Start with a dry/wet shop vacuum. This is the power source, but the typical vacuum has a
canister that is way to small for efficient removal of pond gunk. It has to be emptied to often. So
I thought why not increase the size or volume of the container. I decided to add a 55 gallon
drum. I chose a white plastic drum so the water level could be watched while cleaning the pond.
Here the hose from the shop vac attaches to the opening in the top of the drum. The hose out the
bottom of the drum is the business end of the pond vac. The hose from the shop vac is connected
to the intake of the shop vac so when the vac is turned on it will pull air from the 55 gallon drum
and replace it with the pond sludge and water. The hose connected to the bottom of the drum is
one of those cheep sump pump hoses that you can find in any hardware store. I prefer to use the
hose without any tool or vacuum fitting on the end. Into the pond I go and simply hold the open
end of the hose close to the bottom of the pond.
As you can see here the shop vac hose has been moved from the intake to the exhaust on the shop
vac. I am now forcing the water out of the drum through the long hose on the bottom of the
drum. The end of the hose I place under my plants. The 2x2's along the sides of the drum were
needed to reinforce the drum. The 2x2's are attached to the plastic drum with long wood screws
that pierce the side of the drum and go into the inside of the drum about 3/4 of an inch for a firm
hold. The force of the vacuum as the drum fills can collapse the sides of the drum. The higher
the water line in the drum is above the water line of your pond the more force the shop vac
needs to continue the vacuuming of your pond. If you can locate the drum lower than the pond
water level then the pond vac will work faster and more efficiently. In the photograph the dark
wavy line in the drum is the water level.
This image shows the sludge being pumped out of the drum into my garden. The plants seem to
love the quality of the water.