• Amused
  • Angry
  • Annoyed
  • Awesome
  • Bemused
  • Cocky
  • Cool
  • Crazy
  • Crying
  • Depressed
  • Down
  • Drunk
  • Embarrased
  • Enraged
  • Friendly
  • Geeky
  • Godly
  • Happy
  • Hateful
  • Hungry
  • Innocent
  • Meh
  • Piratey
  • Poorly
  • Sad
  • Secret
  • Shy
  • Sneaky
  • Tired
  • Results 1 to 4 of 4

    Thread: Hybrid Koi Pond Construction Mystery

    1. #1
      KingstonKoi is offline Senior Member
      This user has no status.
       
      Feeling:
      ----
       
      Join Date
      Aug 2020
      Location
      Gig Harbor, WA
      Posts
      239

      Hybrid Koi Pond Construction Mystery

      Have an 1,800 gallon pond built 20 years ago. Initially thought it was a pure AquaScape design given the waterfall, 35' water stream and shallow pond. Filtration is limited to the skimmer (updated with new net, brushes and mat) and waterfall (added new 4 Matala mats and bio balls).

      Last year I had all rocks removed from my pond. At that time, we found a white 2" pipe buried under the stones and muck in the deepest (30") part of the pond. It had a perforated cap to keep the fish out of the pipe. And it ran through the side lining of the pond and into the front bottom side of the Aquascape skimmer. You can see a similar set up a thttps://biologicperformance.com/pond-bottom-drain-to-skimmer/. This year I added an aerated Rhino Bottom Drain to see if it would enhance the cleaning as our filtration is limited to the skimmer (net, brushes and mat) and waterfall (4 Matala mats and bio balls).

      Yesterday I found a mystery cover hatch below a piece of slate in front of the pond. It's sitting between the skimmer and contains a gate valve. Pulling it up does not create any pressure or appear to open any water flow. But it's a gate valve.

      The other mysterious part of this pond's set up is the skimmer has a tee valve which routes water from the submerged pump at the bottom up and off the tee to the right up to the waterfall. The prior owner said the top of the tee's piping had a knife valve that would shut off the water flow up to the waterfall, but he removed it as he never used it.

      The left side of the tee has an opening that runs outside of the skimmer box to the right and disappears under a very large granite rock. (Sigh.)
      We tried to run a hose down pipe itself but it is blocked inside. Initial thought was it was a way to channel water out of the pond for a quick pump out, but with the pipe blocked that won't work now. And maybe the gate valve was a way to open up the pipe, but it doesn't seem to be.

      Has anyone seen this type of configuration on a hybrid or other pond?

      Sue
      Attached Images Attached Images    
      Last edited by KingstonKoi; 06-08-2022 at 11:34 AM.

      • Remove Ads
        Advertising from Google
        Promoting Koi and Pond
        keeping since 2007

         

    2. #2
      Grumpy is offline Senior Member
      is Retired with SO much yet to
      learn
       
      Feeling:
      Awesome
       
      Join Date
      Apr 2016
      Location
      Central Oregon Coast
      Posts
      739
      Based on your description and photos I have made the following sketch, does it represent what you think you have?


      Name:  Possible piping.jpg
Views: 117
Size:  27.7 KB

      I have a skimmer box that has a threaded pipe inlet below the floating skimmer door to connect a bottom drain. I plugged that inlet since there is no easy way to control the flow into the skimmer verse the bottom drain. If you wanted to increase the bottom drain flow, you must somehow restrict the flow into the skimmer door with a screen or mesh??

      The mystery gate valve may have been a control to divert some of the waterfall flow directly back into the pond during cold weather for instance. You may want to dig in the "A" area to determine if the mystery valve is on a tee off of the pipe going to the waterfall and if the pipes lead back to the pond?

      Is it possible the tee off the pump toward the granite boulder has another buried valve on it somewhere in the "B" area? It would be under pressure when the pump is running and must be capped or have a valve somewhere?
      Last edited by Grumpy; 06-08-2022 at 03:07 PM.

    3. #3
      KingstonKoi is offline Senior Member
      This user has no status.
       
      Feeling:
      ----
       
      Join Date
      Aug 2020
      Location
      Gig Harbor, WA
      Posts
      239
      Grumpy,

      It looks very close. The waterfall flows out of the skimmer on the “B” side, up a hill and back down around into the pond via a water stream. And the old valve was on the tee on the “B” side. But it’s correct that the “A” side goes nowhere and the mystery valve sits there between the pond and the skimmer. Thank you for diagramming this is it helps visualize the parts.

      I think you’re right we’re going to have to dig up and see what’s going on with the blocked side of the tee (“A”) and the mystery valve. If nothing else it will give us some options like the one you suggested of rerouting the water back into the pond without going through the waterfall in the winter when it’s cold.

    4. #4
      REVIV is offline Member
      This user has no status.
       
      Feeling:
      ----
       
      Join Date
      Dec 2019
      Location
      Cincinnati, OHio
      Posts
      74
      When you said pulling up the valve doesn't relieve any pressure was the pump on? I am wondering if it opens a path to pump to waste from the other side of your T in the skimmer?

      • Remove Ads
        Advertising from Google
        Promoting Koi and Pond
        keeping since 2007

         

    Posting Permissions

    • You may not post new threads
    • You may not post replies
    • You may not post attachments
    • You may not edit your posts
    •