How deep or shallow does a bog filter need to be? This video tries to answer that. Here's a playlist that includes all the bog filters I've built for my ponds. • Bog filter DIY videos
My water is really clearing up now! The clarity is much improved from even a week ago. It's pretty badly tannin stained at the moment though, but I figure that can't really hurt the fish. I'm not worried about a pH crash because of the kind of gravel I've used. The fish friendly skimmer is working fine and I have had 8 rosy barbs in the pond with no hassles for days now. It's really interesting to see them schooling up, parting ways, and doing really weird things like trying to swim up the water fall. My terrarium grown bacopa cuttings seem to have hardened up well enough that I should be able to plant them at the pond's edge pretty soon! Thanks for keeping me inspired :D
Thanks for all the tips, after building 2 x 60L garbage bin bog filter, that fixed my tiny pond, I’m currently building a 1000L IBC bog filter for my pond I’m about to dig
I did a test run on my IBC tank bog filter build after adding plastic crates above the pipes & without any of the cobbles / pebbles & lava rock just to check for any leaks mainly thankfully non . But soon had to turn flow rate down to 27% handy having vari flow pump . Low and slow is the best result.
I have some questions about not merely bog filter depth but also dealing with the plumbing pipes or hoses and potentially 3 feet thick of ice in the winter time? What materials will you be wanting to build those pipes out of, how would you go about winterizing the areas of a bog filter so that you don't have issues with freezing lines breaking PVC elbows Y's and T joints. and how do you ensure in designing a pond so that if broken plumbing lines do happen they are relatively easy to repair? Nothing quite like digging through hundreds of cubic meters of chest deep wet gravel to find a broken PVC junction.
I don’t live in an area that experiences such conditions so my response is only theoretical. If it were me I would design the system so it can be completely drained during the winter. As long as there’s no water in the pipes they shouldn’t expand and break.
Thank you Kev. Flow inside the bog seems to be a very empirical data. Aquascape gives a value based on the length of the centipede (which sounds weird to me) without any scientific info to support it. Did you have a chance to measure the levels of nitrate, phosphate and metals in the pond with various flows to finally settle on your x6 value ?
No scientific evidence for me either. For me was just trial and error and it works on my really small bogs and my really big ones. I haven’t measured for phosphate and metals. I would like to do a full water test but I’m so lazy and cheap.
Good day, i am planning my garden pond at the moment and i watched all your videos and bought your PDF with lots of good advice inside. I am from northern Germany where we can have up to -10 degrees Celsius and in some rare cases even more. My plan is to make the bog filter 2 m long x 1,5 m wide and 1,5 m deep. Do you think the depth of 1,5 m might be too much since it will completely freeze anyway? If it is getting too cold , my plan is too cover the bog filter with insulation material from the outside walls and cover the top in winter time so i might be able to let it run the whole year.
@@Ozponds i guess it will freeze if it's too long too cold. guess will turn it off it it s too cold.thanks for the reply and awesome channel you got there :-)
hi kev ive got a plastic tub sitting on top of 1 of my tanks that is set up the same as a bog filter its only 7 liters & the tank is about 300l its working a treat & its only about 120mm deep & the tank is very heavily stocked ive had not problems but i have added a spounge filter as the fish have grown just incase as its a grow out tank
I’ve talked about frogs in a past video. Ive never really made a pond with no liner. The pond down behind the nursery has no liner it’s more like a very small dam.
What do you mean? Like how big does a pond need to be for goldfish? Most fish we keep in ponds people keep in aquariums. You only really “need” a pond for big fish. I’ve talked about depth before, because that can impact on temperature, which will affect fish types you can keep. I’ve also talked about oxygen that plays a role, and of course filtration.
I run mine 24/7 @ 365. I also have a solar pond and some no pump ponds, I like experimenting. It always depends on your goals, expectations and the type and number of fish, or animals you are keeping. But best results always with filter running 24/7
If somebody would chime in I would really appreciate it. I'm doing a 20 gal bog filter for a 150 gallon pond. Am I understanding correctly that the ideal flow rate would be 120 gallons per hour?
@@Ozponds thank you so much for your time. All I had to do was bust out one of those old tiny pumps that I thought were too small to be useful. Save them for emergencies 🙂🙃🙂
This info is so very valuable. You can’t explain this too much!! I totally have to slow my flow. LOL
My water is really clearing up now! The clarity is much improved from even a week ago. It's pretty badly tannin stained at the moment though, but I figure that can't really hurt the fish. I'm not worried about a pH crash because of the kind of gravel I've used. The fish friendly skimmer is working fine and I have had 8 rosy barbs in the pond with no hassles for days now. It's really interesting to see them schooling up, parting ways, and doing really weird things like trying to swim up the water fall. My terrarium grown bacopa cuttings seem to have hardened up well enough that I should be able to plant them at the pond's edge pretty soon! Thanks for keeping me inspired :D
That’s awesome, great to hear 👍
Thanks for all the tips, after building 2 x 60L garbage bin bog filter, that fixed my tiny pond, I’m currently building a 1000L IBC bog filter for my pond I’m about to dig
Awesome 👍👍
I did a test run on my IBC tank bog filter build after adding plastic crates above the pipes & without any of the cobbles / pebbles & lava rock just to check for any leaks mainly thankfully non . But soon had to turn flow rate down to 27% handy having vari flow pump . Low and slow is the best result.
Absolutely 👍
I have some questions about not merely bog filter depth but also dealing with the plumbing pipes or hoses and potentially 3 feet thick of ice in the winter time? What materials will you be wanting to build those pipes out of, how would you go about winterizing the areas of a bog filter so that you don't have issues with freezing lines breaking PVC elbows Y's and T joints. and how do you ensure in designing a pond so that if broken plumbing lines do happen they are relatively easy to repair? Nothing quite like digging through hundreds of cubic meters of chest deep wet gravel to find a broken PVC junction.
I don’t live in an area that experiences such conditions so my response is only theoretical. If it were me I would design the system so it can be completely drained during the winter. As long as there’s no water in the pipes they shouldn’t expand and break.
When I hear politicians speak, I stick my head in a bucket and it filters out all the lies. Guess it works for all sorts of things.
😂
Thank you Kev. Flow inside the bog seems to be a very empirical data. Aquascape gives a value based on the length of the centipede (which sounds weird to me) without any scientific info to support it. Did you have a chance to measure the levels of nitrate, phosphate and metals in the pond with various flows to finally settle on your x6 value ?
No scientific evidence for me either. For me was just trial and error and it works on my really small bogs and my really big ones. I haven’t measured for phosphate and metals. I would like to do a full water test but I’m so lazy and cheap.
Good day, i am planning my garden pond at the moment and i watched all your videos and bought your PDF with lots of good advice inside. I am from northern Germany where we can have up to -10 degrees Celsius and in some rare cases even more. My plan is to make the bog filter 2 m long x 1,5 m wide and 1,5 m deep. Do you think the depth of 1,5 m might be too much since it will completely freeze anyway? If it is getting too cold , my plan is too cover the bog filter with insulation material from the outside walls and cover the top in winter time so i might be able to let it run the whole year.
Will the return from the bog to the pond freeze? If that’s the case you might be better off just shutting the whole thing down for the winter.
@@Ozponds i guess it will freeze if it's too long too cold. guess will turn it off it it s too cold.thanks for the reply and awesome channel you got there :-)
@@sebpv2806 just make sure if you do shut it off there’s no water left in the plumbing lines 👍
hi kev ive got a plastic tub sitting on top of 1 of my tanks that is set up the same as a bog filter its only 7 liters & the tank is about 300l its working a treat & its only about 120mm deep & the tank is very heavily stocked ive had not problems but i have added a spounge filter as the fish have grown just incase as its a grow out tank
Awesome 👍
Have you found a difference in ease of cleaning of the Nelson or Aquascape approaches?
I personally prefer the aquascape approach, easier to clean and flush.
At some point could you make another video about frogs? Or perhaps a tutorial on how to make a pond with no liner.
I’ve talked about frogs in a past video. Ive never really made a pond with no liner. The pond down behind the nursery has no liner it’s more like a very small dam.
@@Ozponds alright, what about a video stating the pond sizes for fish?
What do you mean? Like how big does a pond need to be for goldfish? Most fish we keep in ponds people keep in aquariums. You only really “need” a pond for big fish. I’ve talked about depth before, because that can impact on temperature, which will affect fish types you can keep. I’ve also talked about oxygen that plays a role, and of course filtration.
@@Ozponds yes how big does a pond need to be for goldfish
I wouldn’t do smaller than 1000L.
Hello there, thanks for the videos, when running a bog filter do they need to run the pump 24 hours a day all year round ? Thank you
I run mine 24/7 @ 365. I also have a solar pond and some no pump ponds, I like experimenting. It always depends on your goals, expectations and the type and number of fish, or animals you are keeping. But best results always with filter running 24/7
@@Ozponds Thank you very much for the reply and information
If somebody would chime in I would really appreciate it. I'm doing a 20 gal bog filter for a 150 gallon pond. Am I understanding correctly that the ideal flow rate would be 120 gallons per hour?
That’s the pump rate I would use for that size bog.
@@Ozponds thank you so much for your time. All I had to do was bust out one of those old tiny pumps that I thought were too small to be useful. Save them for emergencies 🙂🙃🙂
@@rockportrightsenthusiast1901 👍