Existing Koi Pond at House I Bought.....

[sissy]

fishin noticed you pondmaster airpump do you know how much psi it gives out

 

[fishin4cars]

Sissy, I had to round the original box up. It states 2900 cu.in/min. I can tell you I have three large stones connected to it and all three have to have regulator valves to control the air flow as this pump pumps MORE than I need for certain. iI found mine at a pet store that was going out of business and picked it up for $45 the marked price on the box is $139 but again that was from a pet store, You should be able to find one for less at a discount pond supply company.

 

[sissy]

I have been looking but most like that run 189 and up so you got a steal turn your back awhile I'll drive down there and snatch it maybe you will not notice:lol::lol::lol:maybe anyway

 

[krazyrabbit]

I made this 5 minute video this morning to try and show a quick back flushing of my filter. If you do something similar with the valve and periodically back flush your pea gravel you should really not need to break down the filter for long preriods of time. On suggestion I would make in your situation is. Since you are using pea gravel for your filter, simple run a dowel rod, piece of PVC or similar dowin in to the gravel bed carefully to help loosen the gravel that may have packed over the last year. No need to stir just run the pipe or dowel in and out in several spots before or while back flushing. this helps regain flow rates, loosens pockets of trapped dtrius/trash, and allows for new bacteria to form. I hope the video helps in some explaining. Please excuse my inexperience in videoing. that was my first attempt at a How to video, and only my third video to ever post in public.

Thanks so much for this video! Reading about a setup is instructional, but for me seeing how it's setup helps me understand how mine is going to be installed. Quick question, where did you purchase the T for the filter for the back flush?

 

[krazyrabbit]

Krazyrabbit - Thanks for the reply. I have been getting supplies from Fin & Feather at

Fin & Feather Pet Center Inc.
5208 Lakeside Avenue
Richmond, VA 23228
(804)-262-6681

The store at the above address also has pond plants. Not the least expensive place....

Also, big pond place at Ashland Berry Farm, 12607 Old Ridge Road, Beaverdam, VA 23015, but that is quite a drive from Chesterfield. I got my filter media from these guys. They also have lots of fish for sale.

Regards,
Dan

No kidding about the high prices at Fin & Feather! I went there to check out what they had and the pond liner for the size I'm thinking about was over $500! I found the same size online, the same Firestone brand, for about $120.

I might have to check out the Berry Farm on a weekend sometime, it's not that far. Do they have a good selection?

 

[fishin4cars]

Thanks so much for this video! Reading about a setup is instructional, but for me seeing how it's setup helps me understand how mine is going to be installed. Quick question, where did you purchase the T for the filter for the back flush?

Either lowes or home depot, Got the valve there too. If you look close in the video I installed a one way valve just before the tee, this makes the water drain back out the drain line instead of back to the pump when I unplug the pump. Only thing is you have to make sure and install it in the direction the water flows. LOL doesn't work the other way around. Also on the tee I used a directional flow tee, this helps to eliminate some of the restriction of the water flow flowing from the pump into the filter. A true "T" doesn't work as well.

 

[addy1]

Dry fit, and someone here put arrows and lines on the pvc to make sure they fit it back the correct way when they glued it.

Same with the valve.

Saves going oh poop lol

 

[RHKoi]

New pump is in!

Well, things are coming along. Today I received my new Pondmaster 2400 gph mag drive pump. I swapped out the pump and the waterfall was still just a trickle.

Time to dig to the bottom of the bog to see what's going on. After removing 2/3 cubic yard of pea gravel in anything I could find - 9 5-gal buckets, two 13-gal trash cans, and anything else that could hold rocks, I finally got to the bottom of the waterfall pit.

The filter media that was on top of the manifold was completely disintegrated. I got all of the that junk out and looked ath the discharge manifold. What the installer did (in 2003) was make a rectangle of 1.5" PVC and cut 1" wide slits in the PVC for the water to pass through. Problem is that the pea gravel is smaller than the slits and the pipe was completely filled with pea gravel, making it impossible for decent water flow through the manifold.

Off to Home Depot for a 10' stick of 1.5" PVC and some fittings. I made a new and much larger manifold which is a larger rectangle with a stub up the middle, increasing the length by 50%. Instead of slits, I drilled about 150 3/16" holes all through the PVC pipes. These holes are smaller than the pea gravel. I then cut out the old manifold and connected the new manifold. Before tossing all the rock back in, I plugged the pump in and the holes all had a 3" stream of water squirting out. Seemed about right, so I tossed all of the pea gravel back (unwashed).

I then fired up the pump - PERFECT! The basin filled quickly and spilled over quickly making a loud and full waterfall of water rushing over. I like it when a plan comes together.

I then added some Pond Diggers brand bacteria and we're up and running.

After I get my plants next week, I'll post some pics.

Will get my oyster shells tomorrow.

Thanks for the tips.
Dan

 

[fishin4cars]

Considering the situation I think you did about the best thing you could. Good idea not washing the pea gravel, You should still have a good bacteria colony in there as long as it didn't dry out, which I doubt in the containers you used. The added bacteria supplement was good planning, I would recommend not adding fish right now while your filter re-stabilizes. If your going to add fish your filter should be completely stable in two to three weeks. once you have your plants added and it calms down you should be back to smooth sailing. Love to see those pics!:bye2:

 

[addy1]

One thing I did also our slots in the pvc, a lot smaller than 1/4 inch are pointing down towards the liner, This helps disperse the water and keep the any tiny gravel from plugging the lines.

Glad you got yours fixed rhkoi, bogs do a good job if they are set up right. I just picked up even more plants for mine. The ones from last year are doing a great job growing.

 

[RHKoi]

Duh! That would have been a lot easier! Wish I would have thought about the downward-facing slots. Oh well, at least that job is behind me. Was all worth it when I looked out my kitchen window this morning and saw how much water was coming over the waterfall.

My pond store gets its plants a week from today - looking forward to greening up the top bog.

Dan

 

[sissy]

I got some already from koi farm in NC but want to travel up to springdale water gardens in greenville VA I saw there website and they have a lot of really nice stuff and great prices too .They are about 2 and a half hours from my house and they have several ponds and sell just about everything

 

[addy1]

Duh! That would have been a lot easier! Wish I would have thought about the downward-facing slots. Oh well, at least that job is behind me. Was all worth it when I looked out my kitchen window this morning and saw how much water was coming over the waterfall.

My pond store gets its plants a week from today - looking forward to greening up the top bog.

Dan

Glad it is working for you Dan, if you ever (hopefully not) need to work on it again face the openings down, keeps the pea gravel from getting into the pipes.

 

[koiguy1969]

Dry fit, and someone here put arrows and lines on the pvc to make sure they fit it back the correct way when they glued it.

Same with the valve.

Saves going oh poop lol

that may have been me you speak of (ive posted that more than once!) ...mark all the joints and just reallign the marks as you glue........could save you a major headache fixing things, after it's glued!

 

[addy1]

yep it was you! just could not remember lol