How do skimmers work when adding plants?

[MD56]

Hi All,

I've been offered a ton of free water lettuce to add to my pond. These will be the first plants added to the pond and I'm curious how this will work with my skimmers.

I have two no-niche style basket skimmers. Anything that floats in the pond eventually just ends up surrounding those skimmers. So with something like water lettuce, should I just turn the skimmers offer?

 

[Marshall]

I did away with my skimmer when I got my floating plants cause the roots kept getting ripped off by it but someone here might know a trick. I hope so cause I want to hook mine back up too and good luck with the new plants

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Can always try the Hula Hoop solution. Float and anchor a Hula Hoop in your pond away from the skimmer(s); place floating plants inside Hula Hoop;....problem solved!

 

[Marshall]

Can always try the Hula Hoop solution. Float and anchor a Hula Hoop in your pond away from the skimmer(s); place floating plants inside Hula Hoop;....problem solved!

I got to try that myself. Good tip and cheap too which is always a good thing...

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Or you can make your own custom size with 3/8" PVC pipe and a couple of slip/slip connectors.

 

[cas]

I just took some extra air tubing, duct taped it, and looped it over a rock. Once the water hyacinths or water lettuce take off, you don't see the tubing. Of course, my water hyacinths never take off (I think you can see why).

 

[Mmathis]

Or, what I've tried and seems to work is suspend a line across a section of the pond. The line just keeps anything that floats from going past that point.

 

[sissy]

You can use a pool noodle that is what I did for a couple here tied a pool noodle a ways in front of the skimmer

 

[MD56]

Thanks for the info, it sounds like the best solution is to confine the plants away from the skimmers.

Question, is important that the skimmers remain on? It's easy enough to just turn them off. I have 3 large bottom drains in the pond which do most of the heavy lifting.

 

[snoozer]

i use thin cord accross an are of the pond to corral the floating plants. I do the same thing in the header pond for the waterfall to keep floaters up top. They grow well when the fish aren't tearing up the roots

 

[mgmine]

I tie a piece of fishing line around the plant and put a weight on the other end. A washer or nut works fine. Then the plant either floats around or stays anchored depending on how much line you use. It is invisible and lets the plant grow around it.

 

[Mmathis]

I tie a piece of fishing line around the plant and put a weight on the other end. A washer or nut works fine. Then the plant either floats around or stays anchored depending on how much line you use. It is invisible and lets the plant grow around it.

But what if you have multiple plants as with water hyacinth? Do you anchor each plant? That's an awful lot of "strings."

 

[Mmathis]

Thanks for the info, it sounds like the best solution is to confine the plants away from the skimmers.

Question, is important that the skimmers remain on? It's easy enough to just turn them off. I have 3 large bottom drains in the pond which do most of the heavy lifting.

I think skimmers are important. If nothing else, they keep surface crud from settling to the bottom of the pond.

 

[mgmine]

But what if you have multiple plants as with water hyacinth? Do you anchor each plant? That's an awful lot of "strings."

The only floating plants I have are water hyacinth. They have a tendency to grow together so when I first get one I do the fishing line anchor. Once they start to get established the line keeps the complete plant together no matter how big it gets. Even if you had 1000 lines you would never see them and the plants will never get into the skimmer. Now I wish I could come up with a solution for the floating fish food.

 

[Mucky_Waters]

I've never used hoops, lines or anchors. Once in a while I find a water hyacinth or two in the skimmer if strong winds or fish movement has dislodge them. When that happens I usually just take them out of the skimmer and throw them in a part of the pond where they are less likely to get dislodged and drift around the pond. Problem solved with no strings attached.