Fountains are pretty. They make your pond look and sound great, but did you know that fountains are actually vital for your pond’s health?
Fountains Are THE Solution for Algae
Algae is a pretty big problem for most pond-keepers, because it’s both difficult to get rid of and it’s ugly. Lucky for you, fountains are the solution.
Algae is caused by an imbalance in your pond’s ecosystem. It’s like this: algae grows in water that’s rich in nutrients, and it reproduces fast. It’s a bit like how weeds take over a garden when the soil is rich in compost.
Normal plants can’t compete with algae, and that’s why you get an ugly green layer of it if you don’t do something to stop it.
The great news is that fountains can stop algae from taking over your pond, and it works in a way that also makes them look even better.
Fountains oxygenate your pond a huge amount, and algae doesn’t stand a chance in oxygen-rich water.
You see, your pond naturally produces oxygen through photosynthesis, but it also consumes oxygen through respiration. Needless to say, oxygenating your pond with a fountain gives it a huge boost in the oxygen department.
That’s not all though. Fountains also bring more oxygen into contact with your pond’s water, and that’s important for your fish.
Remember how I said that your pond’s ecosystem has to be balanced? Well, fish need lots of oxygen to breathe, and fountains help your pond’s ecosystem to handle that.
If you have too many fish in your pond, then their oxygen consumption alone can be enough to stop your pond’s ecosystem from being able to handle the extra oxygen demand.
That’s bad news. Fish survive with difficulty in oxygen-poor water, but plants and your beneficial bacteria have it even worse. They die off, and that makes the situation even worse.
On the other hand, if you have the optimum number of fish in your pond, then a fountain will help your pond’s ecosystem to handle the extra oxygen demand without a hitch.
Now, there’s one other thing that fountains do which I haven’t mentioned yet, and it may seem a bit counterintuitive at first if you don’t know much about them.
Fountains Help Your Fish Too
You might be thinking that fountains would cause way too much turbulence for your fish to be able to handle, but that’s not the case.
The deep, still water of a pond isn’t what fish are used to. It’s what they’re used to that makes fountains perfect for them.
In the wild, fish are well adapted to be able to handle turbulent water. That’s what they’re used to, and that’s why they don’t get thrown about every time there’s a gust of wind.
The fact of the matter is, fountains produce much less turbulence than what your fish naturally thrive in.
That’s not to say that you can’t have too much fountain power though. The rule of thumb is to have enough power to keep the water moving, but not so much that it starts to get choppy.
It’s also worth mentioning that fountains work best when they’re placed near to, or on the very surface of your pond, because the more contact your fountain has with the water, the more effectively it will oxygenate it.
Fountains and Filters
Fountains and filters work great together. In fact, a lot of fountains even have filters built into them. They’re called “pond pumps with filters,” and they’re a great option if you want a simple all-in-one solution.
The way that fountains and filters work together to keep your pond clean is by helping your beneficial bacteria to thrive.
Filters remove solid waste from your pond, but they’re not very effective at removing dissolved waste. That’s where your beneficial bacteria come in. They turn the dissolved waste into solid waste, so that your filter can remove it.
You see, beneficial bacteria stick to solid surfaces, and that’s why the more surface area your filter has, the more effective it is.
Fountains have a lot of surface area, and they’re the perfect home for your beneficial bacteria. That means that they make your filter far more effective.
If you have a pond pump with a filter, then this is all done for you, because the filter is built into the pump. You just have to make sure that you get the right size pump for your pond, and that’s dead easy to do.
The general rule of thumb is to get a pump that can handle your pond’s volume of water at least once per hour. Don’t worry about getting a pump that’s too powerful though, because you can always reduce the flow rate by using a valve or a splitter.
