Fish pond filters
midnightvelvet
Posts: 19
I started a thread on this topic some weeks ago but new layout in here means I can't find it!! Anyway, I inherited a fishpond from the previous people which is quite nice but the filter is a home made contraption. The water levels fall rapidly when the pump is running but when its switched off, they stay up. I was told that I probably had a leaky pipe somewhere but having located the pipes etc I can't work out my 'arris from my elbow. THEN I changed the washing up sponges that were being used in the filter (really!) and it sorted it for a while but then the filter box overflowed and the water levels dropped again! Looking on you tube at some home made filters, I saw the filter material they were using was similar to scouting pads...without the sponge bits so I stocked up with them and swapped the sponges for the rough stuff. Brilliant....until this morning when I woke up, the pond was almost empty and I had to hurriedly get the hose pipe running before I lost the fish. Anyway, accepting that it was something I wouldn't be able to do myself, I called a "pond expert" shop who was talking in figures of £600 to sort it all out...which I simply don't have spare just now and won't until around September or October time. Does anyone have an recommendations for someone who is local to or not far from Staffordshire/Lichfield who would come and tell me what to buy then come and install it for me please? I can afford a small fee but not into the hundreds of pounds.
Thanks for reading
xxx
Posts
Can't help you with your query - but here's your old thread
http://www.gardenersworld.com/forum/problem-solving/inherited-pond/955209.html
Good luck
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
If you go and chat to a "fish supplier" they'll be able to talk you through all the different elements and they'll probably know a "wee man" who will be happy to advise you. I've only ever had fish tanks but I know that we all used to congregate at the fish shop every Saturday and chew that fat. A bit like here before the internet!
You need an enthusiastic amateur. If you go to a big shiny place they'll charge you big shiny prices. Go to your little local aquatics man. The place where you used to get your goldfish....not a big garden centre. The filters and pumps all work on the same principle so take plenty of pictures of your set up.
Good Luck.
A pond filter shouldn't be necessary for a 'normal' garden pond i.e. one with plants and a limited number of fish in it. They are generally required for things like koi ponds because they tend to be more heavily stocked and have little planting. I had ponds in my gardens for many years and never needed to install a filter system.
If the filters are becoming blocked as quickly as you imply, it suggests that the pond itself has a lot of silt in the bottom. The only long term solution would be to remove the crud, and to do that you would need to remove the fish and drain the pond.
What size is the pond, and how many fish are in it?
Can you leave the filter off for awhile, if the water level stays the same its the pipe work or fillter (you do not want to keep topping up with tap water this will harm the fish) make sure you got oxygenating plants, plus maybe you could turn the pump into a temporary founting to make air bubbles.......rember do not clean filler medium with tap water use pound water, the plastic scourers and sponges are there to hold bacteria mucky is good as long has the water can run through, also if there's a overflow on the fillter box make sure it runs back into the pound ......hope this helps.
Hi everyone, thanks for your answers. I think I'm going to have to bite the bullet and pay someone to sort it...but I'm really surprised to hear that an ordinary fish pond doesn't need a filter!! Not that I know anything about ponds and filters, as you have probably realised LOL.
The filter material is very muddy which I'd never noticed until it all went Pete Tong.
Will post back and let you know the outcome(s)
Thanks again x
Is your pipework all visible or does it go underground? If it does go underground then you may have little option but dig it all up and check connections etc.
Is there a waterfall involved? These can be problematic with leaking and the leaks difficult to find.
Perhaps a pic of your current set up might help.
I have always had a filter for my pond. There are only 2 connections - pond pump to filter, filter back into pond. If you have checked both these connections then check that the outlet from the filter box to the pond is not blocked causing the water to flow over the top of the filter box, and check the filter box has not split at the bottom leaking water into the ground. The box can split in the winter if it gets frozen. You can check this just by lifting the filter box to see if the ground is dry or wet.
Aha...that is something I haven't checked....blocked pipes....the water is flowing over the top of the filter bow but I couldn't work out why...bit slow, me LOL. Will have another go. I will totally empty the filter box this time....there is actually mud over the filter materials and the pipe with the holes in.
If the rain stays away I will see what I can find in there.
Many many thanks xx
And don't worry too much about the rights and wrongs of using tap water to clean the filter. I empty my filter box out completely once a year and give everything a good scoosh with the hose. Once you have cleaned the filter and checked the hoses, connect it all up together again. If you can, try and clean out with a net any debris that is lying on the bottom of the pond as it is this that is getting sucked into the pump. Good luck.