Water filtration is one of the most important issues in all pools and bamboo garden fountains where water is being used. Water garden suppliers usually recommend the use of a pre-filter prior to the use of a regular filter. Regular filters can either be mechanical filters or a combination of a mechanical as well as biological filter.  A mechanical filter removes the debris from the water. However, fine sediment and biological impurities can not be removed by using a mechanical filter. Biological filters can do that for you. Yet it is necessary to maintain bacteria that are beneficial to marine life. A mechanical-biological filter separates the mechanical and the biological cleaning. It may also leave some beneficial bacteria in the water.

Some suppliers offer a skimmer in place of a pre-filter. The pre-filter is normally a sponge or fiber that collects the debris. The pre-filter should be cleaned regularly to maintain efficiency. A large number of filters like, waterfall filters, carbon canister filters, Ultra violet filters (UV) for removing the algae, vortex and bead filters for koi ponds are available in the market. These filters have their own peculiarities. Some of them can be placed in the garden without concealing them. Some should be camouflaged.

The business of providing water filters has gradually evolved into an industry. The ponds in your gardens are not meant to be swimming pools. Therefore filters may not even be required in some cases as there is no requirement of maintaining crystal clear water inside these pools.  Keeping the water clean may help you to keep the diseases that affect fish at bay. It is very difficult to keep the bacteria out entirely. A lot of bacteria can develop in colonies around plants or even on the surface of the stones.

Pre filters only remove the sediments. They also require frequent cleaning. Carbon filters are meant to clean the water and remove the toxins. However since the water is not required to be perfectly pure, they may not be required except when you intend to keep a large quantity of fish like koi. Algae zappers that kill the bacteria by ultra violet rays are also not necessary. The bacteria are actually a part of the natural eco system and should not be eliminated. In case you have a pond that is six foot by four foot, fifteen to twenty fish can be maintained without any filtration arrangements. If you wish to keep more fish, then a vortex or a bead filtration plant will be required.

The easiest filtration plant can be made by using a fine mesh plastic basket with a pump sock. The pump sock has a fiber mesh linear which is very fine and requires frequent cleaning. A pump may be placed inside the sock and the entire thing is then placed in the plastic basket. For your domestic needs a mesh basket may be good enough unless there are a lot of leaves falling in the water. All these types of pumps are available with pond equipment suppliers. Without going over board you should select the right kind of pump for your pond.  

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