Retrofit Bottom Drain

[Rick40]

Hi

Some of you mentioned that I should install a bottom drain in my pond. I found some directions on how I can make one. I do have  questions though. How do I go about hooking it up in my pond?   the pump ,and then into my Bio Filter.  The  way that I understand it is that the hose from the bottom drain is hooked to the pump then the junk from the bottom of the pond is then sucked through the pump and then into the bio filter .From there the clean water goes over the waterfall and back into the pond.   If that is correct how do I hook it up to my pump ? Do I have to take the plastic cover off of the back of  my pump,where the water is sucked in, and hook it up to the thread that is in the back of my pump? I have a Sunterra 1250 GPH pump. Will this slow down my pumps performance and or filtration if I do this ?

I also shut off 2 small spitters that I had T'd  off in between my pump and filter. I will now only turn these on when we have company over. The water that was coming out of these was not filtered. My waterfalls seem to be running stronger now.

My goal next year is to dig my pond deeper,buy a larger pump and filter.

Rick

[Tadpole]

The BD will need to be hooked up to the intake of your pump, providing that your pump's design allows this. More importantly, however, is that some sort of prefilter should be placed between the BD and the pump, otherwise you may cause damage to the pump.
In your case, you may need to consider a larger pump. 1250 gph is hardly sufficient to create enough suction for a BD of any size to function properly.

[HTH]

The  Koi pond at my last house was shaped a bit like a bathroom sink.   The far edge of the pond was about 18 inches above grade.

The bottom drain came up along side the pond but was about 6 inches shorter then the water level and capped with a friction fit cap.   To clean the pond bottom I removed the cap and watched while the water ran black and then turned clear.  Replaced the cap and I was done.

I am into DIY so I used all ABS sewer parts and a stainless hose clamp to attach the liner to the pipe.  The trick is to get the top of the inlet pipe at or below the 'natural' bottom of the pond.

In this picture we were putting the lilles down for the winter so you can not see the drain but you can see the pond shape.

[tranquility]

Ok...first off I have to say WOW HTH thats a heck of alot of lilies--my backs hurting just looking at all those pots...

  all but one of my bds are DIY--Here is a few pics of my goldfish ponds to give you the idea of how it works--You don't connect the bd directly to the pump or you'll burn up your pump from all the crud--it sits in the back of your machanical filter--this pond is using a submergible pump and it all is gravity fed so you have to make sure your filter top is the same level as your water line or it won't work....also remember NOT to glue the pvc pipes that are inside the pond--you will need to disconnect the bd in case it stops up---but, DO glue any pipes past the pond wall--don't want any leaks outside the pond....

 Step 1- My goldfish diy is made from a  bowl....if you use bowls you need to attach 4 3/4" pieces of pvc to the lip of the bowl so that the bowl sits off of the bottom of the pond--


attach the bowl to 3" pvc pipe so that it sits on the bottom of the pond--best if you know where the mulm accumates the most.....


the pvc goes thru the side of the pond liner--if you use a deeper machanical filter then I'd put the liner deeper down so you have less chance of breaking during bad weather-just make your hole 1 1/2 round-then add a bit of silacone around the end of the pvc pipe and stick it thru the hole--put a metal  hose clamp on the liner thats around the pvc pipe and screw it down tight-then put an extra piece of liner over the clamp so your fish don't hurt themselves on the metal...



then connnect the pvc to the front of your fliter box-this is just a half barrel but, my 2,000 gallon pond uses a commercial sink which works great for that size- I used bulkhead fittings to connect the filter box with the pvc pipe-



put your brushes and mats in the machanical filter and your pump goes in behind the flter material--if your useing a external pump then it would just go behind the machanical filter....

[tranquility]

no it will not slow down your pump--if anything it will help since your pump won't be sitting in the bottom of the pond....also you say  you have a bio filter--just run the hose from your machanical filter to your bio--that way the water will be sooo much cleaner once it has gone thru the mats and brushes that it will really improve the way your bio works--a dirty bio does not work nearly as well as a clean one....
Lawanna

[HTH]

I love to see other peoples setups.

Ok...first off I have to say WOW HTH thats a heck of alot of lilies--my backs hurting just looking at all those pots..

Just asked the physical therapist if will get 'well' enough to lift the pots again.  Said there were too heavy for a good back to manage.   Thinking about a mobile gantry crain



Like that but with larger wheels for outdoor use and much lighter.

[Jennie in MT]

Not sure if you have completed your project or if this link would be helpful.  Been in operation here for many years and love it!

http://www.thefarawayplace.com/pond/bottomdrain.html

[SarahPerry]

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