Pond Maintenance- Aeration

Aerating your pond is an important part of pond maintenance. However, many pond owners are confused about what aerating actually means.  So to clear things up we are going to give you Sanco’s definition of pond aeration.

1. The process of introducing oxygen      rich air to a pond from the pond floor
2. To cause air to circulate through
3. Expose to the action of air, in      order to purify

The key to aerating a pond effectively is to introduce air at the pond floor.  Fountains will also introduce air to the pond, but only at the surface.  Pond fountains can be great for keeping the surface moving, but are often times ineffective in keeping the entire body of water circulating from top to bottom.  Unlike fountains, aerators have two lines that come off of the pump (electrical cable and airline).  The pump sits on the shoreline and has 6 ft. of electrical cable that plugs into the electric source.  The other line will be airline that runs from the pump into the water, and down to the diffuser that sits on the pond floor.  The airline will have to be anchored in several spots along the length of the airline.

 

The benefits of aeration include providing ample oxygen for your fish, preventing pond turnover due to stratification, preventing certain types of pond growth from thriving and providing oxygen for beneficial bacteria to thrive. Aeration alone won’t keep your pond in tip top shape, but it great for the overall health of the pond while complimenting all of your other efforts.