Please excuse the length of this email, but I wanted to make sure to give adequate information. Let me begin by saying – I am a fisholic and have had aquariums for many years; however, this is my first pond experience and I badly need some advice from all of you. I feel like the best information is obtained from the folks that have actual experience in dealing with pond issues. Because of the roots from the numerous large trees, I am building an above ground pond out of blocks that are used to construct retaining walls on the corner of my concrete patio. I have pictures if someone would let me know how to upload them. My pond is triangular in shape with a size of approximately 7.5’ x 9.5’ and I have not yet decided if it will be 1.5’ or 2’ deep so have been estimating the number of gallons at 1,000. There is no place to hide any equipment outside of the structure so all my equipment needs to be submersible. I was planning on using a “Little Diddy” skimmer since it will sit in the pond and am undecided on whether to have a statuary type fountain in the middle or a waterfall on the edge. If I do go with the waterfall I was going to use the small one with the weir made by Savio. It is my understanding that the waterfall will act as my biological filter, but what are my options on filters if I go with the fountain. I don’t want a filter that clogs up and needs to be cleaned on a daily basis. What suggestions do you have about filters and what size type/pump will I need if I decide on the fountain or the waterfall. By the way, I live in south Louisiana so I don’t need to worry about the cold weather. I plan to have goldfish or wakins and possibly a few floating plants. Oh, and the pond is in the shade so I don’t plan on getting a UV unless I find that I need it. Again, sorry for the long narrative, but I would really appreciate your thoughts and suggestions!

"My pond is triangular in shape with a size of approximately 7.5’ x 9.5’ and I have not yet decided if it will be 1.5’ or 2’ deep so have been estimating the number of gallons at 1,000. There is no place to hide any equipment outside of the structure so all my equipment needs to be submersible."

It's triangular? That's unusual. I would go with the deeper pond if feasible.

"I was planning on using a “Little Diddy” skimmer since it will sit in the pond and am undecided on whether to have a statuary type fountain in the middle or a waterfall on the edge. If I do go with the waterfall I was going to use the small one with the weir made by Savio."

You can use the building blocks to make a waterfall at the edge of the pond or even in the middle if you want.

"It is my understanding that the waterfall will act as my biological filter, but what are my options on filters if I go with the fountain."

A waterfall will grow some good bacteria but for a biological filter, normally you pass the water from the pump through a container of some sort with media with a high surface are and then down the waterfall. You can place a fountain after a biological filter box as long as the fountain will not clog up and contrict the flow. I have a PondMaster 700 system in my 153 gallon pond that pulls the water through a small filter and then the pump and then out a fountain. One of those isn't enough for your pond though. The filter pads would clog all the time as well for a 1000 gallon pond.

"I don’t want a filter that clogs up and needs to be cleaned on a daily basis. What suggestions do you have about filters and what size type/pump will I need if I decide on the fountain or the waterfall."

All filters have to be maintained. The larger the openings in the filter material, the less often it will clog. You want a filter to retain some stuff for mechanical filtration. Filters that clog often would be the finer filter pads. Most biological media is very open - bioballs, Springflow, brushes, lava rock, etc. A pre-filter is a good idea. I wrap my pumps in open weave filter material. It does require weekly cleaning but keeps larger things and animals from getting sucked into the pump. There are tons of brands and types of filters out there. Most are very good. I can only comment on the ones I've had as far as how they've worked for me. Invariably, you will find you need a larger pump and filter than the boxes they come in would suggest. Plan on a pump with 1000-2000 gph for your 1000 gallon pond. The filter and fountain or falls should be able to handle that flow. Instead of just one system, you can have one with a waterfall and one with a fountain if you like. There are many cute spitters that can be added more for ornamental purposes and not as the main filter system.

Also, to post photos, when you're writing a message, see below this box. You'll see post options and then post icons. Below that is file attachments. That's where you browse your hard drive and put in the file name of the photo you which to attach. You can also e-mail a photo to me if you like (keep it a small jpg) at mthebron_90@yahoo.com