Anyone have experience with a pond vacuum?

[SEKCOBRA]

Hi guys
I bought a Pondovac 5 in the fall to remove any muck that might accumulate at the bottom of my pond before winter set in. Never did get any muck to clean but I thought it was a good idea to have it and clean the bottom of the pond periodically. This thing was not cheap. I hooked it up and went to clean a couple of leaves that were in a foot of water and this thing would not suck up anything. It says it was good to 7ft deep. I checked everything a couple of times and all was good. It would bring up water and the lightest debris but not much else. (and this was in less then a foot depth). I read the limited amount of reviews and it was about 75% positive. I returned it the next day. I'm thinking I may have received a broken unit. Anyone have any experience using one of these? I understand its not going to suck up heavy muck but a leaf.

 

[Tula]

@RobAmy uses a pond vacuum, so perhaps he'll have some information for you.

 

[RobAmy]

I do not have the 5 but mine will actually suck up the little stone in my stream. On mine there is a little slider on the wand. If that is open you lose suction. You may have a bad one.

 

[mgmine]

I have the Pond Monsta and have had pretty good luck with it. It is a bit difficult to use if the sides are steep. You do have to pull the leaves out with a skimmer if you have a lot of them. Check out Youtube to see various models. Look for a model that keeps running and doesn't have a container that fills up.

 

[Lisak1]

I've not ever had a pond vac, but if you returned it I wouldn't rush out to get another one. Wait and see how things develop with your pond. We never get anything in ours that would need to be vacuumed - you might find the same with your pond.

 

[RobAmy]

@Lisak1 I agree that the pond really does not need the vacuum. I did that the first year but have not since. I just net the pond now. I like the vacuum to suck out the waterfall filter at the end of the year. That one is fully below grade and over 30" deep. My other filters are above grade so I just back flush them. I also use it to suck out the poop in the stream. I move the gravel to make pockets down to the liner and the debris all pulls towards the vacuum. Makes winter shut down easier.

 

[Woodlandfairy]

@RobAmy uses a pond vacuum, so perhaps he'll have some information for you.

 

[Woodlandfairy]

I only have a 150 gal. and a 50 gal deck pond. I use to use a pond vacuum until I read an article about keeping the pond bottom clean. It said that lakes and ponds never have the bottom cleaned b/c the microbes in the bottom soil eat the debris therefore it stays balanced. I never last year vacuumed the pond once. I put waterlilly and water hibiscus in to eat nutrients and leave the bottom along. Even now before the warm season is here in Ks. My pond water is crystal clear, and I haven't done a thing yet since last fall.