A pond pump is a piece of equipment that has an electrical motor which drives a impeller/rotar which in turn circulates/moves water. Pumps obviously vary in their output (the volume of water circulated in any given period of time, usually expressed as litres or gallons per hour (lph/gph)) but they can vary in other ways.
Surface Pumps
These pumps can only operate dry - which means outside of the pool in a dry, well ventilated housing. The pumps, therefore, have to suck water from the pond via a reinforced hose (suction hose) and then pump it to your fountain or waterfall via a delivery hose. These pumps cannot handle coarse solids therefore a metal strainer (ideally fitted with a foot valve to keep the pumps primed when turned off) should be fitted to the end of the suction pipe. These pumps are difficult to install and in some cases generate a degree of noise and like for like can often be more expensive to run than submersible pumps. The two big advantages, however are that they can usually produce more pressure resulting in most being able to pump water higher and/or to a greater number of features than an equivalent submersible pump. They will also have less drop off in performance as the head increases. Plus the pumps can be stripped down to a greater extent for repair than submersibles
Submersibles
As the name suggests, these pumps will be placed underwater within the main body of water or in a gravity fed chamber. The big advantages of submersible pumps are that: 1. there is a greater choice of makes and models 2. there are models which cover a wider range of performance than with surface pumps 3. they are easier to install and are 'hidden' in the pool or reservoir 4. they are often cheaper to run and buy than an equivalent surface pump 5. they will be totally quiet when running underwater Whilst it depends on the exact design of the pump, in general terms submersibles cannot be dismantled to the same extent as surface pumps. The key moving parts can usually be easily accessed for cleaning or replacement, but if the motor fails it is always a case of replacing the whole motor or pump - which your savings in running costs may pay for! We stock a wide variety of pumps. Why not take a look?
