If you have a waterfall, that will do far more than an airstone, IMHO.
How much difference does your aeration make?
- Thread starter Meyer Jordan
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morewater
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Of course, most don't run a waterfall all winter long...................
I don't and can't have a waterfall running in the winter.
However, the O2 requirements are far lower in the winter than in the summer. But I assumed this thread was about summer use...
morewater
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So, you need either an aerator or a breather in the winter.
That was my entire point.
That was my entire point.
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It was intended to be when the pond is fully functional since many of the Forum members do not experience ice-over.
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I'll put it this way, my pond is around 11,000 gallon or 41 M^3, most of my active aeration came from my 24 inch waterfall which had 4 drops to the main pond and lots of flat sand stone that the water flowed over and under which seemed to provide adequate aeration to the pond. There was a leak, which I found in the waterfall course, so I'm rebuilding the whole thing. By the time I really got around to working on it the water took on peasoap algae with visibility around 3 inches. I moved the filterfall to a temporary position, and filled the tank with K1 and a aeration, built a 4 inch phoam pharxonator and the two have increased visibility from 3 inches to 3 feet in about 5 weeks; also I divided a 5 pounds of crushed oyster shell between the filterfall and the phoam praxonator. I'm a firm believer that the five most important thing for water quality are:
1. bottom drains to get poorly aerated water up off the bottom and getting it aerated.
2. a surface skimmer which clears that layer of disolved organics from the surface where it suffocates the water surface.
3. aeration whether by a bubbler or by flooming so the beneficial bacteria can oxydise the wastes
4. have enough carbonates in the water to keep the beneficial bacteria happy.
5. feed the nitrates to some plants;
now I wish I had taken water quality measurements before I started.
1. bottom drains to get poorly aerated water up off the bottom and getting it aerated.
2. a surface skimmer which clears that layer of disolved organics from the surface where it suffocates the water surface.
3. aeration whether by a bubbler or by flooming so the beneficial bacteria can oxydise the wastes
4. have enough carbonates in the water to keep the beneficial bacteria happy.
5. feed the nitrates to some plants;
now I wish I had taken water quality measurements before I started.