Sizing down it not an option at the moment as the pond is full and running.
I am curious as to the comment on pond pumps? I was not aware of this. How
are they more efficent? As the two pumps I would be using are going to be
on the rather large size, efficency is a major plus for me. Again the pool
pump is just a 1 year old pump I had from an above ground pool that is
gone.

Chris, it has been awhile since rec.ponds had a good discussion on this, so
I'm a bit rusty. The best I can say is research it. Check into the
Superfalls pump, compare it's output to energy use against your pool pump.
www.pondshop.com They are spending, and there other brands of pond pumps
out there, I'm just giving this link as a place to start. Also check gph in
relationship to head. Some pumps have great gph until they have vertical
rise to deal with. Hi head verses Lo head.

www.aquaticeco.com would be another place to check, not to mention call.
This is a big outfit with people willing to help in all things aqua culture
related. Get their catalog, I think you're gonna need it. It is free.

Fountains will move the fines, but heavy stuff will settle out and sit on
the bottom, over time that bottom will fill up.... and you'll be surprised
how fast. In 2 seasons (1.5 years), before we put the bottom drain in, I
had 6" of muck on the bottom of my lower pond. ~ jan
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Also ponding troll free at:
http://groups.google.com/group/The-Freshwater-Aquarium