What pump & filter do we purchase?

turtlemanvegas

We are in the process of building a 100 gallon pond in our backyard, which we want to put turtles and Koi fish into. We are having a difficult time finding someone who can tell us what size pump and filter we should purchase for cycling 100 gallons. We would also like for this pump to handle a waterfall also. Is this possible? We appreciate any feedback someone can give us. Most places here in Vegas have pumps that cycle 2000 plus gallons.....can we say overkill! We await info.

Tazman

Welcome to TFK first of all.

Look at getting a pump that will circulate about 50-75g per hour. It might be beneficial to get a second pump for the waterfall as it can get complicated sizing a pump up to run both circulation and a waterfall at the correct volume to have an effect. Electrical outlets should ideally be on separate circuits as well so you are not overloading one.

Not my greatest area of knowledge but hope it helps some.

1077

Don't know that I would place turtles and Koi together. turtles can get nippy to downright lethal for slow moving fish such as Koi.
With this mix of large waste producer's,,i would want something that would filter or circulate 300 to 500 gal per hour and keeping the filter material clean will be a chore.

Tazman

That was me not being fully awake...I meant to post 500-750g per hour not 50-75...oops

Agree as well on the turtles and Koi not getting along together. If they were somehow segregated within the same pond them perhaps it might work.

thekoimaiden

Turtles and Koi don't go well together. Your pond is also too small for Koi (in water volume and swimming room). One adult Koi needs 500 gallons of water and a depth of at least 3 feet to be healthy. One or two Goldfish are a better option. And even then, they will probably become food for the turtles. You need to chose, either fish or turtles.

As for filtration, Tazman's got you covered. For a pond of this size you are going to want 10x the water volume per hour pump. It's only the larger ponds (5000+ gal) that can get away with less. For a good waterfall pump, look at a pump with higher head pressure (this means it will be able to push the water up a slope to fall back down as your waterfall).