Okay, I finally got around to installing a vortex microstrainer (Sweetwater) in a gravity fed 40" vortex cone filter. The pond is approximately 18'x18' and 3'-4' deep, estimated total gallons are 8500-9000 and I have a 4" line running from the bottom drain to the filter. I am using a W Lim Wave I 1/4 hp pump to draw from the vortex. When I started up the pump the water pulled from the tank so quickly that the microstrainer walls start to collapse and the water level drops too fast to keep the strainer afloat. It would appear to me that the pump is too powerful and is pulling water too quickly. I would have thought that the 4" line running into the filter would supply plenty of water but it never occurred to me that the strainer couldn't pull the water through fast enough. Changing pumps is not an option - is there anything else I can do to remedy the situation.

I apologize if this has been discussed before but searching through the forum has proved daunting.

Thanks for any help!