Help me design an efficient but small filtration system for my pond

[Ethan25]

Please?



Here's the deal and scenario. Two years ago I installed a bottom drain, aerated with a 20x25 liner to get a 9x13x4 foot deep (sloping to 4 feet) pond. I have a skimmer. I have a filter pit. Skimmer is that Laguna large style skimmer that can hold brushes, baskets and such. Filter pit is small, because, well, I don't have much space. It actually ended up bigger than I planned for, because, well, I wanted it to.

My bottom drain, 4", feeds into the filter pit right behind the pond. It goes through a 4" ball valve, to a 55 gallon barrel. This barrel is fitted with an Answer 325. This feeds through a 3" line to the 30 gallon blue barrell, upflowing with K1, fitted with an air diffuser. I have a pondmaster AP40 airpump on this. This then feeds to a Sequence 5800 pump...way too big of a pump for my system, but this was on purpose. I have a ball valve following that, that goes into an Aqua 58 watt UV, then to a Laguna filter falls that usually has quilt batting and some japanese style filtration matts that do well with polishing.

But, here's the deal. As the bottom drain has seperated from the liner, I have convinced the lovely wife to let me buy a new bottom drain, and a new 25x30 liner to fix it. I plan on removing the old skimmer and putting in a small skimmer that can feed to a leaf basket primer to a Sequence 3600 gph pump in the filter pit. I have the bottom drain already as a friend bought it for me. Nothing fancy, just a 4" bottom drain. I'd like to have that 3600 gph pump pump to the water fall Laguna filter. It does a solid job with fines.

My bottom drain I would like to run into the pit still (can't redo pit, remember). It runs in with a 4" line, and I thought I'd run it to a 55 gallon drum, fitted with an ANswer 410 (can possibly purchase from someone), and run 2800 gph through my bottom drain instead of the current 2100. This would then run to another 55 gallon barrell (replaceing the 30 gallon), and be filled with K1 as a fluid bed. This then would run to my sequence 5800 pump, to UV, to filter falls. I may have to do a UV bypass to minimize the flow through it.

questions:

my best option with what I have?
I have to minimize cost. I have received $200 from a friend to go toward the project, have a bottom drain, and a 3" ball valve for the skimmer line. I have some 2" ball valves lying around and some 2" and 4" PVC.
What would you suggest I do?

Thanks,
ethan

[Ethan25]

Other thoughtsL

I have had no water quality issues in the last year, and have seen tremendous growth of my fish. I don't mind doing water changes. My ground is completely level, everywhere. There is no slope to work with for removal of wastes and drainlines. I empty my settlement chamber via Pondmaster pump, and vacuum the bottom once a week. It's worked fine, and I don;t mind it. I have considered making the whole pit a fluid bed, with a barrel in the middle acting as a settlement chamber...kindof like a DIY nexus. I just don't know. Going a foot and a half deeper allows me to be 4.5 feet along the sides, at least, and 5.5 feet in the middle, at least. That means going from 2800 gallons to 4800 gallons (minimal). I wouldn't be doing it normally, but since the liner is having issues aroudn the bottom drain, and the lovely wife has allowed a new liner, I figure, why not?

I just want to make sure my filtration can keep up. I have two TPRs as well, 2".

[Ethan25]

Here's a plan I prepared:

[schildkoi]

OK Ethan,
You have a good start in your design but the devil is in the details. You need a waterfall bypass. The TPR placement is OK but you would want those on a 3-way valve verses a simple split so you can run or the other. You need isolation valeves on both sides of the pumps if they are located below water elevation.

As long as you are changing the skimmer I would cnsider fitting it with 4" lines to gravity feed to you filter area. Even if you choose direct suction at this point, you coulkd easily change to a second filter systen like the current one planned for you bottom drain (gravity feed system). There are many more "details" as well but your basic concept should work for that size pond providing your sticking levels are comenserate (which I doubt)

Steve

[Ethan25]

Quote: Originally Posted by schildkoi OK Ethan, You have a good start in your design but the devil is in the details. You need a waterfall bypass. The TPR placement is OK but you would want those on a 3-way valve verses a simple split so you can run or the other. You need isolation valeves on both sides of the pumps if they are located below water elevation. As long as you are changing the skimmer I would cnsider fitting it with 4" lines to gravity feed to you filter area. Even if you choose direct suction at this point, you coulkd easily change to a second filter systen like the current one planned for you bottom drain (gravity feed system). There are many more "details" as well but your basic concept should work for that size pond providing your sticking levels are comenserate (which I doubt) Steve

I have since come up with a few ideas, that I'd love to run by you Steve....

I agree about the 3 way valve instead of the split. Where would I run a waterfall bypass to? Just into a discharge directly back into the pond? Is this to keep the skimmmer going while accessing or working with the falls?

I had thought of running a 3" line from the new skimmer rather than the 2" line it came with. Is 4" necessary, if I don't want too much flow going to it? I have a 3" ball valve in case I want to run that to my filter pit as well, enabling that to go to the settlement chamber as well, or just to the pit for ease of access.

I have toyed with the idea of leaving my pump for the skimmer near the rear of the skimmer with a leaf basket, and running that from there to the waterfalls.

I have teh ability to get an additional Answer 325 for under $200. If I take half of my filter pit, and put in a drop in liner that is around 165 gallons, I will be able to put two Answer 325s in there, and run approximately 4,000 gallons through my one aerated bottom drain, returning that through two, 2" tprs.

All issues, I realize, can be solved with a larger pit, but that just isn't possible in my given situation. I plan on polishing the water with a 55 gallon barrel filled with K1, as well as matala in the Filter falls. At this point, I am increasing water by 80% if I do this, and not planning on increasing my fish load. This will decrease stocking level from 165 gallons a fish to near 400, as I am getting rid of a few....

Ethan

[Ethan25]

Here's a few plans I came up with. I would prefer to use two bottom drains if possible, as it will enable me to get better coverage for the pond floor.

[Ethan25]

here is my new idea,



and I would like to use containers like these for my two chambers,
http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/var...iant%5Fid=6104

but at this point, they are so expensive, not necessarily the price, but to also ship to me.

I thought about having a drop in liner made, but this may prove too difficult as I'd need to have bulkheads to transfer water throughout.

tough stuff when you have little space. Pond will be around 5,000 gallons with filtration. I want to get the pond down to 750 gallons a fish by next fall before they arrive.

Ethan

[Eugeneg]

questions:

my best option with what I have?
I have to minimize cost. I have received $200 from a friend to go toward the project, have a bottom drain, and a 3" ball valve for the skimmer line. I have some 2" ball valves lying around and some 2" and 4" PVC.
What would you suggest I do?

Thanks,
ethan[/quote]
Your taste in koi far exceeds your pond planning.You should go 6ft deep
sides nearly vertical or cemment block and vertical 7000 gal with two bottom drains openings left for two Nexus filters for the futurewhen you can afford them.
Regards
Eugene

[Ethan25]

Quote: Originally Posted by Eugeneg questions: my best option with what I have? I have to minimize cost. I have received $200 from a friend to go toward the project, have a bottom drain, and a 3" ball valve for the skimmer line. I have some 2" ball valves lying around and some 2" and 4" PVC. What would you suggest I do? Thanks, ethan

Your taste in koi far exceeds your pond planning.You should go 6ft deep
sides nearly vertical or cemment block and vertical 7000 gal with two bottom drains openings left for two Nexus filters for the futurewhen you can afford them.
Regards
Eugene[/quote]


Thanks, Eugene, I appreciate it! I am a lowly librarian working in a job that doesn;t pay a ton. I have a daughter and mostly stay at home wife (personal decision), so I don't have a ton to spend, but lots of ambition!

I want to actually go down to 5.5 foot on the sides if possible, slope the bottom dramatically to 6.5 feet and then have one bottom drain run to the pit. I don't know if I will ever be able to afford multiple nexus units, to be honest. I have no slope to my yard whatsoever, so no way to gravity the waste away.

??

I don;t mind the idea of using two bottom drains, though.

[Ethan25]

also, the future space I may consider doing something additional would be in the garage. I can possibly have a 3600 gph sequence pump into the garage where there's room for a trickle tower, and then have that gravity feed back to the pond.