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A well-managed pond improves water clarity, reduces sludge and organic sediment buildup while controlling sulfur odors.
Even man-made ponds become living things once installed in the landscape. There is a micro- and macro-ecosystem developing daily in the backyard pond which is responsible for the success or failure of the system in its entirety. The homeowner wants to admire his clean, clear water, beautiful, healthy fish and lush, blooming water plants. The microbes do the work. The installer gets the credit.
It is the nitrifying and denitrifying bacterium, and rotifers which are unseen in the pond that clear the water of organic waste matter and debris. These bacteria are reactive and will rise to meet the need when fish are added to the system. The bacteria remove dead plant material and dead algae before it fouls the water. It even removes odor-causing gases.
The day the pond is completed, water is added and the pond has passed all tests, it is ready for the first inoculation of bacterium. Microbe-Lift/PL is the workhorse, a sort of ecosystem in a bottle with its adaptability and photosynthetic properties. ML/PL will immediately begin to populate the lining of the pond and filter with beneficial bacteria. In fact, Super Start for bubble-bead filters and PL GEL for other filter media shortens the colonization time within the filter.
Surface spray aerators provide the best vertical circulation or mixing in waters that are less than 15 feet deep. They create a convection current that breaks down thermal stratification by lifting the bottom waters to the surface and spreading it out over the surface to aerate it. Independent research indicates that these types of aeration systems add 2 mg./liter of dissolved oxygen at depths reaching 10 feet. The wave action created by the spray pattern creates more surface area of the water to be exposed to the atmosphere for oxygen diffusion and transfer but also it is excellent for breaking up algae mats as well as discouraging mosquito breeding. A good surface spray aerator will have a minimum flow or pumping rate of 400 gallons per minute and have a strong oxygen transfer rate of at least two pounds per hour.
Air diffused systems are most effective in deep water applications. They are most efficient in waters that are 12 feet or deeper. The deeper depths lend to more efficient mixing from the micro bubbles emitted at the pond or lake bottom as they rise through the water column entraining the bottom waters to the surface. The micro bubbles rise at about a foot per second and expand out into a larger column of influence as they head to the surface creating a convection current.
These types of aeration systems are best used for their ?EUR??,,????'??bottom up?EUR??,,????'?? lifting abilities bringing the cooler more dense bottom waters to the surface and spreading them out over the surface to be aerated.
Their efficiency is greatly reduced in shallower applications unless there are multiple diffusers strategically placed throughout the shallows to compensate for the lack of depth and contact time needed for effective mixing.
Horizontal aspirators and mixers are best suited for ponds and lakes that are from 3 to 12 feet deep. They are an effective choice for those applications when a spray pattern is not desired but a strong directional flow is needed. They are great for long narrow ponds or canals and are efficient in breaking up algae mats and deterring insect breeding in stagnant waters. They can be either floated on the surface or installed on the pond?EUR??,,????'???s bottom orientating them in such a way to get maximum influence.
Size, shape, depth and other contributing factors such as nutrient run-off, and incoming and outgoing water sources all play a role in determining the best aeration system for your pond or lake.
The most common recommendation when sizing an aeration system for your water feature is 1.5 HP per surface acre. This depends upon the shape and whether nutrient loading the horsepower can increase or decrease. Often multiple systems are used in conjunction with one another to provide optimal aeration and are especially effective with larger water features or with ones that are irregular in shape.
22 Percent, the amount of oxygen contained in air.
7: Part per million, the amount of dissolved oxygen in ponds where the bottom temperatures average 60-65 degrees Fahrenheit and surface temperatures of 70-75 degrees F. The mixing of the cooler bottom water with the surface water brings down the temperature to approx. 72 degrees F. from top to bottom and the large amount of dissolved oxygen.
Source: Livingwateraeration.com
Francisco Uviña, University of New Mexico
Hardscape Oasis in Litchfield Park
Ash Nochian, Ph.D. Landscape Architect
November 12th, 2025
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