~o~
Wednesday 25th 57F/4C [7.30] Bright, with a sunny day promised after early rain. Windy from the west, gusting to 12m/s.
Up at 6.15 after a busy night. Apple juice and coffee with/after dinner.
I have borrowed a well used filter from the indoor aquarium. To start the chemistry cycle of the greenhouse pond. The used filter had been left uncleaned for months to ensure a heavy bio load and hopefully, lots of beneficial bacteria. I dropped it into the pond right beside the Oase filter pump and plugged it in.
This way both pumps contribute to even distribution of bacteria throughout the pond. My new plumbing parts should be delivered to the village, parcel pickup point today. These should help to increase the pump water flow and movement throughout the pond. The fountain/waterfall tap must causes considerable water flow reduction due to its circuitous internal arrangements and restrictions.
In the absence of ceramic plant weights. I am using stainless steel washers to hold down my new plants. It seems the former lead strips are unavailable in Denmark. Not even made from the substitute metals used for roof flashing. The water plants from Plantorama have ceramic weights in the bottoms of their pots. Albeit in a very noticeable brick-red.
8.00 I should have gone for my walk by now.
8.30 Back from my walk. Rather windy. Two red kites and a black kite were soaring low over the fields. Though not together. Two hares were playing on the neighbours' embankment. They started running towards me but swerved away and dashed to the top of the hill. Lots of traffic today.
I have dismantled and cleaned the smaller aquarium filter in the pond water. To accelerate the mixing of the beneficial bacteria with the water. Most of the green-brown gunk will probably end up in the big pond filter material. Where it will work continuously on the water passing through it.
The rest will settle on the gravel, walls of the container and plants. Within a minute the pond water was slightly cloudy. A good sign of even mixing of the water. The cleaned filter was returned to the indoor aquarium.
10.30 I have now cleaned and rinsed the filter sponges in the second aquarium filter. Again using the pond water. The pond is now very murky. [Image right] It will be interesting to see how long it takes to clear with the only the pond filter working.
The Oase Filtral 3000 is rated at about 1200l/hr maximum. So will achieve one complete water change per hour in my pond. The container is listed at 1500 liters capacity but the water is only 72cm deep. Rather than the full 80cm to the brim.
It is unfortunate that the greenhouse roof is reflected so clearly in the pond surface. It is not to obvious to the naked eye.
12.45
GLS has confirmed the arrival of my parcel at the pickup point. I
can't use their phone app because some drooling moron at GLS has fixed
an advertising screen. Precisely where one might have hoped for
information.
It
has an irrevocable demand box for manual entry of email and other
personal details. All to take part in some utterly meaningless twaddle.
Who needs hackers? When a suicidal company management is so utterly
determined. To undermine its own customer service!
The new plumbing fitting [above] provides a smooth bend. To allow the pump water to flow without resistance. Nor is there any reduction in cross section to increase resistance. The Oase filter has a 1" male PVC thread. The 90ยบ slow bend has been fitted onto a PVC adapter 1" female to 32mm male.
While the Oase fountain/waterfall switch is clever it has very sharp bends and narrow passages. Which must inevitably slow the water flow. Or make the pump work much harder for the same throughput. Water is much denser than air. So suffers from demands to change direction or pass through a smaller diameter.
13.30 I have unscrewed the Oase fitting and replaced it with the new bend. I can only just reach the top of the filter without getting my T-shirt sleeve wet. The water is clearing nicely.
16.30 The water continues to clear. My slow bend, plumbing mod is producing greater water movement without physical disturbance of the surface. A few bits of floating plant are rotating around on the surface. Still much too early to add any fish.
The hideous unvarnished truth! The view through the double glazed
door in the front hall. The pond still surrounded by the debris of
installation and planting.
I have to say that I am very pleased with the size and proportions of my indoor pond. Its scale and depth are very satisfying. I am glad I went to the trouble of digging a hole and partially burying it.
I chose the 1500 liter model because it only just cleared the greenhouse's open doors when tipped on its side. None of the large containers would go through. That said the rest of the dimensions were coincidental. Though thoroughly checked and marked out with battens.
The Cemo rectangular industrial containers comes in many different sizes. Though I had to wait a couple of months for delivery from Germany.
The pond after tidying away the bricks.
There is plenty of space to move around the pond within the greenhouse.
With the view into the water perfectly placed for comfortable viewing.
Particularly from the green plastic, garden chairs. Which I bought quite
recently but haven't used until now. I need a smarter, low garden table
for holding drinks. Those I have now are "recycled" very tatty and
decades old. I'll keep looking.
I am considering covering the sides of the GRP container with grooved plywood. The tapered sides will allow 50x100mm [2x4"] timber to be used at floor level. To support vertical plywood panels. Some sort of rigid insulation board can be hidden from view behind the plywood.
There is still a lot of tidying to do. The stack of lifted floor bricks and the scrap timber are an eyesore. I used the timber pieces for packing while comparing container heights. It all has to be disposed of somewhere. I have had no practice at keeping the greenhouse tidy. It was never my space when my wife was alive. More of just another storage area for junk. It was years earlier that she grew delicious, cherry tomatoes.
I cleared the floor bricks into a heap outside. Along with the scrap timber.
Dinner was fish fingers and chips. After which the lady from the village turned up unexpectedly. She stayed chatting until 22.00
~o~
