Tricks to having clearer water

[Karen]

nice link karen, I love my bog, it is working great.

addy1....Hi! I dont have a bog yet, but I'm working on adding one after seeing those in Houston...on your bog, do you have a pump cycling water through it or do you just let the water from the pond cycle through it. At the water garden center in Houston that I visited they suggested to add another pump to my pond just for the bog....I have a waterfall filter now and wonder if I need to add another pump. Or....if the water that is just circulation naturally would go through the "bog filter" on it's on? What do you have? Thanks...Karen

 

[HTH]

I have always wanted to have the main pond over flow into the bog. One could then have the pump at the clean end of the bog. The problem is that you need some way to handle extra water when the power goes off.

 

[addy1]

addy1....Hi! I dont have a bog yet, but I'm working on adding one after seeing those in Houston...on your bog, do you have a pump cycling water through it or do you just let the water from the pond cycle through it. At the water garden center in Houston that I visited they suggested to add another pump to my pond just for the bog....I have a waterfall filter now and wonder if I need to add another pump. Or....if the water that is just circulation naturally would go through the "bog filter" on it's on? What do you have? Thanks...Karen

My main pond pump goes directly into the bog, which then waterfalls into the pond. Pvc below the pea gravel.
I have a solid wall, the water must go through the gravel on the way to the pond waterfall.

I read the link and saw the bogs with the permeable wall, will look again, I thought they had water being pumped in not a passive flow only, but not sure lol

We have a different pump for the stream, 30 foot head.............lol

 

[addy1]

I have always wanted to have the main pond over flow into the bog. One could then have the pump at the clean end of the bog. The problem is that you need some way to handle extra water when the power goes off.

The only issue I see with that is water goes the easy route, it will just flow over the gravel not really through it, being well filtered by the medium.

That is one of the reasons they suggest in a bottom fed bog the gravel is higher than the level of the water to make it filter on the way to the pond, through the gravel and plant roots.

One of my ponds I had a bottom fed bog, small, that waterfalled into another bog of the same size. The second one, the water was introduced on the top of the gravel. The top layer did collect junk but usually just got clogged up. I changed it to a bottom drain so the water had to flow through the gravel, then out into the pond, but then you had to watch that the top layer did not get clogged. To clean that one, I had to flow water from the bottom up through the gravel to push the dirt out. The top one just opened the bottom drain and out the junk came, ran a hose on the top of the gravel to push the dirt out.

 

[addy1]

Karen
Ran out of time lmao, the stream pump is on a timer. We have a clear water pump feeding it, i.e. no junk from the bottom of the pond. Net over the input. The stream and mini ponds are sort of a passive bog, the water passes through some plants and a little pea gravel on its way to the pond. That gravel is covered with dirt / fine pond junk, will need a good vac job end of summer.

The pump can handle 115 feet of head with low power use, we also have it on a timer. Keep it flowing just a little when we leave town so if an obstruction occurs we won't lose all the pond water.

 

[HTH]

The only issue I see with that is water goes the easy route,

One could route the water through a skimmer and from there to the pipes that feed the bottom of the bog.

I was trying to say this.
When you are pumping water from a lower level to an upper level the upper level continue to flow water into the lower for a while after the pump stops. The lower level has to have enough capacity above its normal water level to handle this. If not it overflows and when the pump comes back on the lower level will be short water.

With the bog above the pond there is no problem because the pond has a much larger surface area then the bog.

 

[addy1]

Totally agree hth, even with my set up when I turn off the bog extra water flows into the pond. If the pond is near capacity it goes out the overflow pipe. Same with the stream, extra water goes into the pond when it is turned off. Always have to plan on the what happens when you turn something off to the water in that object, bog, pond, stream, even some filters.

 

[stroppy]

addy Ive been thinking about this for a while, i know you have a huge bog and low fish stock in comparison but will there ever come a time when you will need to clean out the bog ie fish poop surely must build up in it ?

 

[addy1]

addy Ive been thinking about this for a while, i know you have a huge bog and low fish stock in comparison but will there ever come a time when you will need to clean out the bog ie fish poop surely must build up in it ?

We can back flush it, if it ever gets clogged up. Most like with the size of it that will not occur for a long long time. I have leaf baskets to collect any large stuff.

My real low fish load has changed with the spawning that went on, lol. but they are all still small so bio load is still on the low side.

You can just sort of see the little ones at the waterfall feeding station lol need to use my polarized lens.

 

[stroppy]

oh my yes you do have a few more :lol: love that little plant with the white flowers

 

[j.w]

I like the way the water looks flowing over the edge of your bog. What is it you used around the edge of trim (the black stuff)? Is it rock?

 

[addy1]

oh my yes you do have a few more love that little plant with the white flowers

That is a variegated snow flake, it is one neat plant. The leafs break off and float around with a flower and roots..........looking for a new home.

 

[stroppy]

thank you addy ...i will have to look see if i can get it here in the uk

 

[addy1]

Can we ship across countries?????????? mine is growing great, I could send you some starters.

 

[stroppy]

im not sure if they allow plants into the uk ...would probably cost a fortune addy ...but thank you for your kind offer