Solar Pond Pump
In today's economic climate people are constantly looking for ways to cut their energy bills, if you own a fish pond then a solar pond pump could save you money and protect the environment.
When doing research on these pumps you will notice there are two basic models to choose from, you can either go for the external version or the popular submersible version.
The external solar pond pump will be much more noticeable in your garden, being out of the water makes this pump a lot easier to maintain and keep clean.
You will also find that this type of pump will be a bit more powerful than the submersible version, but with the extra power there comes an extra cost, these pumps will generally be more expensive to purchase than submersible pumps.
The submersible pump is much more inconspicuous because it is actually placed in the water, this makes them slightly more difficult to maintain and keep clean.
This type is not as powerful as the external version and is ideal for smaller type fish ponds, another benefit of this version of solar pond pump is they are very silent when running and are less expensive to purchase.
When you are searching for the solar pond pump you will notice that most of them are sold as a pump kit, this includes the solar panel which the manufactures say will give the optimum power output for the pump to work correctly.
One simple way of checking if the solar panel is sufficient to run your pump is to make sure the solar panel output is double that of the size of the pump, for example if the pump is rated at six volts your solar panel output should be around 12 volts.
Most of the solar pumps come with fixing attachments to help you install the solar panel in the correct place to get the maximum amount of sun, these can be mounting brackets or even some type of small stakes to position and secure the panel.
However some manufactures do not supply a fixing solution so you will have to be creative when installing the solar panel, you can either fabricate your own fixing brackets or fasten the panel to a garden chair or bench.
Which ever style of fixing you choose always make sure the solar panel is secure and in the right place, the panel needs the maximum amount of sun to give maximum power output.
Some pond enthusiasts like to make sure the flow of water is at a constant rate no matter what time of day it is, they do this with a solar pond pump that has a battery back up.
The battery uses some of the power from the solar panel to charge itself up when the sun is shining, when the sun is not available the battery kicks in and takes over the running of the pump.
Although this is a good way of maintaining the water flow to your pond there is a downside the price, you can pay twice as much as you would for a standard solar pond pump for one these units.
So if you are receiving high electricity bills from running your mains pond pump then check out the solar pond pump, not only will you be saving money you will also be doing your bit for the protection of the environment by using less energy.
Below we have listed a few types of solar pond pump for you to look at, make sure you read the manufactures information and understand what the pump does and that it is the right one for your pond.
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