Waterflow

[Gomer14]

It seems to me that the waterflow that is going over my two waterfalls appears to be less than in previous years. Do pond pumps lose their power over the course of a few years? I know that there are probably several factors that could cause this.Such as clogged filters. I just cleaned my filter media that is in my pond with some pond water. And i didn't notice anything different in the waterflow after I was done I am using a Sunterra 1250 GPH Pump and Bio .Filter. My pond is about 1000 gallons in size.

 

[addy1]

I would not think it would in a few years, mine in arizona have been running for almost 10 years now. You might want to make sure the impellers have not gotten junk on them, since it is a submersible.

Mine in arizona are external pumps though.

 

[fishin4cars]

some pumps will do that before they go out, submersible are far worse than external, But check the impeller like Addy suggested, I have found hair, algae, and even plant roots around the shaft and once cleaned off ran fine. Also if your using small flex tubing Try blowing them out with high pressure or using a tubing brush, I've witnessed some flex tubing that started getting build up inside and slowly reduced flow rate.

 

[Gomer14]

Thank you both for the advise. I will check my tubing and the impeller sometime this week. So basically what you are telling me is that external pump would be the way to go if i was to upgrade to a different pump.

 

[koiguy1969]

unplug and replug your pumps power a few times that will often get them pumping full force again..sometimes i have to do that myself. usually only takes a few times....it may be freeing up a partial plug or what ever , but it does seem to kick the pump in the butt and get it going!

 

[fishin4cars]

Thank you both for the advise. I will check my tubing and the impeller sometime this week. So basically what you are telling me is that external pump would be the way to go if i was to upgrade to a different pump.

No, I'm not saying that at all. LOL external ponds usually last longer yes, but at the same time they can cost considerably more, may use more or less electricity, and the system may need to be redesigned for them, A pump room or filter room with a drain, This can be a big expense. For example my pond, It's designed for internal pumps, External would mean total piping & plumbing and filter relocation, building a pump house or pump room to protect it from the elements, redesigning my gardens.. LOL, I could replace many many many submersible pumps for cheaper than doing that! That is something you would want to look at before making that kind of decision of change.

 

[DrDave]

External pumps make noise and no matter how hard you try, you cannot get away from it. Submersibles are absolutly silent so you can enjoy the peace and tranquility of your pond.

 

[addy1]

Thank you both for the advise. I will check my tubing and the impeller sometime this week. So basically what you are telling me is that external pump would be the way to go if i was to upgrade to a different pump.

I have a es4500, can barely hear it run. Some like external pumps, some like submersibles. I stick with external ones. My plumbing etc is set up for the external pump.

 

[taherrmann4]

Internal vs external is a matter of opinion. I have an external that I am very satisfied with and there is a slight humm but I don't even notice anymore with the waterfall going it drowns out the slight humm. You will need a pump house as I call mine, about the size of a dog house with easy access to pull it out in the winter or service it. I went with an external so that I could get the flow rate that I needed to run my waterfall, and two creeks off one pump.

 

[Shdwdrgn]

My original pond came to me with 3/4" pipe fed by a 3000gph pump. With what I know now, I wouldn't even use that small of pipe for a 1000gph pump. However because of the small pipe size, it was very sensitive to restrictions in the line. Over the years, I noticed that during the Summer, the water flow would decrease quite a bit. Since the lines were buried, I could only guess that algae was building up in the pipe. After a couple weeks of freezing temperatures, the water flow would shoot back up again.

 

[Gomer14]

Thank you all very much. i flushed out my tubing with my garden hose. This seemed to help a little bit with my water flow.My pond tubing is 3/4". For now I will stick with a internal pump. Maybe a different brand of a pump would help me. I have read some bad reviews about sunterra pumps,but considering my whole pond kit originally cost me $100.00 I am not complaining about it. I got my moneys worth. out of it . I did have to buy a new bio filter last year because me being clumsy Oops..

 

[CometKeith]

Hi Gomer14, I have a sunterra pump too. They sell replacement pre-filters. It might be that yours is so gummed up that it can't be cleaned effectively anymore. I am thinking of replacing mine as well because it constantly needs cleaning. Also you might try setting it up a little higher off the bottom if it is pulling in a lot of sediment.

 

[koidaddy]

In response to pumps. If you can't figure yours out and are looking to replace it, I would go external. I was using some pondmaster mag drive pumps 2-1800's and a 2400. The 2400 was pretty warn and made alot of noise, and this was submersed. It was also a PITA to cleen the prefilter/baffles on mine. I just bit the bullitt and purchased a Sequence 750 series 4200 pump with primer basket. Best money I have spent to date on my pond, @$310. My pond is clearer then its been in a while and I am using alot less electricity(1/8 hp pump) and it doesn't make much noise at all. My wife ask if it was actually running.

 

[addy1]

Yep my hp is around that also koidaddy, would have to go and look.

gomer I ran 2 inch lines for the pumps, a lot less restriction and head pressure on the pump.