Pond Aeration

[joes_427_vette]

I have an acre pond 12' deep that I would like to aereate. The pond is 800 feet plus from my shop and there is no electricity there. My plan is to bury a 1" black plastic pipe ( I have alot of it on hand ) to the shop and use an oil less compressor to supply the oxygen. I would like to find a very low volume compressor with a small motor that would run continously and not make alot of noise. Also I would like to have a diverter at the pond end and have a shutoff so i could pull water from the pond and water the lawn / trees. Is this a viable solution or should I just contemplate an electrical line to the source ? Thanks

 

[Kays Supply]

It all depends on your budget. A sewage aerator would do what you describe. I have one beside my back porch under the eve. It is hardly noticable. There are some more expensive high volume low pressure blowers that would do about anything you could come up with. All it takes is $$$. Ametek Rotron is an example of the top of the line do what ever you can think of. It will pop up if you Google it. It has apage for an aeraton unit. I used one on a commercial whirlpool that was eating the cheap OEM blowers.

 

[Cami]

A centrifugal or roots type blower would do the trick....when you say oilless compressor, do you mean an oilless shop air compressor? Just say no!

Compressing air to a pressure 1 psi more than you can get away with is wasting energy and putting more heat into your compressor pump....and in a high volume, low pressure application he compressor just won't perform compared to a blower.

1" plastic pipe, eh? There's a good reason not to use it to convey compressed air....and a less spectacular reason not to run the air from a blower through it...especially a 1" pipe.

800 feet, eh? You get to choose between voltage drops and static pressure drops.

I recall hearing about a system for aerating ponds that had an air pump driven directly off of a windmill....

 

[johnamon]

I get a catalog from The Pond Guy. They have a cooling looking system. I don't own one nor do I know anyone who does, but ...

Airmax Aeration

John

 

[joes_427_vette]

CAMI;
I don't see a reason why 1" pipe wouldn't work. Its a closed chamber and what goes in at a slow rate has to come bubbling out the far end. I'm thinking less than 5# of pressure will flow the system. That is why I'm looking at a super low volume pump that will run 24 hours a day and take very little power to support it. I'm going to look at a similar system in operation ( less than half the distance of mine ) that runs for approximately 6 dollars a month. The same pump has been running for over ten years without a problem.
The main reason for the 1" pipe is I came across a huge pile of new pipe for very few dollars. I also want to be able to use it to close off the aeration flow and direct water to my lawn and trees with a gas powered pump at the pond.
Thanks for the site John. I will check out the information it contains.
Kay;
I'm interested in low pressure, low volume as in input = output.

 

[MikeD74T]

Did a Google search for "windmill aerator" & got nearly 9K hits. Have you considered a windmill? MikeD74T

 

[Egon]

I'm going to look at a similar system in operation ( less than half the distance of mine ) that runs for approximately 6 dollars a month. The same pump has been running for over ten years without a problem.

That sounds like a plan.:thumbsup:

A lot of people use one of the windmills for aeration of ponds.

 

[joes_427_vette]

I have a windmill but the pond is in a lower area between two large hills. I don't believe it would get enough wind to make it worth while. I was going to mount the windmill on a hilltop.

 

[lhfarm]

I'd post your question over at Pond Management - Fisheries Management - Pond Boss Magazine and see what they have to offer as advice. They have a whole forum section on aeration.

 

[HeyNow]

Windmills are okay, but don't perform when you need them most; when there is no wind! I installed a vertex aeration system in my 3 acre pond last year and it has worked out very well. Head on over to the links presented above for some very good advice.

 

[joes_427_vette]

Thanks for the site Barry. I'm sure there is alot to learn here. Seems nothing is simple.