joesandy1822
Sandy
Our pond is up, running, and as of today, it has totally cleared! The pea soup is gone, and I can see all the way to the bottom. Hallelujah!
However, we have a situation that has been really frustrating the past couple weeks. We have several large maple trees, which I know in the fall will necessitate our putting netting over the pond until the leaves have all fallen. That was a given. But.....right now, it's the neighbor's nasty elm trees that are causing us misery. They are such crappy trees anyway (Dutch Elm disease), constantly dropping branches and twigs every time the wind blows. We have had several very windy, rainy days the past couple weeks, and it looks literally like it's snowing out with all the leaves falling. Of course, they all seem to land in our pond. The skimmer does its job, but does it so well that about 4 times in the past 2 weeks we've gone out to hear the pump struggling for water because the skimmer pad/basket has filled with leaves to the point that water is not passing through to the pump side of the skimmer properly. It's just a matter of checking frequently during a windy day and cleaning as needed. But husband is concerned about what could happen when we go on vacation. We don't really have anybody who can watch it while we're gone. He feels we should make some type of contraption to put IN FRONT of the skimmer to keep the leaves out so we can see it right away and more easily dispose of the leaves. I feel that is preventing the skimmer from doing its job. But he is concerned about burning out the pump (and rightly so). This usually only happens for several weeks this time of year until all the loose leaves come down. We had the same problem when we had our swimming pool, and it does eventually stop for the most part.
I know they make leaf nets that go INSIDE a skimmer, but he thinks it should be outside. His thinking is that if we only make it several inches tall, then water could still get in the skimmer UNDER the contraption if it fills with leaves, keeping the pump safe longer than if we let them all go into the skimmer.
I hope I'm making sense. We are going back and forth about the whole purpose of the skimmer. I say it's doing its job, and he says yes, it is, but we have to protect the pump in case we are not here when this happens. Of course, somebody would still have to be here to clean out the "contraption" that keeps the leaves out of the skimmer. But he says it might just buy us some time.
H E L P !
Thanks!
Sandy
However, we have a situation that has been really frustrating the past couple weeks. We have several large maple trees, which I know in the fall will necessitate our putting netting over the pond until the leaves have all fallen. That was a given. But.....right now, it's the neighbor's nasty elm trees that are causing us misery. They are such crappy trees anyway (Dutch Elm disease), constantly dropping branches and twigs every time the wind blows. We have had several very windy, rainy days the past couple weeks, and it looks literally like it's snowing out with all the leaves falling. Of course, they all seem to land in our pond. The skimmer does its job, but does it so well that about 4 times in the past 2 weeks we've gone out to hear the pump struggling for water because the skimmer pad/basket has filled with leaves to the point that water is not passing through to the pump side of the skimmer properly. It's just a matter of checking frequently during a windy day and cleaning as needed. But husband is concerned about what could happen when we go on vacation. We don't really have anybody who can watch it while we're gone. He feels we should make some type of contraption to put IN FRONT of the skimmer to keep the leaves out so we can see it right away and more easily dispose of the leaves. I feel that is preventing the skimmer from doing its job. But he is concerned about burning out the pump (and rightly so). This usually only happens for several weeks this time of year until all the loose leaves come down. We had the same problem when we had our swimming pool, and it does eventually stop for the most part.
I know they make leaf nets that go INSIDE a skimmer, but he thinks it should be outside. His thinking is that if we only make it several inches tall, then water could still get in the skimmer UNDER the contraption if it fills with leaves, keeping the pump safe longer than if we let them all go into the skimmer.
I hope I'm making sense. We are going back and forth about the whole purpose of the skimmer. I say it's doing its job, and he says yes, it is, but we have to protect the pump in case we are not here when this happens. Of course, somebody would still have to be here to clean out the "contraption" that keeps the leaves out of the skimmer. But he says it might just buy us some time.
H E L P !
Thanks!
Sandy
