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Black Hole Skimmers for Ponds

  • Keeps pond surface clean by only pulling in surface water.

  • Filters suspended debris.

  • Aerates water that can be deposited deep in pond.

  • User friendly and easy to maintain.

  • Works with many types of filter media, including filter socks and filter floss.

  • Accepts wide range of pumps with different gallons per hour flow rates.

The Black Hole Skimmer will place its water intake funnel to just below the water surface. Therefore, only surface water enters the funnel opening. There are no doors or adjustment valves. It just works. As surface water enters the skimmer, deeper water in the pond will be pulled to the surface. This deeper water will carry with it suspended debris, which is then also filtered by the Black Hole Skimmer. As water enters the funnel, it is mixed with air that will super aerate the water. This aerated water is then deposited back into the pond for healthier plants and animals. The skimmer will work with standard 4” plastic ring filter socks that come in varying densities and materials. Some of these socks can be reused, such as the nylon sock that is included with the skimmer. Matala filter pads can also be cut to size and fitted in the skimmer, along with other types of cut to size media, such as sponges and pads. Poly-Fil is also an inexpensive favorite, as it works very well and can be purchased in bulk.

Black Hole Skimmers Aerate Pond Water

  • In this video, a 2.000 GPH pump is powering the skimmer.

  • The aerated water is deposited deep into the pond.

  • Aerated water is very beneficial to the health of the pond.

  • The upward flow will pull bottom water to the surface of the pond.

  • The upward flow will also create a current to the bottom drain.

  • There is a foam pre-filter being used as a diffuser on the pump.

  • A diffuser is not necessary.

The video is using a 2,000 GPH pump. We have powered the Black Hole Skimmer with pumps ranging from 300 to 2,600 GPH. Higher GPH flows will aerate better than slower rates. Aerated water is very beneficial to the pond and its inhabitants. In many ponds, the bottom water in the pond has very little oxygen, and this lack of oxygen reduces the number of beneficial bacteria that convert harmful debris to harmless by products. This harmful debris will then build up to what many call muck. Muck reduces the things that your koi need to be healthy and adds to the things that are harmful to your fish. Therefore, it is very important to aerate the water in your pond, and the deeper the aeration, the more it will benefit your pond. If the pump is placed at the bottom of the pond, then the aerated water will be deposited deep into the pond. The flow of aerated water will also create an upward flow that will bring with it water that is low in oxygen, thus not only aerating surface water as it enters, but also aerating water from the bottom of the pond. This upward flow will also bring suspended debris to the surface, where it can be filtered out of the water by the Black Hole Skimmer. If the bottom pump is placed on the bottom drain of the pond, then the upward flow of aerated water will also cause water in the pond to move towards the bottom drain. Therefore, more bottom debris will find its way into your bottom drain. The Black Hole Skimmer creates a lot of beneficial dynamics that ordinary ponds skimmers are not able to. In the video, there is a foam diffuser on the pump. This diffuser is not necessary and is not included with the Black Hole Skimmer. We have noticed that the koi in our test ponds enjoy the upward flow from the pump without the diffuser, so we have removed the diffuser from our test ponds.

Our Inline Filter

  • Black Hole Skimmers can be used with an inline filter or any other filter.

  • In the video, we attached an inline filter to the skimmer, and then a pump to the inline filter.

  • Black Hole Skimmers work well with only filter media and no inline filter.

  • In some systems, there may already be filters or it may be desired to use an inline filter.

  • We offer a kit to make the filter shown in the video.

  • This inline skimmer must be used in the water.

The video is using a 2,000 GPH pump. We have powered the Black Hole Skimmer with pumps ranging from 300 to 2,600 GPH. Higher GPH flows will aerate better than slower rates. Aerated water is very beneficial to the pond and its inhabitants. In many ponds, the bottom water in the pond has very little oxygen, and this lack of oxygen reduces the number of beneficial bacteria that convert harmful debris to harmless by products. This harmful debris will then build up to what many call muck. Muck reduces the things that your koi need to be healthy and adds to the things that are harmful to your fish. Therefore, it is very important to aerate the water in your pond, and the deeper the aeration, the more it will benefit your pond. If the pump is placed at the bottom of the pond, then the aerated water will be deposited deep into the pond. The flow of aerated water will also create an upward flow that will bring with it water that is low in oxygen, thus not only aerating surface water as it enters, but also aerating water from the bottom of the pond. This upward flow will also bring suspended debris to the surface, where it can be filtered out of the water by the Black Hole Skimmer. If the bottom pump is placed on the bottom drain of the pond, then the upward flow of aerated water will also cause water in the pond to move towards the bottom drain. Therefore, more bottom debris will find its way into your bottom drain. The Black Hole Skimmer creates a lot of beneficial dynamics that ordinary ponds skimmers are not able to. In the video, there is a foam diffuser on the pump. This diffuser is not necessary and is not included with the Black Hole Skimmer. We have noticed that the koi in our test ponds enjoy the upward flow from the pump without the diffuser, so we have removed the diffuser from our test ponds.

Black Hole Skimmers

  • Cleans and aerates the water for much improved water quality.

  • Healthier fish and plants.

  • Less difficult to install than typical pond skimmers and No Need to Cut the Liner.

  • Optimally filter the surface of a pond

  • Funnel of the skimmer will automatically be placed at the optimal depth.

  • At higher flow rates the skimmer sounds like a waterfall or a brook.

Black Hole Skimmers will optimally filter the surface of a pond. It does this by only pulling in the first layer of water, which could only be up to the top 10 mm. There is no door that will break and no cuts in the liner that will leak. It simply, safely skims the surface water in a pond. As water enters the skimmer, air is mixed into the water. This super-aerated water is then deposited back into the pond which reduces pond muck and increases dissolved oxygen. The funnel of the skimmer will automatically be placed at the optimal depth for the water flow rate into the skimmer. This allows for a wide range of flow rates through the skimmer. We have tested 300 to 2,600 GPH. If you turn on the sound in this video or the first video below, then you will hear the water mixing with air. At this flow rate, the skimmer almost sounds like a waterfall. In arid areas or seasons, waterfalls cause more water to evaporate. Black Hole Skimmers will cause much less evaporation, if any. Waterfalls do help aerate the water, but only as deep as the water penetrates the surface. Black Hole Skimmers will aerate the bottom of the pond, if the pump is placed that deep.

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