Selecting The Correct Size Pump

If you have a small pond and just want to add a small fountain, then you do not need to worry about flow rates. A Minipond 700, or 900 will do the job. For bigger ponds see the larger Hydratech Multi or the Amphibious ranges. The main thing to avoid, is having a high fountain in a small pond. A small breeze may cause the water spray to fall outside the pond and the pump will soon empty your pond. As a guide the height of the spray should be less than half the pond width.

If you want to have a waterfall or use a filtration system then you need to make sure that your pump will deliver an adequate flow. The flow rate provided by a pump varies with the head. The head is the difference in height between the pond water level and the top of the waterfall, filtration system or water feature.

Flow Requirements:

We have a calculator page to help you calculate the flow requirement. We also have a volume calculator which you may need if you have a filtration system.

Height Requirement

The higher you pump water above the pond surface the bigger more powerful pump you need. You need to work out the highest point to which you need to pump water in your system (usually either the height of the waterfall/ornament or the top of the filter, above the water surface) this is called your head requirement.

Choosing The Right Size Pump

There are four ranges of pumps shown below. In each case, find your head requirement on the vertical axis of the chart - look across the line of figures until you find one which matches or is above your calculated total flow rate requirement. Look at the bottom of the column to see the model and price of the pump. Look on one of the other tables and you will probably find an alternative. If you click on the model number you will be taken to a page with the full specification of the pump to help you decide.

Amphibious Range

Head (M)
Flow Rate in Litres per hour
4.25             960
4.00           840 1680
3.75         120 1620 2280
3.50       60 300 2280 2700
3.25       300 480 2760 3060
3.00     120 480 660 3060 3420
2.75     300 720 840 3420 3840
2.50   60 480 960 1080 3840 4320
2.25   180 660 1200 1260 4440 4860
2.00 60 300 840 1440 1500 4980 5280
1.75 180 480 1080 1620 1740 5400 5820
1.50 360 600 1260 1860 1980 5760 6240
1.25 600 840 1500 2100 2220 6240 6720
1.00 780 1020 1680 2340 2460 6600 7140
0.75 1020 1260 1900 2580 2760 7020 7560
0.50 1260 1560 2160 2760 3000 7440 7980
0.25 1620 1920 2460 3060 3300 7960 8460
0.00 1980 2400 2760 3300 3600 8340 8820
Model P2000 A2500 P2500 A3000 P3000 A3500 P3500 A4000 P4000 P8000 P9000
Price £63.69 £64.71 £67.27 £69.10 £69.82 £74.03 £77.98 £83.30 £93.79 £104.51 £115.74

Hydratech Multi Range

Head (M)
Flow Rate in Litres per hour
3.50           300
3.25           700
3.00           1100
2.75     250 200 300 1500
2.50     625 600 750 1900
2.25     900 1000 1125 2375
2.00   250 1125 1325 1450 2700
1.75   425 1300 1625 1700 3125
1.50   600 1550 1925 1950 3500
1.25   800 1700 2175 2200 3850
1.00 225 900 1850 2450 2550 4200
0.75 375 1125 2125 2725 2800 4600
0.50 530 1250 2300 2950 3200 5000
0.25 650 1378 2575 3175 3500 5400
0.00 790 1550 2750 3350 3800 5850
Model HTM800 HTM1500 HTM2500 HTM3250 HTM4000 HTM6000
Price £30.19 £37.76 £52.77 £61.77 £72.03 £91.76

Minipond / Midipond Ranges

Head (M)
Flow Rate in Litres per hour
3.75             338
3.50             938
3.25           225 1575
3.00           732 2100
2.75           1275 2812
2.50           1800 3188
2.25         282 2269 3562
2.00   100 240   1012 2682 3994
1.75       113 1613 3075 4331
1.50   400 800 750 2138 3487 4650
1.25       1350 2588 3881 4950
1.00 300 550 1200 1931 3000 4125 5212
0.75       1931 3375 4463 5494
0.50 520 800 1640 2363 3713 4706 5775
0.25       2813 4012 5025 6037
0.00 700 872 2000 3310 4400 5360 6350
Model MP700 MP900 MP2000 MDP3500 MDP4500 MDP5500 MDP6500
Price £19.11 £21.88 £36.04 £70.09 £83.40 £92.28 £105.59

Torrent Range

Head (M)
Flow Rate in Litres per hour
9.0         450
8.5         1100
8.0         1750
7.5         2400
7.0         3050
6.5         3850
6.0         4650
5.5       1100 5375
5.0       1750 6100
4.5       2700 6650
4.0       3450 7200
3.5     900 4200 7725
3.0     1600 5100 8250
2.5 590 650 2300 5600 8775
2.0 1343 1400 2900 6300 9300
1.5 2000 2000 3450 6750 9625
1.0 2500 2625 4250 7250 9950
0.5 2750 3250 4800 7600 10225
0.0 3000 3875 5450 8000 10500
Model Torrent 3000 Torrent 4000 Torrent 5500 Torrent 8000E Torrent 10500E
Price £58.59 £70.54 £82.91 £106.82 £141.21

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