I need to empty the all the algae out of a 40,000 gallon pond in our yard so I can repair the liner (leaking from the side and bottom). I was thinking of draining it all the way and then I would be left with a goop of wet algae that I could shovel out. But it might be smelly along with the dying fish and then the neighbors might not like that. Or maybe I can use siphon action to vacuum it out along with the water (not sure if it will plug up the hose). Or I could use a net to take it out while there is still water in the pond but the water makes the net heavy and that seems to take forever. Hmm is there an easier way?
How to empty gunk out of large pond?
May 21, 2009
8 Replies
Have emptied one fish pond by creating siphon with a garden hose, but if yours is 40,000 gals it would take forever. Might try larger hoses and try to stir up the muck. Recently had some pool work done and the contractor used a submersible electric motor driven pump to remove
60,000 gals aga> I need to empty the all the algae out of a 40,000 gallon pond in our
I might try a 8-10K gph submersible pump, run it into a 55 gal drum with some coarse filter material, then back to the pond. Keep it all agitated while pumping. May take a few days....but pumping it all out, be like low tide.
I happen to have a bunch of 30 foot long 2" PVC pipes laying around, so I'll glue these together with some 45 and 90 degree elbows and a couple clean-out openings to start the siphon down the hill. I hope I can make it air-tight with all the connections and screw-cover access holes. The unions and elbows that I have are ABS. Not sure if I should use ABS or PVC cement to glue these dissimilar materials. I normally would never glue ABS to PVC but this is a one-time use under low pressure and then I'll take the whole thing apart.
Also.. the garden hose was too small and algae kept getting stuck in it, so that's why I'm considering to use the 2" pipes. A long pool hose would be a lot more expensive than the pipes I have laying around. But since the pipes are rigid it means I won't be able to move it around in the pond. I was thinking of attaching some 2" flexible tubing to the end of the pipe so I can move it around, but I don't know if there is any 2" flexible tubing like that which can form an airtight seal against the pipe.
On May 21, 2:27=EF=BF=BDam, "scrillig tail" wrote= :
would be a
If there are no fish you can chemically treat the pond to kill the algea, making pumping out much easier.
heck there are chemicals called puron that could make the water drinkable, after filtering out the solids.
do loook to why algea is so bad so it doesnt re occur
I would rent a gasoline powered diaphragm pump (aka mud sucker). This is the kind of pump used to clean out septic tanks and, um, small ponds. Many small fish will survive the trip through the pump, so if you use a basket to catch them at the outflow and dump them in a trashcan full of pond water, you may be able to keep most of them alive while you fix the liner.
Pologirl
I agree. Rent the pump. You can also rent a 2" hose.
Talk to your local pet shop and/or aquarium/ pond/ pool or fish club.
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