It can be a daunting and confusing task choosing pond pumps due to the variety of manufacturers, styles and sizes available. This article discusses the types of pond pumps available to buy and how one might use them.

Fountain pumps are the most common pumps available. They are designed to give a fountain effect to the centre of your water feature, pond or pool. They come complete with a variety of fountain jets and fountain jet extensions.

Fountain Pump Hint: Do not use a fountain pump to power a filter system as this will lead to water clarity issues in the future.

Filter pumps can pump free floating debris from the pool and then pass it to a filter system (solids handling). This keeps the pond clear and free of debris. Most of these pumps can pump particles such as plant matter, leaves, pebbles, blanket weed, fish waste up to 8mm in diameter.

Their solids handling capability means they do not block up very often, therefore maintenance can be reduced to a minimum.

Filter Pump Tip: If you want a fountain and filter system in your pond then add a fountain pump and a filter pump. The filter pump will remove the free floating debris to a filter , therefore the fountain pump shouldn’t block up.  

Patio water features can be all kinds of shapes, sizes and designs including custom made sculptures to a simple converted watering can. Feature pumps usually have a high pumping pressure while being small in design so are ideal pumps for water features. These robust pumps can be sited in shallow water or sometimes positioned dry.  

Water Feature Pump Tip: The pipe size you run the water through to the top of your water feature will have a deciding factor on which size pump to use. Narrow tubing causes massive restiction on pumps flow rates, therefore a larger pump than normal will be required, thus costing more money.

Tags: filtration, gardens, pond pumps, ponds, water features