Thread: Two identical ponds

Hi at a bit of a lost and confusion with my new ponds.

I have two identical 10,000litre ponds and need help with plumbing/filters.

The ponds will be for turtles and a few goldfish/larger fish and I feed roughly 500-600grams of food every 2nd-3rd day (just as messy as koi). Ideally I would like an RDF filter and wanting to trial a Vietnam brand RDF. They have smaller versions which have a flow rate of 10k or 25k.

Would running a 10k litre RDF be too small for a 10k pond? Or do I somehow plumb both ponds together and run the single 25k RDF? I'm finding the more I research, the more I'm doubting what option to go with.

I'm hoping these RDF will last until I save for a more well known brand, but need something for the next year or 2.

Any input will be great,
Thankyou.

Have you considered 2nd hand higher end branded drums that you may be able to obtain for similar money, where parts are easily available, and that will hold their 2nd hand value?

I guess the question to ask in your circumstances might be, how much flow do you currently run through existing filters?

If you are flowing at say, 8,000 lph and the water is pretty clear, then a 10k lph drum should cope. If you are already flowing at more than that and struggling to maintain water clarity then the drum might be fine at this time of year but will struggle through summer.

Also bear in mind that an undersized drum will be cleaning much more frequently, so any cost savings get eaten up in extra electricity (clean cycles can take a fair bit), and wear and tear on moving parts and floats etc.

Originally Posted by RS2OOO

Have you considered 2nd hand higher end branded drums that you may be able to obtain for similar money, where parts are easily available, and that will hold their 2nd hand value?

I guess the question to ask in your circumstances might be, how much flow do you currently run through existing filters?

If you are flowing at say, 8,000 lph and the water is pretty clear, then a 10k lph drum should cope. If you are already flowing at more than that and struggling to maintain water clarity then the drum might be fine at this time of year but will struggle through summer.

Also bear in mind that an undersized drum will be cleaning much more frequently, so any cost savings get eaten up in extra electricity (clean cycles can take a fair bit), and wear and tear on moving parts and floats etc.

Very rare to come across 2nd hand drum, have been searching since start of COVID, based in Aus.

Currently run a 18k pump through a 12k pond, through a vortex and bio, but I don't have a bottom drain. Pond has been very clear, but not sure how much flow rate is impacting that as it's not a variable pump.

That's a good point with undersized drum, thankyou.