RAH, My pond has the UD slide gate valve. It is made of plastic about the thickness of a cutting board functioning as the open/close feature. Other than that there are 6 or 8 stainless bolts/springs/nuts (no need to worry about rusting shut) to set the amount of pressure required to open/close the valve. My drain is 3-4 feet off the bottom of the pond with about a 10x10 sump area for collecting debris. I’m wanting to cage the area around the drain to allow leaves and such to pass through but not fish. Do you believe the 1” holes will suffice? Thanks, Heppy
