the handle on the reel and started a slow retrieve. The third turn, his line went tight. He caught a two pound bass...18 feet below the surface, in July. I couldn't believe my eyes. He did it again and caught a fish on the second cast.
Of course, my next question was, "Do you have any data?" I was pleasantly surprised to learn that he did. He called his right hand man, Jim Kientz, asked him to grab his data notebook and come over. I pored over the data. It was intriguing to me. This device (which was about twice the size of the one Kasco is selling) was "aerating" the entire lake. They had Oxygen and temperature data for more than two years on at least 10 different data sites over the 55 acre lake. That lake was not stratified and was oxygenated and similar temperatures all over.
The more I watched and observed, the more I liked it.
Here's the whole concept...the concept is simple. The biological system in exceptionally complex. Move the water vertically all year (in the South) and "cleanse" it continually. There is no buildup, BOD is constant, nutrients are continually available for living plants and the water doesn't deal with the O2 "spikes" that "normal" stratified water deals with. Even though Ray's plankton bloom was thick, the Oxygen levels had much shorter spikes between darkness and daytime. I attributed that to two things. First, their fertilizer program was essentially to feed just enough phytoplankton to keep the zooplankton fed. Secondly, when the water was constantly moved, its biology was able to become stable. It wasn't continually working to fight its way to some sort of balance due to inordinately high BOD or heavy accumlations of anaerobic bugs on the bottom. What I was actually seeing was a device that enhances Mother Nature's ability to continually recycle all the nutrients that were loaded into it. You should see it. From the shallow-thinking viewpoint I started with..."why don't the fish die" attitude I had, it didn't take long for me to see the reality.
As I looked around, any nutrients which might be termed "excessive" were converted to some sort of usable biomass. Plankton was consumed by insects which were consumed by fish, which were consumed by more fish and so on. But, Ray's Lake Life Pump also has a measurable effect beyond his shoreline and he doesn't even know it. When that water is as stable as his, all kinds of life benefits. Several weeks ago, I was sitting on his back porch with him, listening to his stories, fascinated as usual. I kept watching songbirds and swallows swoop or land near the lake. When he went in to pour another scotch, I strolled over and started looking. There was a big hatch of insects going on and the birds were taking advantage of a fast meal. I asked Ray if he had noticed an increase in bird activity. He said he had...he was seeing more birds, more deer and more animal tracks than he could remember.
I believe his water hole is so productive that the bounty extends beyond the water line into the surrounding trees, grassy meadows and into the air. And, I believe it is because his water is constantly moving and the nutrients are constantly being used, not being allowed to collect on the bottom, only to be swept into the epilimnion in one fell swoop to inhale all the oxygen it can, at the expense of the lives of the rest of the lake.
