New pond build

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Hi! I'm new to the forum so go easy :cool:

I'm in the process of planning a new pond as our old one is leaking and I thought i'd take the opportunity to extend it.

Anyway, I have the following setup in mind and I want to make sure that it will be right for the size of pond:

The internal dimensions of the pond are to be L 10ft x W 7ft 2 x D 4ft. I worked this out at 1819 UK Gallons, 2184 US Gallons or 8269litres.

I was looking at the Nexus Eazy Pod air, and a Sequence 8000s external pump. Would this filter and pump be adequate and what size UV would I need?

I'm planning to have a bottom drain so the system will be gravity fed. Also, one pond builder said that a PVC liner is better than a Butyl or EPDM liner but the salesman in the shop recommended EPDM or Butyl over the PVC. Which is best?

Sorry for all the questions, just want to make sure I buy the right things so I don't find myself changing them 6 months down the line!

Cheers!
 

stroppy

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i cant help with your pump or filter but the butyl or epdm are far better than pvc liner ..look out for DoDad on this forum he knows all about nexus and sequence pumps :0)
 

addy1

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pvc liner does not last that long. Stick with the epdm , butyl or ppl24

The sequence is a good pump, I am using a evolution series pump, very quiet and easy on the electricity cost.

Any questions you do have just ask.
 
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addy1 said:
pvc liner does not last that long. Stick with the epdm , butyl or ppl24

The sequence is a good pump, I am using a evolution series pump, very quiet and easy on the electricity cost.

Any questions you do have just ask.


Thanks. The electricity costs is the reason i'm going for Sequence pump (it costs more to buy, but I could probably make the additional cost back in running costs).

Does anyone have any experience of using the Nexus Eazy pod with a similar sized pond?
 
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alpesh26 said:
The internal dimensions of the pond are to be L 10ft x W 7ft 2 x D 4ft. I worked this out at 1819 UK Gallons, 2184 US Gallons or 8269litres.

It all depends on your stocking. How many fish do you plan on? Do you plan on having plants in the pond? How much will you feed your fish? The manufacturer claims the filter is good for "up to" 10.000 liter of koi pond. I tend to take such claims with a truckload of salt, dividing them by 2-3 is usually a good start. Judging by the amount of bio media (just 30 liter of K1), Id say its probably insufficient if you plan on more than a handful mature koi.

The pump and airpump would probably suffice though, so nothing stops you from buying that set, and adding more biofiltration with DIY barrels as you add or grow fish.
 
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vertigo72 said:
The pump and airpump would probably suffice though, so nothing stops you from buying that set, and adding more biofiltration with DIY barrels as you add or grow fish.

I've currently got 7 koi and about 4 goldfish. I was thinking of having a total of 10 koi in the pond. i'm currently feeding 3 times a day as the temperature has raised, but this will go down to 2 times a day towards the end of summer once the temp goes down again, I wont be feeding in winter. The largest koi is about 6inches long so what I was thinking is to buy the Eazy Pod and next year make a box filter type to run in parallel with the Eazy Pod for some extra filtration. Would this be wise, or should I look for a different filter to the Eazy Pod to begin with?

I will probably have wither 1 or 2 small lilies to provide some shade in summer (I don't want too many plants as the koi can destroy them).
 
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When it comes to breaking down ammonia, I read that once matured, 50 liters of aerated K1 can handle up to about 250 grams of koi food per day. Lets say 30 liters in your proposed filter can do 125 gram / day, factor in the other bio load your filter will have to cope with besides food, and some safety margin, and Id put it at 100 gram max.

Another rule of thumb is that koi eat up to 3% of their body weight when its warm enough. You have to plan your filter for the worst case, so that filter would be good up to 3 Kg worth of hungry koi on hot summer days. Thats far less than 10 adult koi's will weigh. These are just ballpark guestimates, but it gives you an idea. Id go (much) bigger.
 
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vertigo72 said:
When it comes to breaking down ammonia, I read that once matured, 50 liters of aerated K1 can handle up to about 250 grams of koi food per day. Lets say 30 liters in your proposed filter can do 125 gram / day, factor in the other bio load your filter will have to cope with besides food, and some safety margin, and Id put it at 100 gram max.

Another rule of thumb is that koi eat up to 3% of their body weight when its warm enough. You have to plan your filter for the worst case, so that filter would be good up to 3 Kg worth of hungry koi on hot summer days. Thats far less than 10 adult koi's will weigh. These are just ballpark guestimates, but it gives you an idea. Id go (much) bigger.

Thanks for that, it put things into a bit more perspective. I was drawn in with the easy cleaning of the Eazy Pod.

Is there anything else that you guys would recommend, i'd prefer to overfilter if possible? The Nexy Eazy 210 isn't an option for me due to the cost and size of it.
 
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Im not into ready made filters. But you can build one yourself easily, and more cheaply. Just take one or several 55 gallon barrels, add some plumbing, toss in bio media (the same K1 kaldness if you like, its supposed to be among the best media), but cheap garbage PVC stuff works too. Cut pipes, straps, wire mesh, floor scrubbers, whatever.

Ideally add a few airstones, and put some sort of mechanical filter before your biofilter. That could be a settling tank, or another 55 gallon barrel used as vortex, and/or with brushes, could be a sieve (not cheap though), a ready made vortex, anything holding japanese mats (if you dont mind cleaning them once in a while)....

Many here use what they call doc style filter (see DIY part of this forum) that combines mechanical and biological filtering by creating a small vortex in a 55 gallon tank that is also filled with biomedia.

Your options are endless, but whatever you do, go big enough. If you go for DIY, Id suggest starting with 2 55 gallon tanks, one mechanical, one biological. As your fish and population grow, you can always add more, assuming you have room to put them. Thats one disadvantage of DIY, they tend to be fairly big.
 

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