Atlantic and OASE are great partners, in business and in the field, with complementary distribution models and product lines that dovetail perfectly to enhance water quality and reduce maintenance.
Atlantic and OASE complement each other on a number of levels. Our differing customer focus is a good example. OASE has grown to be one of the largest water gardening companies in the world by creating an excellent product line that appeals to the end user. Dealers appreciate OASE because the products are easy to sell; the equipment performs extremely well and carries excellent warranties. Atlantic, on this side of the pond, has concentrated on the contractor market and the distributors that supply those contractors. Atlantic’s customers like our commercial grade products for the same reasons – performance, quality and service. Put the two companies together and we cover all the bases.
The lines themselves are complementary as well. Here in the States, where leaves and clippings are typically the major maintenance concern, we clean from the top, skimming the surface of the pond to capture floating leaves and debris before they can sink. The pump lives in the skimmer, sending the prefiltered water up to an upflow biofilter, where pads clean and clear water mechanically and biologically. In Europe fishponds are typically cleaned from the bottom. There, a solids-handling pump on the bottom sends fish wastes and small particulates to extremely efficient pressure filters that remove much finer suspended solids than upflow biofilters can. The two philosophies are yin and yang; one continually removes leaves and floating debris but requires periodic cleaning of settled solids; the other captures the settling solids but requires vacuuming to remove leaves and larger debris. Put the two together and you get top down, bottom up cleaning that dramatically improves water quality and drastically reduces maintenance.
Take for example any existing fish pond with a Skimmer and FilterFalls. Let’s say this pond is a few years old and the fish are happy. They have grown larger than when they were introduced; they have reproduced; their owners have added fish, just a few, here and there. Now there are more wastes than the pond was designed to handle. The excess nutrients have started to impact water quality and clarity, as algae take advantage of the nitrates in the water column. The homeowners have an aeration system, and are adding bacteria, but the pond just isn’t as clear and clean as it was with one tenth the fish load. Nor are the ‘parents’ willing to part with any of their ‘children’, which all have names and endearing habits. So there are more fish, and fish wastes, than the pond can metabolize naturally, and even an aggressive cleanout will only delay the return of the same conditions.
The contractor now can offer a return to gin-clear water, guaranteed, without rebuilding the entire pond. A properly sized OASE FiltoClear Pressure Filter paired with an AquaMax Eco pump is the perfect drop-in solution and comes with the OASE Clear Water Guarantee. The system works in three ways to clean and clear the water. The pump, placed centrally at the bottom of the pond, begins removing wastes and passing them to the filter as soon as it is plugged in. The UVC Clarifier renders any algae in the water sterile, unable to reproduce, eliminating green water. Filter foams then separate out the organic wastes and suspended solids, returning clean, clear water to the pond. Maintenance is reduced to a minimum. The pump is designed to pass wastes without clogging, and the filter backwashes clean in seconds.
Installation is straightforward. The pump at the bottom needs its cord and the return hose hidden from view, a matter of moving or adding a few stones. The filter can be hidden from view either by placement far from the pond’s edge, behind a raised waterfall or buried up to the top of the canister. The filtered water can be returned anywhere into the stream or along the pond perimeter. Two additional plugs will have to be provided, one for the pump and one for the integrated UVC, but neither draws much current and can usually be accommodated on the same 15 or 20 amp circuit powering the original pump in the skimmer. Even if a second circuit needs to be added, this solution requires little labor in contrast to a pond rebuild, or even a full pond cleanout, and takes far less time.
BioPress and FiltoClear provide a drop-in solution for ponds with water quality concerns that guarantees clear water in ponds up to 2000 gallons. For larger ponds, use OASE Screenmatic and ProfiClear Filters with the appropriate UVC Clarifier and pump to achieve the same results, with clear water guaranteed.
About the Author:
DEMI FORTUNA
Demi has been in water garden construction since 1986. As Atlantic’s Director of Product Information, if he’s not building water features, he’s writing or talking about them. If you have a design or construction question, he’s the one to ask.