vacation and water level

[Sushi Prohibited]

I will be on vacation for a week,
I usually have to add water twice a week.
I worry that the water level might get too low and damage the pump.
Should I turn off my pump (and it's waterfall) while gone?

Thanks!

 

[Angel]

up your water level prior to leave?

 

[j.w]

Is this a submersible pump or external? I assume submersible and if so I would turn it off if you actually think it might have a chance of burning up.How deep is your pond and how deep is your pump sitting down in the water? Are you getting any freezing weather now that will ice over your pond? Do you think you have a leak? Have you ever let it go w/o filling w/extra water to see how low it goes? Do you have fish? If so and the pump is on the bottom then you will lose all your fish too. Guess we really need more info to help you.

 

[zeuspaul]

Can you set-up some kind of drip system? I do that with birdbaths when I go on vacation. I use a ball valve on the end of the hose bib and then adjust it to a very low flow rate.

 

[j.w]

Only thing w/drip system is if they are still in the freeze that won't work otherwise that does work great! I use an auto timer to fill my pond in the Summer everyday.

 

[Lisak1]

I was going to suggest a timer, too. They aren't expensive and work very well. The other option would be to ask a neighbor to keep an eye on things for you, if you have someone you can trust.

 

[Mmathis]

How deep is your pond?

 

[Sushi Prohibited]

Pond is 4 feet deep.
Pump is at the side of the pond, under water.
No longer freezing. Pond temperature is 55.
Timer would work.
Thanks all.

 

[Sassygirl]

I was going to suggest a timer, too. They aren't expensive and work very well. The other option would be to ask a neighbor to keep an eye on things for you, if you have someone you can trust.

Do you have a particular timer in mind? Im headed to Mexico in May for 9 days. I live in New Mexico and we are experiencing some very warm weather at the moment. I always suffer at least a 2-3” water level drop while im away and would like to take care of that if i can. Do you recommend any particular timer or can you lead me to the type of timer you are all talking about? Thank you so much.

 

[Lisak1]

Any garden center or big box store that sells hoses will have timers you can attach to your spigot. The hose then gets screwed into the timer. You can set the timer to run for a specified amount of time at a specified time (or times) of day. They have really simple ones that are cheaper and more complex ones that will operate several hoses.

Here's an example of a simple one:

 

[j.w]

I bought a set at Costco several yrs ago that had like 4 stations so you could water different areas at a different time. I never see that one for sale anymore. They always upgrade them so they look different but it was made by Orbit also as that one above is.

 

[Lisak1]

I've had my eye on a four port timer - I think Melnor makes it.

 

[Gordo33]

Question about using a timer for adding water while away. When adding water to the pond I also add dechlorinator. Wouldn’t using a timer without being able to add a dechlorinator create problems for the fish? If no fish then not a problem.

 

[Lisak1]

I think the idea here is to run the hose for just a few minutes a day. The small volume of water added daily wouldn't be a problem.

 

[Gordo33]

I usually have to add water twice a week.

A thought about water loss. Do you know how much water you are losing ? I would think this time of year the water level should not drop much. This time of year the rain is enough to raise the water level in my pond. Heavy rains activate the overflow usually until the temps get above 75 degrees. I have not added water to my pond due to evaporation since early fall

 

[Mmathis]

A thought about water loss. Do you know how much water you are losing ? I would think this time of year the water level should not drop much. This time of year the rain is enough to raise the water level in my pond. Heavy rains activate the overflow usually until the temps get above 75 degrees. I have not added water to my pond due to evaporation since early fall

I was wondering same. Pond is 4’ deep, but don’t know volume.

 

[Lisak1]

I would think this time of year the water level should not drop much

We're losing more water right now than we have at any other time than we can remember. It's still cold here (zone 5B) and windy - the combination is causing a lot of evaporation. Any precipitation we're getting has been snow. We've had rain, but not enough to make a difference. We also had to disconnect our sump pump line that feeds the pond late last fall - something started leaking and we didn't get time to check on it - so that's also had an impact on our water level.

 

[Gordo33]

We're losing more water right now than we have at any other time than we can remember. It's still cold here (zone 5B) and windy - the combination is causing a lot of evaporation. Any precipitation we're getting has been snow. We've had rain, but not enough to make a difference. We also had to disconnect our sump pump line that feeds the pond late last fall - something started leaking and we didn't get time to check on it - so that's also had an impact on our water level.

All great points and shows the importance of knowing your pond and surrounding elements that have an impact. Being relatively new to ponds my experience and knowledge, other than what I’ve learned from this forum, is based on an N=1 study.

 

[Magzire]

Strange I never have to top up my water level, only when clean filter. If you need to do it twice a week, has to be a leak.

 

[addy1]

Strange I never have to top up my water level, only when clean filter. If you need to do it twice a week, has to be a leak.

In the summer I add water daily, the bog plants use a lot. I lose a lot to evaporation, a lot of surface area.

I have not added water since I turned off the pump in November, but will need to start adding once I get the pond running again. The amount increases as it gets hotter.