Buyer’s FAQ Guide for Pond Aeration Kits, Subsurface Diffused Aerators & Air Pumps
How is an aerator different than a fountain?
A fountain floats on the surface of your pond. Aerators are about the same price as a fountain. While a fountain sucks-in water immediately around the fountain centerpoint, pond aeration is sub-surface. It does not look like any fountain. In fact its nearly invisible: the only visible aeration features are a small number of locations on the surface with a fizzing or boiling appearance. Bubbles are emitted at the pond bottom, and what you see is micro-bubbles dispersing much like an underwater chimney (containing oxygen, not smoke). This emitter is a stationary diffuser the size of a dinner plate. Diffusers have no moving parts, and are connected to a compressor above the surface via sinking air hoses. The electric compressor is discreetly located in a green locking utility cabinet on your pond bank.
Yes. One high-volume aerator will clean a pond deeper and wider than six 1-horsepower aerating fountains. This is because one aerator controls 6 subsurface diffusers. The pond is divided into large zones, each with a diffuser. Diffusers emit powerful columns of bubbles which mix your entire pond by hydrodynamic lift force.
Oxygen deficiency is a common water quality problem encountered in ponds.
Kansas Department of Wildlife Parks & Tourism
A neighborhood pond is a couldron filled with road chemicals, fertilizer, leaves, trash and runoff. As such, both the EPA and the Kansas Dept of Wildlife Parks & Tourism recommend subsurface aeration as the #1 way to improve pond water health. We have 25 years experience selling & installing aeration, with 3 disciplines: biological, chemical & mechanical filtration. While a fountain will freshen the pond surface, aerators scrub your whole pond from bottom to top. In short, aeration controls pond scum, algae, fecal coliform, decaying leaves and fishkills.
Yes. High-volume aeration will dissolve all algae and pond scum. Pond scum is black muck at the bottom of the pond. It has a muddy or cottony texture and smells like sulfur. In the summer, pond scum is also the green and yellow blobs floating on the surface of your pond. This is because the cottony parts of the scum grow into mats of string algae and float to the top. Within days, this floating vegetation turns yellow and decomposes into bits of detritus which sink into layers of scum. Aeration dissolves pond scum with balanced discipline: aerobic activity, chemical oxidation, and mechanical mixing.
To be specific, aeration will remove the green color from your pond. Aeration will reduce turbidity. Subsurface aerators will saturate your pond with oxygen, which beneficial bacteria use to fight algae blooms. With enough oxygen, beneficial bacteria will consume nutrients into oblivion. Our aeration will fix your water clarity issues.
Green is caused by algae blooms. Turbidity is when the pond has a foot of visibility. These clarity issues may also be present with fecal coliform.
Yes. Fecal coliform is bacterial pollution from goose droppings and warm-blooded animal feces. Exposure to coliform is the leading cause of E. coli. But aeration will remove most coliform with aerobic activity. This is because increasing oxygen levels kill anaerobic coliform.
Yes. Blue-green algae is caused by a seasonal imbalance of nutrients. Aeration releases trapped carbon dioxide & oxidizes your pond. As a result, aeration raises the pH & Redox, and sequesters the nutrients which blue-green algae need to thrive.
Yes. Aeration eliminates the effects of decaying grass clippings. Over time, diffused aeration will also dissolve leaves in your pond. This is because strong aeration will produce the elevated aerobic conditions that are necessary for bacteria to digest leaves.
Much dissolved oxygen is required to dissolve all leaf parts. A proper aeration system has triple-action synergy! Obviously, your pond water absorbs small bubbles emitted from the diffusers. Also, aeration reduces films and surface tension to help your pond breathe deeper. Lastly, hydrodynamic lift-force creates a fan-like current to mix the deepest water with the whole pond.
Yes. If there’s one thing we know, it’s fish. When you have aeration, your visibility increases. That’s fun. There are no dead spots in the deep, because your entire pond is being mixed with oxygenated water. As a result, you can grow lunkers in the deep parts. You also accumulate less scum on the floor of the pond, which means more quality habitat. And no scum means a lot less string algae.
Here’s something else to know. In murky water, shad populations normally outnumber your bass and bluegill. Why? American Shad have tiny mouths to feed on microscopic green water organisms. When you add aeration, you provide oxygen for beneficial bacteria to compete with the plankton. This controls your shad populations and gives bass room to breathe.
Aeration increases water clarity, balances fish populations and eliminates fishkills. Your largemouth bass will grow bigger, faster, older.
High turbidity is the leading cause of summer fishkills. (High turbidity is less than 6″ of water clarity.) In summer cases, a low-pressure weather pattern will trigger the pond biology to crash overnight. American Shad will comprise at least 95% of the fish affected here.
The second cause of dead fish is an irregular turnover from weather events (e.g. a low-pressure storm). In this case, the bottom strata devours the oxygen in the whole pond. IF your pond “flips”… you can expect some die-off. Expect to see various species of fish.
The third phenomenon is called Winterkill.
Our aeration provides 24/7 protection against all fishkills.
How long before I see results from aerating my pond?
Most residents begin to notice results within 12 weeks. If your pond water has poor visibility, the first result will be an increase in water clarity. Your pond will gain protection from fishkills and blue-green algae in about 3 months. Look for reductions in algae and pond scum in the growing seasons that follow installation.
How does a subsurface pond aerator work?
High-volume aerators produce millions of bubbles. The micro-bubbles rapidly dissolve in water, while the large column of air creates hydrodynamic lift force- its like a chimney. The bubbles drag water with them as they travel from the bottom of the pond to the surface. This upward water movement turns into surface movement and turbulent movement. Surface movement makes your pond breathe, and turbulent movement mixes your whole pond- it breathes very deeply. The resulting oxygenation will steadily improve your pond ecosystem as we promise.
The Northwest area of my pond is always dirty. How will aeration help?
After your initial consultation, we prefer to visit the pond site and see the dirty spots for ourselves. Some types of trees make your pond more dirty. Sometimes, the Northwest edge of the pond is dirty because thats where litter floats with our prevailing winds.
We position your diffusers in the best locations we can determine to maximize the amount of cleaning work done.
Will aeration help any of my pondweed problems?
No. Aeration will have no effect on pondweeds. The only vegetation that aeration will control is algae.
Aeration has no effect on naiads or coontail. Aeration has a negligible effect on floating plants such as lily pads or creeping water primrose. Over time, proper aeration may have indirect effects on duckweed.
Would you agree that your pond is the biggest unfunded liability in your neighborhood?
Your pond is a catch basin for road chemicals, yard chemicals and runoff. They get filled with erosion, debris, feces, grass and leaves. Moreover, single weather events lead to a ruined pond and a 5-figure cost of damage every year in the Wichita area. And we attest that major renovations (including dredging) usually reach $100K with a reputable contractor. But aeration delivers continuous 24/7 cleaning power. Alternatively, fountains are the same price as aeration and fountains don’t clean at all. Aeration delivers big promises.
The energy for a high-volume 3/4-horesepower aerator costs about $4 per day. This is suitable for a pond up to three acres in size. A 1-horsepower aerator costs $5 per day. This unit may circulate a pond 3 to 6 acres.
The yearly energy costs of aeration are about the same price as one algae treatment. Those chemical treatments are temporary at best. If you choose aeration your pond instantly may be free of chemical dependency.
Subsurface aeration has no moving parts in the water- only long-lasting air hoses and diffusers. We service the air pump & filter semi-annually for $230. With field-repairs comparable to changing a flat tire, our high-volume pumps have simple parts & labor. Your cost-average of yearly repairs and maintenance is $550 and $600 for 3/4 & 1-HP aerator systems, respectively.
Yes. High-volume compressors carry a 1-year warranty. All other parts: the cabinet, tubing and diffusers- have a 5-year warranty. Our labor honors the respective warranties.
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