The Soothing Sound of Water

The world today is tough. Not only do you have to put in loads of hours in your work, so that you can earn the means to survive, but you have to cope with selfish bosses, irritating coworkers, bad office space, the traffic, the economy, and all that jazz. I think that this is reason enough to make your home a peaceful, beautiful, comfortable and well designed place, so that you can rest, think things through, and wake up the next day, ready to tackle every problem that comes your way. In this article I am not going to talk about what furniture to chose, how to color your walls, how to organize the lighting, what electrical equipment to choose, but I will talk about a certain aspect of home and garden design that has been around for centuries.  I will be talking about water features.

●     What are water features?

The term is confused with water properties, which are connected to the temperature and chemical structure of the water. Water features are numerous fountains and ponds that can be put either in your home or in your garden, depending on the product, of course (some are designed for indoor, and some for outdoor use). They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Fountains can be everything from traditional Greek statue figurines, to futuristic looking fountains that shoot beams of water that, when combined with the LED lighting that is installed within, look like a very cool light show.

Ponds can be simple – a whole in the ground with water in it, or they can come in the form a beautiful waterfall. Ponds, unlike most fountains, are ideal for keeping fish. You just have to make sure that you know the properties of the natural habitat your fish are used to by nature, and that the pond is big enough so that the fish have appropriate swimming space. This information is usually provided by the pet store where the fish are bought, or you can look for such information on the internet, of course. Then, it is all about making your pond have the same properties as the fish’s natural habitat, and there are products available in the market that will aid you in this process very much.

●     Benefits for you

Apart from the fact that you will be considered as a person with taste, a water feature in your home will help you enjoy relaxation to the fullest. When you sit down near it, after a hard day’s work, at first, you will simply look at it, admire its beauty and feel proud about yourself because you have managed to purchase such a beautiful thing. Then, as your eyes start to close, the sound of water moving will make you feel like you are in touch with nature and all its magnificence. You will fall into a quality sleep, and, when you wake up, you will be good as new. This is something that I can guarantee in light of my experience, and the experience of many other satisfied water feature owners. Furthermore, this kind of thing will add value to your home, if you plan on selling it at some point in your life, and it might even pay for itself at the end. Apart from everything else stated above, a water feature, graciously displayed in your garden, will most certainly make your house stand out from all other houses in the neighborhood, and it will turn the head of each of your neighbors, as they are passing by, which will certainly make you feel good, if nothing else.

To conclude, I have already said that in this article I will not talk about the basics of home design. Actually, each individual has specific needs, so there is no such thing as a perfect home design on the market. You have to improvise, work with what you can find, and hope that it will all turn out just as you have imagined it in the end. Take everything that you have read in this piece of text as something that should be considered as a finishing touch to your home design process. So, when you get everything you need, treat yourself to a water feature, because you will not regret it.

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OASE Aquamax Eco Pond Pump

OASE has been making the Aquamax range for about almost two decades now, and their products have only become increasingly efficient over the years. They are great at displacing the dirt and muck, and this really is their  main task - sucking muck from the pond and displacing it from the pump into the filter. The Aquamax Eco pump has a big, semi-globular cage with some generously sized holes – each hole is about 10mm in diameter. Anything getting sucked in there will get pumped up to the filter with ease.

Because it draws from such a large area, there is no place on the cage where the pump sucks very forcefully, therefore wildlife tend not to get sucked into this particular design – which means it is good for the environment as well.

This design has two pipes, an inlet and an outlet. The pump sucks from the surface of the domed cage, as well as from the inlet pipe, which allows it to draw from two locations at the same time, while remaining situated at the bottom of your pond. There is also an optional smaller cage that attaches to the inlet via pipe, so that you can then set the inlet to draw with varying degrees of power, leaving the big cage with the smaller percentage of draw power, or disabling the suction on one end entirely. This can be useful in the winter, when the water at the bottom is relatively warm, you can set the part attached to the skimmer to draw at full power, drawing of the surface, so that the water at the bottom of the pond stays pretty much at the same temperature.

The double suction feature especially comes in handy if you have a crescent moon shaped or elongated pond – like a sort of canal, because you can draw from both ends (by attaching a length of a hose to the inlet pipe and draw it out to the desired area while the main apparatus remains on the other end). The inlet can also be attached to the skimmer, so you can actually suck water from the top of your pond, sucking away all the filth and muck, the dead leaves, dead bugs, small twigs and other materials that eventually accumulate on the surface, while at the same time drawing from the bottom of your pond as well. So by setting it fifty-fifty, you can maintain a steady suction on both the surface and the bottom.

As far as what pipework to attach to the inlet and outlet of your pond pump, using a big hose is recommended, so that you have the maximum amount of water being pumped out without pressure. Ultimately you will get more water coming down your cascade or more water being pushed through your filter.

            The Aqua Max range carries a 5 year guarantee, and you can be sure that you will still be using them for years after the warranty has expired. Most of the time, when people experience a problem with one of these pumps it is simply neglected. They install the pump and then just leave it laying at the bottom for years, without ever giving it a second thought, so it eventually gets all clogged up. Periodical cleaning of the Aquamax Eco will ensure that the sturdy little pond pump keeps on chugging along, as good as new, for years and years.

            The running costs on these pumps are really low, even the Aquamax ECO 16000, which pumps 16000 liters an hour, runs at only 170 watts. Eco models 12000 and 16000 also have “Seasonal Flow Control” (SFC) that adapts all year round to the relevant seasonal changes within the pond, and enables a circulation that is dependent on the water temperature.

They are not cheap to buy, their price range is from $900 to $1150, but in the long run they will save you a lot of money on running costs (since they will last for years with little maintenance you can expect great savings over time), and you don’t have to buy a new one every few years like some of the cheap models found in hardware stores.

So in conclusion, you get a very functional, high quality garden pond pump, with enhanced sucking capabilities, that is also very eco-friendly and saves you a ton of money in the long run. These Aquamax pumps are just one of those things for which you might have to save up and carefully plan to purchase in between various everyday expenses, but then ten years from the time of purchase you will look at the good job it’s still performing and mutter to yourself that it was money well spent.

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Garden Pond Filters 101

An indispensable element of sustaining a healthy ponds is by utilizing garden pond filters to keep pond water clear and sanitized. There are multiple factors continuously doing their best to turn your pond into a murky bed of debris. These factors include decaying grass, sticks, and leaves; fish excrement, and detrimental compounds like ammonia.

A dirty pond is not a pleasing sight, and if there are plants, Koi and other creatures trying to survive in there, hygienic water is vital to their continued existence and health. The best way of guaranteeing sanitary water is by using a verified garden-pond filter, or a number of pond filters together.

Now that you understand how important it is to have a superb working pond filter, you must decide which type of filter suits your pond best. Making the right choice may seem a bit perplexing; however, pond filters are classified into several key groups. First, we will decipher how to select your garden pond filter.

-Garden Pond Filter Shopping Tips

1. First, you must consider how much water needs to be filtered. If your filter is not large enough, you will inevitably have to worry about algae problems, which can turn the water environment of your pond into a hazard for the creatures living there.

2. Check vigilantly for the capacity the filter can cope with. You will find volume-measuring devices that are available through the Internet or at your local pond equipment shop to decide what size is most appropriate.

3. In essence, it is better to have a garden-pond filter that is too large than one that is too small, so if you become a bit confused always select the larger one.

-Different Types of Garden Pond Filters

Pond Skimmers
Skimmers are garden pond filters, also known as mechanical filters that require some type of screen, basket, or net to trap waste. Skimmers are normally installed around the surface of a garden-pond and drags in the top-layer of water, filtering-out floating waste like grass, sticks, and leaves. Skimmers are vital for preventing free flowing debris from ultimately plummeting to the floor of a garden-pond and putrefying. The amount of debris floating within a pond will establish how frequently the filter will be detached-from the skimmer to get rid of debris.

Biological Filters
Biological filters consist of useful bacteria inside the actual filter that sanitizes the pond water at a molecular level. In order to decompose ammonia within the fish-excrement, a biological-filter will be required. Biological filters metamorphoses destructive ammonia into nitrates, that then turns into a form of food for vegetation inside the pond.

-Summary

Mechanical filters with a pond skimmer are quite efficient; however, it must be installed on the exterior of the garden-pond because it can occupy such a wide area. Therefore it is best suited for large garden-ponds. Many people prefer a combination of mechanical and biological filters. The best thing to do is to consider where you have space to install your garden pond filter and how you want the outcome to appear.


If you want to find out more, check out our pond filtration guide:
http://www.pondquip.com.au/pages/Pond-Filtration-Guide.html

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PondQuip's Do's and Don'ts

For more and detailed info, see PondQuip web store for the latest updates on Pond Supplies, Pond Equipment, construction, design and maintenance.

• You have to follow the instructions that come with the pond pumps, pond lights and pond filters to ensure they are compatible with the pond being constructed, and with each other.

• It is better to purchase a larger pump/filter than what is required for the pond volume – as fish grow and breed, larger filtration and pumping equipment will cope with excess nutrients and save subsequent upgrading.

• Pumps (such as OASE, EDEN, ClearPond and AquaGarden) and filters must be run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week as this will support the beneficial bacteria colony living in the filter and aid in the breakdown of waste and excess nutrients.

• The entire volume of the pond should pass through the filter every 1-2 hours and more often if there are heavy stocks of fish and large fish in the pond.

• A filter may take up to 8 weeks to develop the beneficial bacteria colony. If a UVC (Ultra Violet Clarifier) is used it should not be turned on for the first 3-4 weeks to allow the bacteria to develop.

• When starting a new pond or adding fish, bacteria kick starters or boosters such as Clearpond Biostarter and Clearpond Bacteria can be added to the pond and directly into the filter to start the bacteria colonisation process and to boost the levels of existing bacteria.

• Do not run a UVC without water running through it as the heat produced from the lamp can damage its plastic surrounds and perish O-rings.

• It is best to use the largest diameter hose available and a general rule of thumb is to use the same size hose that matches the outlet on the pump. Friction loss calculators should be used when water is to be pumped over long distances (5 metres plus) or to large heights.

• Ball valves should not be used on pond pumps. When a pump is to be mounted externally it should be placed below the water level so the intake line is always flooded, so if the power ever fails it can restart easily.

• If the pump produces more flow than needed, it is better to install a T-piece and valve in-line to return the excess water to the pond rather than using just a valve to restrict the pumps flow.

• Do not concrete in hoses or electrical cables as access may be required in the future.

• Use an underlay when installing a flexible pond liner to protect it, and remove all sharp sticks and stones etc. from the hole before installing the liner and underlay.

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