Pond Filter

The primary job of a pond filter is to break down the pollutants and toxic materials in the water and render them harmless. If the pond has fish, these impurities may result from the waste that they excrete. Impurities also result from decaying plants or other organic materials that may fall into the pond.

When you install a pond in your yard and stock it with fish and living creatures, you are taking responsibility for them. If their environment becomes dirty and polluted, they can't relocate to change their environment. You've trapped them in a closed system. Therefore, its incumbent on you, as their caretaker,  to make sure that their biosphere is as livable as you can make it. If you're not prepared to take that responsibility, you should probably rethink the idea of stocking your pond with live animals.

A pond in your back yard can be simple or elaborate. Browsing through garden books at your local library or bookstore will reveal tons of beautiful pond designs that will give you enjoyment year after year. If you are handy and ambitious, you can choose to build the pond yourself. Alternatively, you can choose to farm out either all or part of the construction. As far as pond accessories, you'll find all you need by searching various garden sites and garden supply sites on the Internet or taking a visit to your neighborhood garden shop.

Just as your liver cleanses the impurities from your body, a pond filter cleanses the water in your pond. In nature, this is normally not a problem as the water that a fish lives in is constantly replenished by the moving nature of the water. New water constantly replaces old and refreshes the environment. A pond, however, is much like a fish tank. It is a closed environment. And all impurities that that are dumped into it will remain there and build up unless they are removed. The pond filter is the agent that acts to remove these impurities and, much the same as your liver, the better you care for it, the better it can do its job of keeping the pond water clean.

Pond skimmers are filtering devices that use a pump to clean surface scum. It works by pulling water through it's opening and through the rear which is covered by a mesh or wire basket. This basket is able to capture a large portion of the debris such as leaves, branches, etc. before it can fall to the base of the pool. Although skimmers are very useful, they are no substitute for a proper pond filtering system.

Ponds come in two basic styles, external and submersible. Even though submersed pond filters have come a long way in terms of quality and power, at this point external pond filters are significantly more powerful and suitable for large ponds. The major drawback with external pond filters is that they can be a bit of an eyesore. Fortunately, strategic placement of shrubs and bushes can help to hide them from normal view. In most cases, in-pond submersed pond filters are suitable for smaller sized ponds.

When you purchase a pond filter, you will likely see a rating called "GPH" on the pump. This stands for the number of gallons of water per hour that the pump can handle. The GPH formula is designed to help homeowners choose the correct sized pump and filter for their pool. Different sized ponds require different GPH ratings. It's probably best to get a pump with a higher rating than your measurements dictate. As your pump ages and as debris builds up in it, invariably it will begin to perform with less efficiency. By planning ahead and purchasing a pump with a greater GPH than your pond actually needs, when it begins to slightly slow down due to debris, it will still have enough power to adequately filter your pond.

Your pond filter manual should give you maintenance instructions on how often to clean the media. But how often you clean the filter is mainly a function of the number of fish you have stocked in your pond. Naturally, the more fish you have, the more waste they will be dumping into the water. With no place to go, the waste will continue to accumulate until it reaches unhealthy levels. The purpose of the pond filter is to prevent it from ever reaching that level.