Essup, it's good to hear form you, been awhile. I wish you the best in all this virus crap going around.
Ok, the water temps/Do I mentioned were what I have seen for a 3 year period. Like most everyone when I got my new toy temp/Do Meter 4 yrs ago I checked things out most every time I went to the pond which was almost daily. Remember, I was trying to grow extral large lmb.
And I wanted to know year round! My Do meter became a problem last year and I got tired of ordering new probes and then something else would quit. Made in China. It is a Sper Scientific brand. Would not recommend it. And it was not cheap. So, today I use it for temp readings only. My surface temps in open water was running 82 and was alot warmer in the thick matt of vegetation but measured simply by putting my hand in it as I gathered it up putting it in the boat for discard. There was a thermocline prior to me starting up the diffusers @ or around 6 to 7 foot. For the 3 + years i checked the DO it always measured low at and near the bottom, usually about 2 foot on the ponds bottom and that was prior to me starting bottom diffusers. The Do was 1.5 and after starting aeration it would go to 3,5 or so after running diffusers but the water temps went to 92 that first summer running 24/7 and then the next year running 12 hrs per night temps would go to 87. Still to hot according to Bob's Wednesday Facebook program. So I then went to 4 to 5 hrs from 3 am to 6 or 7am. Water temps would stay around 84 even with me raising the diffusers 27" off bottom. Now with all this going on I would turn on the water well where it added 72 degree water 24/7 during July, Aug, Sept. In that hottest time of the year. The well water has a venture system where it adds air along with the water then traveling a 40' ribbed culvert and then splash on rocks before it entered the pond water. Tp and Gams will hang out there along with some 8 to 12" lmb. I have felt for several years now that two large volume surface volcano's were needed along with the diffuser's. Problem is the cost of it all. Solar is not cheap but looks like the best way to go for me. Highflyer (Brian) and I discussed this just the other day, and if he can work it in (free time is hard to come by these days don't you think?) I understand that fish are not cheep either
Frank, (Anthropic) I have a syphon system that will move some water out of the pond at times, but because of my pond bottom design it does not syphon from the deepest waters. Another reason for Bottom Diffusers.
