You’ve probably seen us advertising our special Triplepoint Blend Pro-Biotic for quite some time now. We always say that it’ll be great for your pond, and used in conjunction with aeration you’ll have just that much of a better chance at getting control over that irksome algae problem. For most of the population that is ignorant to such things, this raises the question…

What is Pro-Biotic?

The Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health Organization define probiotics as: “Live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host.” Some of the most commonly used probiotics are lactic acid bacteria, bifidobacteria, yeasts, and some bacilli.

Now for those of you who haven’t taken the time to brush up on your biology lately, this may seem like the opposite of “demystifying.” Luckily for you, I’ll look to explain this mystical “probiotic” without the use of terms like bifidobacteria and bacilli. What you’ll hopefully find is that the idea behind using probiotic to help digest nutrient and eradicate algae from your pond is very relatable and understandable.

Using the definition from above, let us consider the probiotics to be the “live microorganisms” (since that’s what they are) and your algae-ridden pond to be the “host.” While your pond is not living in the sense that an animal lives and breathes, it is still a living ecosystem that is adversely affected by detriments similar to the way a human is affected by, say, a flu bug. In the case of your green-topped pond outside, algae-forming nutrients are the equivalent of a flu bug, allowing algae to spread dangerously, compromising the health of your pond with each day that it’s allowed to expand over the surface. These nutrients are the result of fertilizers, fish and animal waste, runoff from streets, et cetera, flowing into your pond. (It should be noted that 5-10% coverage of algae is considered healthy, but anything beyond that should be avoided.)

There are times when the natural bacteria that exist in your pond are simply not strong or plentiful enough to rid the pond of the influx of algae-forming nutrients (mostly nitrogen and phospohrous). The natural, decomposing bacteria can only break it down at a certain pace, and if the influx is greater than that pace, a buildup of nutrients forms. As the buildup continues to grow, the bacteria fall further and further behind, algae begins to collect, and you can end up with a massive coverage in a matter of weeks, or sometimes even days.

It’s a similar concept to that of the human body. Sometimes your body simply isn’t strong enough to fight off whatever ailment has befallen it. Every once in awhile you need an extra boost, usually in the form of medication. These drugs then fight off the ailment along with our antibodies, and eventually allow your body to become healthy again. The same is true for your pond.

And this is where probiotic comes in. Just as a medication administered to the human body is specified for a certain purpose, or to cure a certain ailment, probiotic is the same way. Triplepoint Blend Pro-Biotic is a collection of bacteria and enzymes specifically designed with one purpose: to digest the organic matter that fuels algae growth.

Just as the definition from FAO/WHO indicates, when probiotic is added to the host (AKA: your pond), it offers a health benefit. In this case, probiotic essentially acts as reinforcement, called in to aid the native bacteria in the digestion of algae-forming nutrients. They provide the necessary boost and help to decrease the overall algae coverage. This adds the benefit of aquatic plant photosynthesis since the sun is able to penetrate the surface, which contributes to a higher dissolved oxygen content, which leads to healthier fish, less obnoxious pond odor, and overall a much healthier, happier aquatic ecosystem.

At the concept’s roots, it’s all biology—it’s all related even though one is in reference to your personal health and the other to your pond. The same biological concepts and ideas apply to each situation. Now, this year when you throw your annual Pro-Biotic Party and someone asks you how the heck that Pro-Biotic works to help your pond, you’ll be able to explain it to them in a way that all can understand.

Quick Note: Pro-Biotic is only at its most effective when it is used in conjunction with aeration. If there is not adequate aeration, the dissolved oxygen content is often too low and the Pro-Biotic will not have the oxygen it needs in order to go through the necessary chemical reactions that are used to break down algae-forming nutrients.

1. Prevent Fish Kills

Without aeration, the two best sources of oxygen for a pond are aquatic plants, and air from the atmosphere. This can be extremely problematic come wintertime. When the temperature cools, thick layers of ice form, creating a sheet across the entire surface of the pond. This sheet of ice stubbornly prevents any oxygen transfer from occurring between the pond and the atmosphere. Additionally, when snowfall inevitably builds up on top of this ice sheet, sunlight will be completely inhibited from entering the pond. This will further prevent oxygen restoration, as aquatic plants will be unable to photosynthesize. As this happens, fish will begin to use up the available oxygen, and the dissolved oxygen content of the pond can fall to dangerously low levels. Over the course of the winter, without any renewing oxygen source, fish will often begin to suffocate. Come the end of winter, there’s a good chance that when the pond thaws, it will reveal a collection of dead fish.

This outcome can be avoided by way of winter aeration. A diffused aeration source at the bottom of your pond will keep the oxygen supply plentiful throughout the winter. Not only that, but it will make for a much healthier, more attractive, and all around nicer pond come springtime.

1a. Eliminate Pond Stratification And Turnover

Another problem that can plague ponds in the spring is that of pond turnover. This phenomenon occurs when the top and bottom layers of the pond mix due to a fluctuation in temperature. This causes what is known as pond stratification to dissipate. When this occurs, the layers laden with dissolved oxygen are forced to mix with the layers that are oxygen deficient. The result is an environment with a sparse content of dissolved oxygen spread out over the entirety of the pond, leaving no area with a healthy dissolved oxygen level. This can often result in large fish kills, as well as a dirty, odorous, unhealthy pond for months to come.

By employing the use of aeration year round, the layers are kept circulating under the ice throughout the winter months. This will help your pond avoid stratification, turnover, and all of the disastrous effects that often afflict ponds in the spring.

2. Avoid Pond Odors

During the winter, in the absence of oxygen, anaerobic bacteria is forced to break down any excess nutrient that happens to find its way into your pond. When this happens, it is done inefficiently and with the emission of many noxious gases such as sulfur and methane. Especially when your pond is closed off by a layer of ice, these gases can be dangerous to fish if they become too prevalent. Not only this, but when the pond thaws in spring, you will be greeted by the staggering stench of numerous months buildup of odorous gases. For obvious reasons this is a very unpleasant experience that should be avoided at all costs.

Once again, winter aeration can help solve this problem. First, it will supply the necessary oxygen so that aerobic bacteria can break down nutrient efficiently. Additionally, aeration will create a hole in the ice that will remain throughout the winter, so as to allow noxious gases to escape into the atmosphere instead of building up in your pond throughout the winter.

3. Inhibit Algae Growth

A common misconception with pond owners is that a problem only exists when the pond is covered in algae throughout the spring, summer, and into the fall. This is not the case. The pond problem actually begins when the dissolved oxygen content starts to decrease. When this happens, it allows nutrient levels to rise, algae to grow, and the overall health of the pond ecosystem to deteriorate.

Cold water is naturally able to absorb oxygen better than warm water. So, what better way to take advantage of nature in this case than to boost the level of your pond’s dissolved oxygen over the winter, when it can absorb so much more oxygen? Aeration will boost the dissolved oxygen level over the winter months, and instead of having a pond deficient of dissolved oxygen come spring and summer when less oxygen can be absorbed, you will have a healthy pond. These leftover effects should prove beneficial into the following seasons as the benefits of aeration will build upon themselves, yielding a healthy pond throughout the year.

4. Be Environmentally Friendly

The main benefit behind winter aeration is that, overall, it is much better for the environment. Because the water is kept circulating, a hole anywhere from five to fifty feet in diameter will generally form in the ice and stay throughout the winter months. As was mentioned previously, this allows gases to release into the atmosphere, which is good for the aquatic life. Now, not only the pond environment benefits, but other wildlife in the area can also be a beneficiary of winter aeration. Allow me to explain…

Oftentimes the cold, desolate days of January and February seem gray, dry, and virtually lifeless. Open water can offer a refreshing break from this both for wildlife and for you. Animals have a place to drink, fish have the necessary dissolved oxygen, and any land animals that are dependent on a water source have that provided to them. Furthermore you, the pond owner, can admire the beauty of nature from the comfort of your own home during a season when it is generally scarce.

It’s difficult to quantify or qualify the benefits of winter aeration, but rest assured that this one step can lead to a healthier pond, safer and happier wildlife, as well as much needed stress relief come the spring and summer.

Excuses are a way of life for much of the human population. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but at times it can have problematic consequences. Pond aeration is no exception to this rule. Here’s a breakdown of the top 5 reasons that you should aerate your pond today. Not tomorrow, next week, next month, or once the birds fly south so you don’t bother them. Today.

1. It takes awhile for aeration to kick in.

There are no miracle workers when it comes to getting rid of your algae and making your pond healthy. You can use chemicals, such as copper sulfate. That will certainly sterilize your pond in no time. Be advised, though, the algae will return more swiftly each time and with a fierce vengeance. Oh, and you’ll be slowly killing any sign of aquatic life in your pond. Aeration is the safest and most environmental way to make your pond look (and be) healthy. Unfortunately, it takes a little while to undo all of the bad in your pond and instill some good. So, the sooner it gets started, the better, and the longer you’ll have to sit back and enjoy the scene of aquatic bliss before you.

2. You won’t like the way your pond looks in the dog days of summer.

Buying an aerator on August 5^th will do very little to clear up your pond by August 10^th when you’re hosting that birthday party. Buy it on May 5^th instead. Better yet, buy it on March 5^th. I’ll tell you what, give it to yourself as a Christmas present and get things rolling so your pond is the talk of the town come summertime when everyone is hanging around outside. The bottom line here is that it takes time to break down the algae-forming nutrients that have been building up in your pond for years, and the greater head start you give your pond before the hot, humid, suffocating days of summer arrive, the better it will look.

3. Think of your fish!

Imagine the pain that you would feel if you were forced to walk around gasping for air all day long. What if you were struggling to breathe, and every minute was a fight for survival because there simply was no oxygen in the air? Would you want the person in charge of your ecosystem to “get around to it next week?” No. Emphatically, no. You would want to breathe today, yesterday, or even the day before that. Fish kills happen because of pond owners that put off aeration for too long and eventually it ends in catastrophe to the tune of dozens, hundreds, thousands of dead fish. All the more reason that you should aerate your pond today, yesterday, or even the day before that.

4. The right aerator will be an investment, not a burden.

It’s true, making a commitment to aerate your pond can be expensive. However, the right aerator choice will only be a noticeable entity in your bank account once—at its initial purchase. This differs from chemicals, which tend to make medium-sized dents in your pocketbook numerous times a year, adding up to one gigantic dent over multiple years. A reliable aerator that will stand by you in sickness and in health, through good times and bad is the one that you want to find. In this case, you’ll pay the initial price of the aerator and then ideally be able to watch it work its magic over the next umpteen years. Then you can join in poking fun at the dilettantes who are still pouring thousands of dollars into their pond each year in the form of chemicals.

5. It feels good.

What’s better than checking something off of your perpetually growing to-do list? Pull the trigger on your aerator, check it off the list, and feel one of the many weights on your shoulders lift. Feels great, doesn’t it?

Instead of thinking in “what ifs” or racking your brain for reasons why an aerator simply won’t work this year, try thinking of reasons why it can work. You and your pond will both be very happy.

Presumably, everyone desires a healthy pond. However, as is true with most things, this is much easier said than done. The treasured vault that holds the secrets to a healthy pond is stubbornly locked to most pond owners. Mixing is the key that can open that vault.

When it comes to breaking down nutrients, there are few things more important or successful than mixing action. There needs to be a mixing of pond layers, a mixing between nutrients and oxygen, and a mixing to create intimate contact between aerobic, decomposing bacteria and the pond specimens waiting to be broken down.

Nothing takes down algae and sludge like a good old-fashioned mix.

Behind the Scenes:

It’s really great that we know what needs to be done, but unfortunately (once again) this is easier said than done. How exactly is this accomplished?

One specific mixing aspect that the MARS Aerator utilizes is a synergistic Venturi Effect. The coarse bubble static tube makes up the core of the MARS Aerator, and is placed with 8 inches of clearance between the notorious pond-bottom sludge and its base. When air is pumped through the static tube, it creates a vacuum (or Venturi) effect, which then gently pulls water from beneath the MARS unit through its core.

This Venturi Effect does much to agitate the water, and even carries liquefied sludge with it to be broken down, which otherwise would have continually accumulated at the bottom of the pond. When the sludge and excess nutrients are pulled through the static tube, they are partially broken down by the mixing action. Next, when they come in contact with the oxygen rich water created by the fine-bubble aeration, they are broken down even more. As the Venturi Effect continues working, the water in the pond is consistently circulated and mixed. Due to this, nutrients are more effectively broken down and pond layers are destratified.

A Helpful Metaphor:

The relationship between mixing and oxygenating a pond can be compared to washing your hands. The fine bubbles (primarily oxygenating) will be represented by soap and water. The coarse bubbles (primarily mixing) will be represented by hand-scrubbing.

Picture yourself having just come inside from the muddiest work you have ever done. You walk straight to the sink, your hands caked with an odorous, gristly layer of mud. Water rushes out of the faucet and you place your hands underneath it, adding a few squirts of soap every few seconds. You hang your hands in the sink limply and let the water and soap run over them. Alas, while some of the mud and stench disappear from your hands, they are far from clean. You’re doomed to live the rest of your days with pungent, muddy hands.

However, there may be hope still. In scenario number two you walk to the sink, turn on the water, apply the soap, and scrub your hands vigorously. Voila. Your hands are pristine, and you can live a life full of happiness and cleanliness. All because you scrubbed.

The same is true for pond aeration. You can add all the oxygen you want through fine bubble aeration, but if you don’t mix it with the rest of the pond, spread it about, share the wealth with all of those in the pond who need it, you won’t produce the results that you’re hoping for. You will have one extremely oxygen-rich area in your pond, and the rest will remain stagnant and mostly unaffected. However, once you add in the mixing factor through coarse bubble aeration, your pond begins to experience the benefits of oxygenation throughout its layers and regions. And there is much rejoicing.

Don’t Worry, It’s a Common Misunderstanding

Most laymen who simply dabble in the science behind pond aeration would assume that oxygenation is far and away the main benefit of aeration. This is the very reason that they are referred to, and will continue to be referred to, as laymen. Because they’re wrong.

It’s true that oxygenation is obviously essential to the process. Without it, there would be much less nutrients and sludge broken down.  However, without any type of mixing action, the presence of oxygen is negated quite a bit. The real bottom line is that you cannot properly, effectively, or successfully oxygenate without some type of mixing action utilized in conjunction.

If you don’t believe me, just try washing your hands sans scrubbing.

It seems like looking after your pond is hassle enough. On top of that, you now have to worry about taking care of the products that are taking care of your pond. But in reality, how hard is it to maintain a MARS Aerator?

The short answer:

Not hard.

But since that answer doesn’t seem quite sufficient, I’ll expand a bit.

Long(er, but not too long) answer:

What causes most machines to break? That’s easy—something inside the machine malfunctions. For whatever reason, one part of the machine simply ceases working. A crank stops cranking, a wheel stops spinning, or a gear stops turning. This one part, regardless of its size or placement, can put the kibosh on the entire system. Before you know it, your pond is once again covered in a gelatinous green glop, mosquitoes are breeding like rabbits, and an inhumane stench is practically visible as it rises off the surface of the water.

Here’s an example of this very problem. A fountain (not that you should have one for aeration purposes—click here if you have questions about that) usually incorporates the use of a motor, which powers a rotating impeller. Now, if practically any part of the motor or impeller decides to go on the fritz, a kink is thrown into the whole operation. Think about a motor. It is constructed of rotors, axles, magnets, rings, and a slew of other parts that can all get knocked out of place. Add the fact that these motors are surrounded by water, and the equation becomes even more dangerous.

The same is unfortunately true for surface aerators as with fountain motors. If just one of the aforementioned factors goes out of whack, the motor stops working. And so does your fountain or surface aerator. What happens next? The water looks terrible (even though it probably didn’t look that good in the first place with these products). Sadness and despair reign supreme about your pond. You are forced to either endure the pains of an unattractive, unhealthy pond, or shell out the cash for maintenance.

Or are you?

Enter the MARS Aerator. (cue triumphant music)

Following a fairly simple installation, the MARS Aerator merely rests at the base of the pond. Unlike with fountains and surface aerators, the MARS is solely constructed of polyvinyl chloride, stainless steel hardware, and diffusers. As such, there is nothing to stop functioning on the MARS itself. No cranks, wheels, gears, rotors, or axles. Air simply runs from the shore, through the hose, and to the MARS Aerator. From there, it travels out the diffusers, and into the water. This being the case, there are only two things actually moving in the surrounding area: air and water.

So, what does this all mean? It means that the MARS Aerator is much less likely to break, in large part because there is very little to actually break. When nothing breaks, maintenance all of a sudden becomes a much easier task.

The real gist of the situation is that with no moving parts the MARS Aeration unit itself should easily last for years without a problem. In order to keep things running this smoothly, it is recommended that the MARS diffusers be cleaned every two-three years. This is obviously a bit of routine maintenance that may be a hassle, but it’s much better than having to replace units or parts every couple months or so.

Also, the on-shore compressor runs constantly, day and night. It will unavoidably take on some wear and tear, but at least it isn’t surrounded by water. Fortunately, issues with the compressor are usually elementary enough that a simple part replacement will have your MARS back up and running before any of the bad guys in your pond have a chance to take hold again. For example, it is recommended that the compressor filter be changed out for a new one approximately every six months. However, if something tragic were to happen to the compressor, the MARS Aerator (the more important and expensive part) is left unscathed, anxious to get to work again once air is pumped through the hose.

But I digress…

The Bottom Line:

Due to an absence in moving parts the MARS Aerator causes very few problems, and most of the problems that might occur are a quick and easy fix. An example of one of these problems might be the on-shore compressor that pumps air through the hose and to the aerator. After 2-3 years you may find slight problems with the compressor, but repairs are simple and will hardly ever exceed $100.

The Setup

We keep saying “Our MARS Aerator utilizes Patented Double-Bubble Technology to both mix and aerate your pond.” That’s all well and good, but what do we really mean? Let’s see if we can clear that up…

A very brief introduction to diffused aeration: There are two types of diffused aeration. These are 1) Coarse Bubble Aeration and 2) Fine Bubble Aeration. The coarse bubble aeration technique utilizes fewer, larger bubbles. Outside of the MARS Aeration technology, coarse bubble aeration is rarely seen in the pond aeration field. Conversely, fine bubble aeration employs the use of more, smaller bubbles in order to aerate.

Due to the science behind these techniques (stay tuned!), coarse bubble aeration will never oxygenate as well as fine bubble aeration. Likewise, fine bubble aeration will never mix as well as coarse bubble aeration. There has to be some give and take either on the side of oxygen output or mixing action. That’s the way it’s always been.

I say thee nay!

This aeration-world status quo wasn’t good enough for us, and this dissatisfaction is what eventually lead us to Double-Bubble Technology. I’ll now see if I can try and explain how we (and you) are able to have our cake and eat it too.

The Players

Bubble #1: The Coarse Bubble.

Size: Larger than 2mm in diameter.

Skills Include: Mixing Water, Destratifying Pond Layers, Breaking down Nutrients

Catch Phrase: “Bigger is better.”

The Coarse Bubble is expelled from a tube in the middle of the MARS Aerator. Being a larger bubble, it causes a more violent displacement of water to occur. This water displacement results in a mixing of the pond water.

Think about heating water on the stove. As little bubbles start to rise, the water in the pot remains relatively still. But once the water begins to boil, larger bubbles are formed and rise to the surface. Then what happens? The water begins to churn about and you can see there is a definite mixing action occurring in the pot. The same basic principle applies to the effect of the coarse bubble on your pond. This not only reduces pond stratification, but also causes bacteria to come into close contact with nutrients, which helps to break them down more quickly.

Additionally, the larger displacement of water creates a suctioning effect that will gently pull excess sludge and stagnant water from the bottom of the pond. It will then be mixed in with the rest of the water and broken down by bacteria, leading to a much happier, healthier pond ecosystem.

Bubble #2: The Fine Bubble.

Size: Smaller than 2mm in diameter.

Skills Include: Possessing a High Oxygen Transfer Efficiency, Maximizing Surface Area, Long and Leisurely Trips to the Surface

Catch Phrase: “Less is more.”

The Fine Bubble is released through diffuser membranes, which expel up to 30-50 thousand bubbles per second. That means that in under a day and a half, fine bubble diffusers can release as many bubbles as there are people in the world today. In three weeks it can release as many bubbles as there are stars in the Milky Way Galaxy. Through an increased number of small bubbles, versus a decreased number of large bubbles, fine bubble aeration is able to release more oxygen into the pond due to its greater surface area.

Think about one large bubble, floating to the surface of a pond. How much overall bubble is touching the water? Now break that one bubble into a thousand little bubbles. The overall bubble-to-water contact clearly increases. More bubble-to-water contact means more opportunity for oxygen to be transferred. Additionally, fine bubbles rise to the surface of the pond much slower than coarse bubbles. By spending more time in the water, fine bubbles have more opportunity to transfer their oxygen to the pond. These are the main concepts behind fine bubble aeration and why it has a higher oxygen transfer rate than the coarse bubble. The higher the oxygen transfer rate, the more oxygen is released into the pond, and the healthier the pond becomes.

The Result

Double Bubble Technology

With the combination of the coarse bubble and the fine bubble, pond aeration has never been more effective and efficient. The mixing of the coarse bubble combined with the oxygenating of the fine bubble creates an aerating force the likes of which have never been seen, in the form of the MARS Aerator.

Believe it or not, the below freezing days of winter are coming to an end! With warmer temperatures comes the ability to enjoy your pond. This Spring Pond Checklist is designed to help give you a head start preparing your pond for a beautiful growing season.

Spring is one of our favorite times of the year; birds are singing, flowers are sprouting and the sun is shinning – perfect conditions to enjoy your pond. But beware, without taking a few critical steps early, your pond enjoyment could be ruined by flooding, fish kills, and algae!

Here is our checklist for preparing your pond for an enjoyable spring and summer:

1) Check over your pond

With spring comes rain. Check your spillways for blockages – often trees can fall or beavers can dam-up spillways preventing the free flow of water. Any blockages can cause flooding that can kill surrounding plants, cause fish kills and damage electrical infrastructure near the pond among, other things.

Check the pond banks for signs of erosion – spring rain will exacerbate this. A short-term prevention method is laying sod on the bare banks. For the long term, consider planting native prairie grasses in the worst effected areas; they will not only help to prevent erosion, but will also act buffer to limit algae fueling nutrients getting into your pond.

2) Avoid Spring Fish Kills

If your fish are still alive, they’re lucky to have survived the arctic winter. Unfortunately, it only takes a spring without sufficient aeration for their luck to run out.

As temperatures increase, the different layers of the water column will begin to mix. As a result, the water at the bottom of pond then becomes warmer and, initially, the level of oxygen increases.

Bacteria at the bottom of the pond will then wake up from their cryogenic state and begin rapidly consuming the nutrients (leaves, waterfoul excrement etc.) that are present at the bottom of the pond. Before too long, oxygen levels plummet and a mass fish kill can occur.

By installing aeration early in the spring season, you will begin to mix the different layers of the water column while directly adding oxygen. We recommend the MARS 1500 Aeration System as the Patented Double Bubble Technology is specifically designed to Mix and Aerate (add oxygen to water).

3) Get Ahead of the Algae Game

As spring gives way to summer, the increase in temperatures coupled with the nutrient runoff of fertilizers, waterfowl excrement, leaves etc. from spring rains becomes a toxic combination. Inevitably algae blooms will occur that create pond odors, mosquito infestations and poor water clarity.

Give your pond a head start by boosting levels of beneficial bacteria, such as Triplepoint blend Pro-biotic. When used with proper aeration, bacteria will begin to consume nutrients and prevent them from fueling algae blooms when summer arrives.

To the uneducated pond owner, winter aeration may seem like a waste of time and energy. It is too cold in the wintertime for algae to grow and mosquito’s to proliferate. Moreover, the top of the pond will often freeze in northern climates – so you can forget about poor water clarity and pond odors!

In some respects, this conventional line of thinking is understandable. Conventional technologies, like fountains and circulators, cannot function in below freezing temperatures – pond managers have no choice but to take them out.

However, the time and costs of removing, storing and replacing equipment can often erase much of the potential power cost saved by not aerating in winter. Moreover, this conventional approach fails to take into consideration any potential benefits of aerating in the winter.

By aerating with the MARS 1500 Aeration system you can prevent winter fish kills and give your pond a head start for the summer. While at the same time attract winter wild life and prevent your dock or boat from becoming damaged.

Here are four reasons the pond experts at Triplepoint believe winter aeration is a good thing for your pond:

Reason #1: Prevents Fish Kills

When the surface of your pond freezes, fish are essentially sealed away from their oxygen source, and once they consume all of the oxygen in the water, a fish kill from suffocation will occur.

Fish can also die when the pond turns over in the spring. In northern climates, your pond becomes stratified during the winter months – where layers of the water column separate into different layers of temperature and dissolved oxygen.

When the ice melts and temperatures increase, these different layers mix with each other. As they mix, the overall water temperature increases and bacteria that lay dormant all winter begin to aerobically break down organic material. In this process, the bacteria consume oxygen – and in a matter of hours can deplete dissolved oxygen levels to the point where fish suffocate and die en masse.

The MARS 1500 Aeration system can prevent fish kills because it adds oxygen to the pond all winter long – keeping an opening in the ice and ensuring your fish have the oxygen needed to breath. Moreover, because the MARS utilizes patented Double Bubble Technology™ it not only adds oxygen, but also mixes and circulates the water column at a rate of 2,200 gallons per minute. The MARS will turn a typical 1-acre pond over 4 times a day! This ensures that spring turnover does not take out your entire fish population.

Reason #2: Gives Your Pond A Head Start Next Summer

Because cold water is better able to absorb dissolved oxygen than warm water, winter aeration can often be twice as effective as summer aeration at raising the D.O. of your pond.

The MARS 1500 Aeration system transfers 18.7 lbs of oxygen into a typical 1-acre pond per day – that’s 1,683 lbs of oxygen over the three months of winter!

When spring arrives your pond will be full of oxygen and ready for the upcoming growth season. When it becomes warm enough in the spring for bacteria to begin breaking down the nutrient material on the bottom of your pond there will be plenty of oxygen for them to breathe. This gives your pond a head start for the summer and will help to ensure that it is well prepared for the algae season.

Reason #3: Attracts Wildlife

The cold and desolate days of winter can sometimes seem lifeless and dry. Winter aeration with the MARS Aeration System will help remedy this by maintaining open water on the surface of your pond. Open water typically attracts waterfowl that seek safety from predators on the open ice. As a result, you can enjoy the beauty of nature as you look out over the pond – giving even further utility.

Reason #4: Protects Boats and Docks From Freezing

Pond or lake owners who have boats and/or docks face a real risk of damage as the water freezes over the winter months. When ice freezes and expands around your dock or boat, it begins a low crushing action and causes permanent damage. Ice also tends to shift slowly over time. As the water level below the ice attached to your dock fluctuates, it can rip pilings out of the bottom and render your dock useless.

By installing a MARS aerator under your boat or dock you can avoid potential damage due to water freezing. The patented MARS Double Bubble Technology™ is powerful enough to maintain an opening in the ice as large as 50 feet in diameter all winter long.

For more information on the MARS Aeration system, visit our home page and watch the video on Eco-Friendly Aeration.

You’ve got algae on your pond—or maybe you have nasty pond odors wafting into your house and mosquitos taking over your yard—and the solution you keep running into time and time again in your research is something called aeration.

But what is aeration? What does it do for your pond? How do you aerate a pond? These are all good questions, the answers to which escape most pond owners.

In order to help the average pond owner understand aeration a little bit better, we’ve put together a crash course:

What is pond aeration?

Pond aeration is a process by which oxygen is added to water, effectively raising the level of dissolved oxygen.  This dissolved oxygen is what fish use to breathe, and what other organisms use to keep your pond clean.

Two things are crucial in this process: aeration efficiency & mixing action.

High efficiency ensures that you’re imparting the most water at the lowest energy cost (basically getting the most bang for your buck), and the mixing action make certain that this highly oxygenated water is spread throughout your entire pond.

What does pond aeration do for me?

Aeration is integral to maintaining the appearance and aquatic health of your pond. The Mixing and Aerating actions perform four key roles:

1.  Reduce algae and clarify water by providing oxygen for beneficial bacteria to breathe—when these bacteria thrive, they rapidly consume the nutrient material in your pond that would otherwise fuel algae blooms and cloudy water.

Algae is also reduced through mixing. The mixing action both creates a turbulence that disrupts the algae habitat and circulates oxygen throughout the entire water column, allowing the safe bacteria to outcompete algae for food pond-wide.

2.  Get rid of pond odors by facilitating oxygen breathing, or aerobic, bacteria growth. When bacteria break down nutrients without oxygen, they release horrible pond odors!

Aerobic bacteria actually breakdown nasty pond odors before they reach the surface, keeping your pond smelling fresh.

3.  Provide fish the ideal habitat with aeration by ensuring that they have ample oxygen throughout the pond to breathe.

Fish health is also improved by the mixing action, as this destratifies the water column and avoids pond turnover (a twice-a-year phenomenon that sometimes causes the death of all your fish!)

4.  Limit mosquito breeding by mixing up the stagnant water they thrive in. What’s more, the oxygenating abilities of good aerators expand the fish habitat, allowing them to travel into shallow water and eat up the nuisance mosquito larvae.

What types of Pond Aerators are there?

On- Surface Aerators

Fountains: Pond fountains claim to aerate by launching water into the air. While this may look nice, it is relatively poor at adding oxygen to the water and costs a huge amount of money in electricity costs.

At the same time, fountains are unable to adequately mix lower levels of the pond. Between its poor aerating ability, its inefficient operation, and sub-standard mixing, fountains are a bad aeration choice.

Surface  Aerators: Surface aerators work in a fashion similar to that of fountains, except for they don’t offer a visually appealing spray pattern. So, not only is a surface aerator a bad, inefficient aerator—it looks ugly to boot!

Subsurface Aerators

Standard Diffused Aerator: Standard diffused aerators sit at the bottom of your pond, and are powered by a compressor onshore.

They release fine (tiny) bubbles at the bottom of the pond, which is fantastic at adding oxygen to your pond, but lacking in mixing—this is because the microbubbles rise too slowly to create a sufficient mixing action.

Windmill Diffused Aerator: Windmill aeration works exactly like standard diffused aeration except for one part—it uses a windmill instead of a compressor to push air.

Not only is the performance of this unpredictable because of the inconsistency of the wind, it also produces very small quantities of air (not nearly enough to oxygenate your entire pond!).

MARS Double Bubble™ Aerators: The MARS works just like a standard diffused aerator with a compressor onshore and a fine bubble diffuser on the bottom—gaining excellent oxygen transfer.

The advantage of the MARS is in its Double Bubble™ Technology, which combines both fine bubble efficiency with a component designed specifically for superior mixing ability: the coarse bubble static tube aerator.

This patented, synergistic combination allows the MARS to Mix & Aerate your entire pond, making it the most effective and efficient aerator on the market today.

For more information on the MARS Aeration system, visit our home page and watch the video on Eco-Friendly Aeration.

Pond turnover is a phenomenon that would go largely unnoticed if it weren’t for the sometimes awful consequences. Mild turnover can leave your water cloudy for a couple days.

Severe turnover can kill thousands of fish, and leave your property smelling like a month-old rotting egg.

What is pond turnover? How does it affect my pond? How to I prevent turnover from occurring?

The purpose of this blog is to answer these questions—helping the average homeowner to find a solution to their pond turnover problem.

What is Pond Turnover?

Pond turnover is a term used to describe the mixing of the stagnant, or ‘stratified,’ waters in a pond.  Stratification is an occurrence whereby the water separates into three distinct layers—like a layer cake—each with its own different temperature and dissolved oxygen levels.

The upper level, known as the epilimnion, is composed of warm, lighter water that has high dissolved oxygen content – this is where fish tend to dwell.

The middle layer of a pond is known as the thermocline; in this ‘transitional’ layer, water temperature and dissolved oxygen level become lower with depth.

Finally, the lowest layer of a pond is referred to as the hypolimnion. This layer is the coldest and most oxygen deprived of the three, as it is sheltered from any atmospheric conditions by the above two layers.

Pond turnover is when weather conditions favor the mixing of these layers. As the epilimnion is cooled by the fall air to a temperature below that of the lower layers, it becomes denser and sinks—mixing the layers together into a uniform temperature and density.

The exact opposite occurs after winter—and the cycle continues annually.

Sometimes cold rains and heavy winds can provoke an additional mid-summer turnover, as well.

How does Turnover Affect My Pond or Lake?

Organic matter like dead plants and fish, leaves, etc. sink to and accumulate in the lowest level, the hypolimnion, because gravity naturally pulls it there.

Unfortunately, this layer has little to no oxygen that would help aerobic, or oxygen breathing, bacteria break down the material. Instead, anaerobic, or non-oxygen breathing bacteria do the job.

Not only are these bacteria seventeen times slower than their aerobic counterparts, they also release toxic gasses like methane, hydrogen sulfide, and ammonia as they digest.

This toxic gas gets trapped in the hypolimnion, and is released all at once when the levels mix.

So, how does this turnover affect your pond? It does four things:

1. The toxic gasses released poison the fish, causing a fish kill
2. Aerobic bacteria are given access to organic matter once locked at the bottom, quickly sucking all the oxygen out of the water and suffocating your fish
3. The odor of the released gasses fills the surrounding area, including your home, with rancid odors
4. The mucky hypolimnion clouds your water, causing your pond to appear very dirty

How Do I Prevent Turnover From Occurring?

Two things need to happen in order to prevent the ill effects of pond turnover.

The first thing you need to do is mix the layers of your pond to keep them from stratifying.

The second thing you need to do is provide oxygen throughout the entire pond, promoting the consumption of organic matter by aerobic bacteria.

Not only will the air avoid the production of toxic gasses, but it will also ensure that your fish are given ample air to breathe. Both of these are important to avoiding fish kills and noxious odors.

In order to properly Mix & Aerate your pond at the same time, you need the MARS Aeration System. The MARS’s patented Double Bubble™ Technology is specifically designed to do just that, as efficiently and effectively as possible.

As an added benefit, the MARS will also freshen and clarify your water, and reduce algae at the same time.  Visit the Triplepoint Home Page to watch an introductory movie on the proven MARS Aeration Technology.