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Ponds & Aquatic Plants

External Vs. Submersible Pumps!!!

16 years ago

i plan to make a 1000 gal pond w/goldfish maybe koi w/a 1ft stream and water fall and was wondering if an external was better than a submersible pump.

i figure i need a flo of at least 1500 gph for the waterfall and stream but i cant seem to find an external pump w/that little power most of the externals r like 3000gph and up

What should i choose external or submersible????

Plz tell me what pumps u guys use too and what pump u recommed

Thanks!!!

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Comments (4)

sleeplessinftwayne
16 years ago
Hey there. Your pond at 1000 gallons is kind of on the edge when it comes to external or submersible pumps. There are a lot of people who will tell you one way or the other is the only way to go but to tell the truth unless you are OC it is not going to make a huge difference. (Just kidding about the OC, folks. I know you just like things to be done right.) I like the external pumps because they are easy to access and most of the junky stuff is out of sight. One of these days when I don't have any more changes I want to make and I am totally happy with the aesthetics I may put one in. I have been using submersible pumps since I got hooked and I can't say they have been a problem for me. I am using an 1865gph pump from Harbour Frieght as the main pump with a backup pump of the same. I also have a 1500gph Laguna pump that I use for my UV light with a cutout to reduce the flow to something the UV can actually use. I have several smaller pumps that would do the job just as well but I haven't gotten around to changing them out. I like the fact I can move the pump and prefilter around to satisfy my urge to change things and they are nowhere as expensive as an external pump. They are not likely to overheat and I don't find them particularly difficult to access. Oh, my pond is currently 1000 gallons. I keep swearing I am going to enlarge it. When it gets to 2000 gallons, I will be sure to have saved up for an external pump. Sandy
jcjcjcx
16 years ago
Infernokoi, are you planning to put in a bottom drain?
Sandy, do you have a bottom drain in your pond?

I'm in a similiar situtation where I'll be rebuilding my pond this spring (my current pond is 600 gal, I'm thinking of going at least double).
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infernokoi
Original Author
16 years ago
i want to put in a bottom drain but how would u drain the vortex if its suppose to be buried at pond level?
jcjcjcx
16 years ago
I came across this website. Might have some of the answers you're looking for.

This whole setup is new to me. (I'm used to having a submersible pump in the pond leading up to my biofilter behind my waterfall).
I'll be reading this for the first time, but it looks like they have some links describing the vortex, etc. in detail.

http://www.aquaart.com/pondprep.html
http://www.aquaart.com/triconeconfig.html

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.aquaart.com/pondprep.html

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