PLACEMENT OF PUMPS, WATER FEATURES, ETC.

[Mmathis]

TurtleMommy again! Thanks to ALL OF YOU for your comments & help so far -- I'm really getting excited!

Is there a "best" place for the pump to go? I've read that you don't want it directly on the bottom in case of a water drain (to save the fishies). So assuming I have a roundish central pond (with my turtle sections at each end), 1) how do I elevate the pump to keep it off the bottom (going to try for as close to 3' deep as I can in this area), how deep/shallow should the pump be? And, 2) WHERE does the pump go -- sorry, newbie ??? again! Deepest point? One end or another?

Then, if I do skimmer(s), waterfall, etc., where do they need to go in relation to the pump or general design of the pond (my idea was the 3-circle design: small circle-larger circle-small circle). Would a waterfall work at the back side of the larger, central circle? ( Reference my design in my "TURTLEMOMMY'S IDEAS" post. Am on the iPhone right now & don't know how to get the pic over to this post.... sorry! ). Not really sure how to incorporate a skimmer....

Since this is my first pond, I want to keep everything as simple as possible, yet still have an effective setup with main goal of keeping water turtle-poop free & clean!

 

[HARO]

The skimmer usually goes opposite the waterfall or other water return point, so that the movement of the water carries floating debris toward the skimmer. The pump would be located IN the skimmer, and push water to your filter/falls/return point. The water level MUST be kept high enough so that the pond "overflows" into the skimmer. In Waterbug's schematic, it would make sense to place the skimmer on the near side of the central pond, with the falls on the far side across from the skimmer. That way a viewer would see the falls across the pond, while the skimmer would be unobtrusive. John

 

[Mmathis]

Sorry if I seem really dense, but is the skimmer free-standing, floating, attached somewhere? I mean, I know it goes in the water, but HOW? Guess it would be helpful if I could find some local ponds and see how they are set up with skimmers.

Thanks in advance for not laughing at me

 

[Waterbug]

I like the pump in the skimmer, behind the leaf basket. Should there be a problem, like raccoons ripping up hoses, the pond would only be drawn down less than a foot. BTW, the pond in my San Jose house which I sold, the new owners hired a pond professional who moved the pump to the bottom of the pond and installed a bio filter. Pipe came off the filter, pump drained the pond, every fish died. They paid a lot of money for that. Fire him? Heck no. Paid him to fix it. When I was there for a visit the filter was still leaking. Every time I think of those fish having to pay the price for incredibly dumb pond myths it makes me mad. Those fish deserved better.

Anyways....
There's no relation to pump placement and waterfall and skimmer. There is of course a common myth about putting the pump the pump at the bottom of a pond for circulation. But that's over thinking and no experience talking. In a pond less than say 8' deep even with no pump there will be plenty of circulation just from wind. Add fish swimming about and you have even more. Add a waterfall and you have more. But even if you still gotta have more the pump outflow or a waterfall can be directed to the bottom and give even more circulation than having the pump on the bottom.

The skimmer can be pretty much anywhere although right next to the waterfall isn't good. Water tension is what makes a skimmer work, a skimmer pulls, waterfalls don't really push very far. Which is why you don't want the skimmer right next to the falls, the choppy water breaks up the water tension a bit.

There are skimmers that float freely. I don't think they work all that well and can be harder to clean. Normally they're in the side of a pond and as Haro said the pond overflows into the skimmer.

The key to all skimmers is an automatic adjustment to changing water height. This is done with some kind of floating gate normally.

The free floating skimmers just raise and fall with the water level. The purpose of the gate is to only allow the thinnest sheet of water possible over the gate, so surface tension pulls from an impressive distance. If a gate allowed say 1/2" sheet of water instead of 1/8" the skimmer wouldn't work very well.

If you're interested in building your own skimmer here's how I do it. It's pretty easy. I think it's easier than installing a factory made model.