The Duck-ponics Experiment - Raising minnows

[Miss Lydia]

why don't they post their prices next to the pump

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

 

[Joycats]

Has anyone here ever tried a regular sump pump in their duck pond? I have the "Pond" pump and a large homemade filter but we need something more. I'm thinking the sump pump would be able to handle the sludge and stuff without clogging and keep the water moving through the filters better. Right now I'm draining and refilling the pond weekly and that isn't going to work this winter. Just wondering ..... I'm going to add another filter too. Since I've added quite a few ducks this summer.

 

[Wifezilla]

I have not tried a sump pump.

This year I am only letting 2 brooder raised babies play in the pond. It now has an upper pond and a lower pond. I am raising LOTS of rosy minnows and string algae. Duckweed has been slow to grow, but I am still getting quite a lot of free feed out of the ponds to give the ducks.

Next year the stock tank pond will be fired back up with some modification. I will posts some "food pond" pics later.

 

[dumb_cluck]

Pix?

 

[duck_shepherdess]

I would worry about a sump pump overheating. Aren't they designed to deal with temporary flooding after rain and whatnot? If you want it to run all the time I would check and see if that will cause problems.

 

[Joycats]

Quote:
That's my only concern, which is why I was asking if anyone had tried it yet. The sump pumps are designed to work only when water is over them, if water recedes then the pump turns off. But in a pond it would always be covered. They seem to be less expensive than the typical pond pumps which I find I still have to replace every 1 1/2 years or so. If I have to replace it yearly, I would be ok with that. The benefit would be that the sump pumps are made to pump out sludge and mud without stopping up like the pond pump does. That's what I keep thinking about. If I give it a try, I'll be sure and post the results.

 

[tdgill]

sounds like a good idea! And it doesnt necessarily have to be on the very very bottom either does it? but then you'd have to be able to get the sludge another way....wonder if it was too muddy if you just stream some hose water in there to thin it out as youre pumping? Not that it should be any problems to begin with

 

[Joycats]

I'm really wanting something that can keep the "duck sludge" pumped out so the water stays cleaner a little longer. As of today, I have 2 big filters for the pond. If I had a decent pump that would move the yucky stuff up and out of the water and into those filters maybe I could go longer than a week without draining the pond. At least that's what I want, just trying to figure out how to make it happen. My ducks get upset when their pond starts to empty. It only takes a couple of hours but they seem to panic.

 

[70%cocoa]

I use a sump pump. I use this pump: http://www.justwatersavers.com.au/products/550-Watt-Submersible-Dirty-Water-Pump.html It's on an Australian site but at least this link gives you an idea of the type of pump and the power/capacity etc. It copes easily with duck sludge and river sand (which I have in their pen and which they dump in their water). The pump sits in a tub in the ground that is lower than the pond and I drain the pond into the pit and then pump the water out. Here is the set-up. The white thing on the wall is the filter - this is necessary for me because the water then goes through a drip irrigation system and the bigger stuff needs to be filtered out first. if you were just going to pump it straight onto the garden using a hose you would not need the filter.