Drew, there are a lot of variables in this stuff. For example, you mentioned 10 pounds of forage for a predator to gain one pound. But, it has to be properly sized forage. A five pound bass will actually languish and lose overall body condition if the only forage is minnows. It's a matter of calories obtained vs energy expended. Likewise, if it feeds on bluegills that are in poor condition(skinny) it doesn't get proper groceries. That's one of the reasons that we use commercial feed.
Aeration helps but is only one of the variables.
The biggest and most important variable seems to the ponds environment. This involves water quality, alkalinity and PH, which can be mostly influenced by location regarding various soils. For example, East Texas ponds often need to be limed and fertilized. West Texas seldom needs doctoring.
I like the idea of aeration but no way I can get power to my water holes. Heck, one of them is 3/4 mile from power.
The most important variable is a PROPER mix of predator and prey of the right sizes. That's what we call a balanced pond and it takes a lot of work and often cash infusions. It generally lasts about 15 minutes in the life of a pond.
BTW, if you ever figure out all of this stuff, let me know. I've been doing it a long time and still Mama Nature tosses a mean curve ball that I wasn't expecting.
