Mark

Derek is on target. We have an inpond pump in a 5 gal bucket with 1/2"
holes all around it. The pump handles 1/2" soliods. No other pre-filter.
The veggie filters catch the muck and we drain annually. Let the roots do
the work!

Jim

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"Derek Broughton" wrote in message
...
Mark Bannister wrote:

I have read SO much conflicting advice I thought I would ask for some
more. Our new pond is coming along slowly but it is time now to do all
the plumbing. Approx 700 gallons, 3' deep, concrete block. A veggie
filter runs along one side. Two water intakes pull water from a skimmer
and from the bottom of the pond. Water returns under the veggie filter
and midway down in the pond.
The questions a
What kind of filtration, if any, do I need before the pump?

Depends on your pump. I used to use a pump that could handle 3/4" solids.
As long as I wasn't worried about fish getting sucked in (never happened
to
my knowledge), I didn't need a pre-filter at all. The problem with
prefilters is that they need more regular maintenance than the veggie
filter (they clog faster). If you can't get around to pulling the
prefilter to clean it, try not to need one. That means either a pump
that
can pass solids like mine, or using the veggie filter itself as the
prefilter (ie, you feed water into the filter via gravity, and pump back
up
to the pond after it passes through the veggie filter).

Do I need any filtration after the pump but before the veggie filter? I
assume the veggie filter won't do much in winter.

I'd say, no. The filter won't do much in winter - but you don't need a
whole lot of filtration when the fish aren't eating/excreting anyway. If
it's warm enough for the fish to eat, it's at least warm enough to keep
watercress growing in there. Even in milder climates where you have no
freezing and might have leaves or other debris blowing in all winter, your
skimmer will take care of a lot of that.

Aeration; there won't be any fountains or falls so I assume I need to
add some air.

Only if your fish load is high enough. Adding air is a requirement for
ponds where the fish use up all the O2 without it.

Air pump? Venturi "suction" type?

Either. Again, it depends on your fish load.
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derek