Filters: The Life of Your Pond

Below is an out of water bio-mechanical filter system.  I do not regularly advertise for vendors, however, if you wish to purchase any of the following filters, you may use your favorite search engine on the net and search for "pond filter."    The advantage to land based filters is ease of cleaning.  You do not have to get into, or reach into your pond to get to the filter.  Less disturbance of the water too.  This particular filter starts at $163.00.  Too rich for my blood.

The filter below is another example of an out of water filter, however, this one utilizes the UV light kit.  Basic works is the same though.  Cost of this unit starts at about $95.00.  This is a very low end price however and if your pond is of any size, so is the price.

Pictured below are the UV lights that there is such a roar about.   Beware however, these systems take a lot of maintenance and money that could have been better spent.  The idea behind the UV is reasonable, but without real careful tolerances and setup, and monitoring the age of the bulb, the system just does not work effectively.  Supposedly, and under the right conditions, UV will kill virus, bacteria, and "Green Water."  I have consulted with a number of persons using this system and it is about half and half whether the money and time was well spent.   I do not personally use them.  Starting price is around $105.00.

My Personal Favorite and Advice

Build your own.  That is right, build your own.  It is not only easy, but cost effective and works as well or better than commercial models.  I built two in water bio-mechanical filters for lack of land space, and my water is crystal clear.  I must state however that I do use Daphnia, Amphipods, and Hydra as well.  I am not in the commercial business of selling these filters, but if you are interested, email me.

A friend of mine built a filter system similar to the above top two models out of a 30 gallon plastic trash can, rocks of various sizes and a piece of filter media.  PVC pipe and some glue from the local lumber company and he was up and running.  He only cleans his once per year, drains it during the Winter, and his water is also very clear.  He does have some filamentous algae, but I am working on him to get the critter's.

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