Pond Boss Forums AERATION Systems questions Which way is best

Don - You can move much more water per hour using injected air on the pond bottom than pumping water with an electrical pump. Example: with a 1/4hp rotary vane air compressor & the PROPER AIR DIFFUSER I can move abt. 240,000 gal/hr. Try moving that much water w/ a water pump. Water is heavy and it takes a lot of energy to move it. It's just not efficient to use a water pump to mix your pond water esp. when you try and throw it into the air "fountain style". However a lot of people do it. Fountains do have benefits but they are not good for mixing the deep, bottom, pond water. Water weight is 8 lbs/gal. Takes a lot of electricity to throw lots of water into the air and the higher you throw it the more "juice" it takes. Electric company will love you.
KEY is the more bubbles you make & the smaller you make them the more water you move. Problem; smaller holes plug up faster. Make as may bubbles as feasable with the amount of air produced. The more cfm the better. Low cfm's produce fewer bubbles and less water is moved. Diffusers are usu. sized for an optimum cfm of air. Look into an air compressor system; electricity savings will pay for itself plus it will do a much better job of circulating more water.