FAQ & Answers Part 4 - Pump Selection

Welcome to part 4 of my frequently asked pond keeping questions and answers news letters.

Today I would like to answer some common questions relating to fish pond pumps and what to look out for ...

What Does Pond Pump Maximum Head Mean?

This is a fancy term used to describe the amount of pressure the pump can deliver i.e. how high it can pump water.

This bit of information can be misleading and should be used as a guide to get an idea of exactly how high a specific pump model is capable of pumping to.

The reason that I say misleading is because at maximum head there is no flow. So if a pump says that Max Pump Head is 3ft then at 3ft the pump runs out of power and there will be no water flow.

It is important to be aware of how much water the particular pump model can handle at various practical heads or height differences between the water surface and the inlet of a waterfall or fountain.

Head is the difference in height between the pond surface and the inlet of a waterfall or fountain for example.

If the outlet pipe from a pump was lifted 50 cm above the pond surface then x amount of water would flow out of the pipe. As you increase the amount of lift needed (height required) there is a reduction in the water flow until a point is reached where there is no water coming out of the pipe.

Choice Of Fish Pond Pump Is Very Important

The majority of retailers selling pumps sell their range usually on the cost of the pump, often misleading buyers into going for a cheap pump in the belief that they are saving money.

This is false advertising as the major factor when choosing any garden pond pump is its power consumption. This factor is far more important than its purchase cost.

What you need to remember is that a pond pump needs to run 24/7/365 and a bad choice can be expensive in terms of running costs.

When choosing a pump make sure to look at the power consumption and try where ever possible to compare this against other pump models to see which is the most economical.

The full article can be read at ...
http://www.garden-pond-filters.com/Newsletters/PondkeepingFAQpart4.html ...

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