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  1. #1

    Stand pipes, inlet chamber, old fashioned yes, out of date.....?

    Having built ponds and even a swimming pool over the years I am familiar with pressure pipe, ball valves and the like.
    So why did I still use archaic inlet and return chambers and stand pipes in my latest build?






    Pros of Inlet chamber with Stand Pipe Valves:
    You can very easily see what's coming into the filter and ideal test point for taking water samples in your filter room (without lifting the drum lid, turning off, etc).
    Stand pipe valves are inexpensive, ultra simple and ultra reliable. They give very fine visible control from wide open to closed and you can see what's flowing out of each.
    (My stand pipe valves consist of 110mm pipe with a 100mm circular hole drilled into the side below water level (just visible in photo) and a cut insert which rotates to block off as much of the hole as required.)

    Cons:
    You need to construct the extra chamber.
    Only works on a gravity fed system.

    The picture also shows a Return chamber.
    Pros:
    The ideal place for my water feature pump which has no effect on filter flow/levels whether on or off.
    It allows for very easy filter mods - when I go part anoxic in 2021 for example.
    Simple to seal off the pond return and recycle the full filter flow back through itself if I have just cleaned it for example, or if I need to lower the pond level for any reason.

    Cons:
    Because the return flow is now also "gravity powered" this means lower velocity pond returns through 110mm rather than 50mm, etc. This wasn't a "con" for me because our pond was designed to be a "stealth" koi pond and not look like a koi pond at all (a whole other discussion).

    I am not saying that any of this is any better than the current practice of sealed pipe systems and ball valves. I just think that it is worth being aware of this "throw back" to allow informed choice.

    Merry Christmas


    My DIY ponds from 1988 until present day.
    All can be found here:
    https://www.ukzero.com/pond.htm

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  3. #2
    Extreme Koi Member Rank = Supreme Champion john1's Avatar
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    I too use standpipes only in my grow on though,I have a 4ins bottom drain with pipework pushed into the drain with slits cut on the bottom to let water through the pipe,it goes to about 2ins above water level.

    It goes to a vortex so when I want to drain it I pull out the pipe and push in a solid pipe so isolating the filter.
    Works great for me.
    John

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