I think since my two big pumps are 4200 gph, and the fact they can easily handle stuff going through them up to I think 1/2" (maybe I'm way off on that ...), it's fine for things to go through the pump. My skimmers both have filter media before the pumps, and I have to clean them, depending on the time of year, once a week, sometimes more, sometimes less. When I put a 1600 gph pump on a crate, used it to shoot water straight up as a bubbler in the goldfish pond, to help keep ice open, that sucker got clogged up several times IN THE WINTER, before I noticed there was a square mesh filter before the pump hole. Removed it, and it worked perfectly the rest of the winter. Usually, even with the smaller pumps, if they are going through large enough tubing or pipe, the pump will push it through. It's when you are trying to push water through a 1/2" line that you have to be careful not to let gunk run through it, right? In this case, the 1600 was not sending water through anything, so figured it would be fine with no filter, and it was. The larger pumps are pushing water through 1.5" sump pump tubing, so stuff can be pushed through that easily, too. One goes to Skippy, which then filters out the stuff, the other into the large bog, which also filters it out. But, most important thing is that the pumps are not on the bottom of the ponds.
