It's hard to keep skimmers off of the "must have" list of equipment for a quality pond. The exception may only be with a watergarden that will contain a lot of floating plants. These plants will invariably be trapped in the skimmer without implementing crafty sequestering techniques
Read our review on Savio Skimmers |
Most people are familiar with skimmers from their use in pools. Properly functioning skimmers will remove dust and floating debris (allochthonous materials) from the ponds surface
Aesthetically this is desirable as it is functional - a skimmer reduces the bio load on the system and the removal load for bottom drain(s). Skimmers are powered by pumps which cause the influx of water into the unit, trapping floating debris within the skimmer in a plastic basket or mesh bag for easy removal |
People often install skimmers and then discover they do not work well play well with floating plants. If you plan to have a lot of water hyacinths/lettuce then perhaps a skimmer should not be incorporated
It is sometimes possible to sequester floaters with rocks or fishing line, thereby preventing them from entering and interfering with the skimmers operation - but certainly duckweed will be a problem
From a install perspective, we often setup a skimmer and return the water via jets at the opposite side of the pond. This serves 2 functions. First, it allows you to perform 2 functions with 1 pump - skimming and running jets. Secondly, the jets can be aimed at the skimmer to move debris towards it increasing skimming effectiveness |
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A water hyacinth being drawn into a box skimmer which can starve a pump |
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A No-Nich Skimmer in action. These require flow rates of at least 800 GPH to operate
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There are 3 main types of skimmers each with their advantages and disadvantages. Your pond setup and goals will determine which is the best unit to utilize
Box Skimmer
The most common type of skimmer is the standard box skimmer. It is dug in along side the pond and the liner is brought up along the face. It is sealed into place and needs to be set at the right height for proper skimmer function. Too low, the pump may starve for water. Too high, larger debris may not be able to enter the skimmer. There is generally a fairly wide tolerance here however - about 1-2 inches. These skimmers are costly and take some time to install. They do have a large capacity however, and this type of design dominates the market. It is advisable to buy a better unit which should be a thicker and stronger unit
No-Niche Skimmer
The second type of skimmer is a no-niche skimmer. These are easy to hide (under a bridge for example) and much smaller then box skimmers. They also offer self adjustment with the water level (up to 6 inches) to ensure continual skimming even if the water is lowered a few inches. They are harder to set up for the novice and offer limited capacity. I have one on my pond and it is suitable because I don't get a lot of surface debris. These units attach to a 1.5 inch pipe which runs through the liner to a tank or a pump which powers the unit. In order to work properly, a draw of at least 800 gallons per hour is required
In-Pond Skimmer
The last type of skimmer is one that is placed right in the pond. This unit works well and is the simplest to install as it just sits on a flat section of the pond floor and is anchored with a rock. These units have an operational depth of approximately 14" to 28" and are self adjusting to varying water depths. That is the main advantage that both in-pond and the no-niche style skimmers have over a box skimmer - their tolerance of operation is 6+ inches while a box skimmers is usually less than 3". In-pond skimmers have a decent capacity and are a good choice for those who have an existing pond in which they want to quickly and easily add a skimmer. It is best to purchase a unit that has an external pump which is easy to replace when the pump dies. Aesthetically they tend to stick out as they are difficult to hide and their capacity is not that of a box skimmer |
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