my winter pond filter

[basskiller]

During the summer months, I used hydroponics to do much of the pond filtering. I believe there is a thread showing it.
My summer aquaponics system
http://www.worldclassbodybuilding.co...4&postcount=48


But here is my winter filter. I love coming up with new things I build myself. Even better when they work as expected. ..lol

Pond filter Materials:
1 pump ..I forget the gallon size but it's over 1000 gals and hour
1.. 5 gallon bucket with lid
4 bags of plastic scouring pads. ( great for bacteria growth
1 extruded plastic mesh - medium openings
1 extruded plastic mesh - large openings
2 red house bricks ( not shown)
4 ft of 3/4 in pvc pipe
a few pvc connectors. All things I had laying around
Nylons (stolen from the wifey)
Activated charcoal
topfin bio boost

First let me say through trial and error, I found that you definitely need the bricks to weigh everything down. I put this together as seen in the picture without the bricks. While it did stay submerged for a short while, I came out the next morning to the whole filter bucket floating. So don't skip on the bricks

I used an old drywall joint compound bucket. Make sure you clean this out thoroughly. Never use soap to clean anything pond related.

Drill one in the bucket itself just below where the lid fits on the bucket. I used the side of the drill bit and just pushed down and let the drill bit chew a hole from the top to where it was just below where the lid fit on the bucket closed.

[basskiller]

In the center of the lid, drill one 3/4 inch hole for you tubing. You may have to ream out the hole just a bit to make the pvc tubing to slide through.

Also depending upon the location of your water flow exit , you may have to adjust the location of the hole in your lid.


Drill a bunch of 3/16" to 1/4" holes in the top lid. I wouldn't make them any bigger than 1/4 inch.

[basskiller]

Here is the pump in the bucket. Remember to place your bricks in the bottom.

Use a female threaded coupling to screw onto the pump threads. Then cut a piece of the pvp pipe to fit into the pump coupling.
You'll have to measure just how far you wish it to come up and out of your pond water.
You could have it to where it doesn't come out of the water.
But in my case, I did so it agitates the water, creating oxegen.

[basskiller]

I cut the medium mesh into a circle to fit tightly over top of the filter.

You'll need to punch a hole in the center for the pvc pipe

[basskiller]

Place the scouring pads in around your tubing. You don't want to pack it down tightly. But you do want to fill it close to the top without an abundance of air gaps.

This will trap your biologicals.

[basskiller]

I used the wifey old nylons to create some bags that contain charcoal and AquaClear


This helps clean the water of ammonia And nitrates

Not sure as weather they would be best served at the top or the bottom of our creation.
I would think the top, so that's where I placed it.. before the active biologicals.

What the bags don't get, the biological will.

[basskiller]

Now cut and place the larger mesh on the top of everything.
This will actually be the first stage in the filtering process.
As the water gets ducked through the top of our lid. It will catch the lager debris.

[basskiller]

To jump start the biological part of our filter, I added some topfin bio boost to the filter

[basskiller]

Now place the lid of the bucket

I used two 45 degree couplings at the top to form a 90 degree turn. Two 45 degree couplings is better than one 90 degree as it's better for water flow.

Than add a 1 ft piece of pvc tubing to the other end of the 45 degree couplings.

I added on more 45 degree coupling to the end so the water would shot down ward back into the pond

[basskiller]

I forgot to make a picture of it working in the pond.

Right now, the pond is mostly frozen over, except where the water is coming out of the filter.

So I'll have to take a picture later.