My pond has a filter in the skimmer box and also two in the bio falls. Should I power wash them before putting them back in for the summer, hand how often should I wash them over the summer.
Washing filters
- Thread starter mheiderscheit
- Start date
mheidershscheit,
I am not clear as to what type of a "filter" you are referring to here. Do you mean a mechanical filter which simply strains out solid debris and detritus or is it some sort of a bio-converter?
If it functions as a bio-converter, then I would assume that you would only wish to rinse it off gently with some of your clean pond water to dislodge some of the trapped debris, but you would not want to scour it completely or harshly because that would remove the bacteria cultures that may still be living on the surface. You want to maintain them and keep them alive to perform their ammonia / nitrite reduction duties. The less you disturb these items, the better.
If it is just a mechanical filter for straining out solids, then it really is dependant upon how much solid matter that they collect. Clean them out before they get gunked up and reduce your water flow or anytime you have spare moments to do a PM (preventative maintenance) on the filter system. For a mechanical filter system the cleaning schedule would be based upon each individual pond system and you would determine this schedule simply through trial and error and monitoring / observation experiences. There is no set rule because every pond would be different and the size of the filter would be unique. You simply clean it when it is dirty and learn how long it takes for it to become dirty again to know when to repeat the cleaning cycle.
I think you will be able to identify when the water flow is diminishing just by observing your system. You'll know when it doesn't look appropriate to you and then you can check and clean your filters. Just keep it simple and you will be fine.
Gordy
I am not clear as to what type of a "filter" you are referring to here. Do you mean a mechanical filter which simply strains out solid debris and detritus or is it some sort of a bio-converter?
If it functions as a bio-converter, then I would assume that you would only wish to rinse it off gently with some of your clean pond water to dislodge some of the trapped debris, but you would not want to scour it completely or harshly because that would remove the bacteria cultures that may still be living on the surface. You want to maintain them and keep them alive to perform their ammonia / nitrite reduction duties. The less you disturb these items, the better.
If it is just a mechanical filter for straining out solids, then it really is dependant upon how much solid matter that they collect. Clean them out before they get gunked up and reduce your water flow or anytime you have spare moments to do a PM (preventative maintenance) on the filter system. For a mechanical filter system the cleaning schedule would be based upon each individual pond system and you would determine this schedule simply through trial and error and monitoring / observation experiences. There is no set rule because every pond would be different and the size of the filter would be unique. You simply clean it when it is dirty and learn how long it takes for it to become dirty again to know when to repeat the cleaning cycle.
I think you will be able to identify when the water flow is diminishing just by observing your system. You'll know when it doesn't look appropriate to you and then you can check and clean your filters. Just keep it simple and you will be fine.
Gordy
HTH
Howard
We really need to know what the filters are. Power washing is generally too vigorous.
They are a white mat. Not sure what they are made of, my guess is some sort of polyester blended material. They lie above my pump. There is also ante that catches most of the solid debris Sichuan as leaves.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I generally save any filter cleaning for either the middle of Winter when the biological bacteria are probably dead, or else the middle of Summer when the bacteria is thriving and quickly replaced. In my case, I have multiple bags of filter material, so I will only clean one bag at a time, then give it a few weeks for the bacteria to re-establish before cleaning another bag. By doing a slow cycle like this, I make a minimal impact on the overall health of my pond.