I have added a few fish to my new pond. I have a comet, a koi and a
shebunkin (sp?). I had another koi but it got caught up in the
skimmer. They are all about 4 - 5 inches long. I just watched my
comet swim into the skimmer and was able to rescue it.

How do you keep them out of the skimmer?

TIA

John

I'm not sure how your skimmer box is designed, but mine is a large box
divided in two: one half houses the submersible pump (or in my case, the
pump intake, as I have an external pump), and the other side, where the pond
water intake is, has a removable net to catch debris (mine also has several
layers of window screen to catch the "fines" before the get to the pump). My
smaller fish swim in/out all the time, chasing food that eluded them at
feeding time, but is now nice and soft, sitting in the skimmer box. The only
problem I have is that I frequently find scales that have been ripped out
when larger fish also try for a snack, and can't get out as readily as the
smaller ones. The fish can't get sucked into the pump, and they leave when
they want to. What kind of set-up do you have that would allow a 4" fish to
get sucked up? Did you remove the debris net???

Lee



"John Bachman" wrote in message
...
I have added a few fish to my new pond. I have a comet, a koi and a
shebunkin (sp?). I had another koi but it got caught up in the
skimmer. They are all about 4 - 5 inches long. I just watched my
comet swim into the skimmer and was able to rescue it.

How do you keep them out of the skimmer?

TIA

John

I put a rubberized shelving rack in front of mine. Spacing large enough
to allow algae and debris into the skimmer, but small enough to keep
fish out. I just braced it against the opening with a couple of rocks.

deanna

On 6/6/03 10:50 AM, John Bachman wrote:
I have added a few fish to my new pond. I have a comet, a koi and a
shebunkin (sp?). I had another koi but it got caught up in the
skimmer. They are all about 4 - 5 inches long. I just watched my
comet swim into the skimmer and was able to rescue it.

How do you keep them out of the skimmer?

TIA

John

On 6 Jun 2003 12:23:08 -0500, "Lee Brouillet" wrote:

I'm not sure how your skimmer box is designed, but mine is a large box
divided in two: one half houses the submersible pump (or in my case, the
pump intake, as I have an external pump), and the other side, where the pond
water intake is, has a removable net to catch debris (mine also has several
layers of window screen to catch the "fines" before the get to the pump). My
smaller fish swim in/out all the time, chasing food that eluded them at
feeding time, but is now nice and soft, sitting in the skimmer box. The only
problem I have is that I frequently find scales that have been ripped out
when larger fish also try for a snack, and can't get out as readily as the
smaller ones. The fish can't get sucked into the pump, and they leave when
they want to. What kind of set-up do you have that would allow a 4" fish to
get sucked up? Did you remove the debris net???

My skimmer is similar to yours except that in place of your window
screen is a piece of 1" thick plastic filter material. After
rescueing my comet I removed the debris net as that seems to the be
problem for them - they get hung up in it and drown.

John

John Bachman wrote:

I have added a few fish to my new pond. I have a comet, a koi and a
shebunkin (sp?). I had another koi but it got caught up in the
skimmer. They are all about 4 - 5 inches long. I just watched my
comet swim into the skimmer and was able to rescue it.

How do you keep them out of the skimmer?

You can't keep them out, but, you can put some kind of netting on the inside
to catch before the pump sucks them in. What kind of skimmer do you own? I
own the purifalls

http://www.purifalls.com/

Take a look at the link, maybe that will help. I just check and empty my net
daily. My turtle is in it very often, I think he figures it's an E ticket
ride!


Joe



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Mine originally came with a filter mat; I tossed it out and replaced it with
the window screen, as it's much easier to clean.

By removing the debris net, you've left a great big gaping, unprotected area
for the fish to get sucked into the pump. I don't umderstand how they got
sucked so hard into the debris net that they would die; I've found fish
tangled up in bird net that remained alive. As long as they can move their
gill plates, they can breathe. Is it possible that the dead fish was
*already* dead and just floated in? Deanna's answer (below) may work for
you. It's hard to cover the inlet (to keep fish out) without blocking it so
much that it doesn't do its job.

Good luck.

Lee

"John Bachman" wrote in message
...

My skimmer is similar to yours except that in place of your window
screen is a piece of 1" thick plastic filter material. After
rescueing my comet I removed the debris net as that seems to the be
problem for them - they get hung up in it and drown.

John