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Pondspectives with Mike

Reliable Pumps: The biggest challenge of the pond world

By Mike Garcie

Imagine visiting a car lot for a test drive.  The brand new car looks great and you get inside and smell the new leather seats.  Your eyes light up in anticipation of starting what just might be your next family car for the next several years.  You buckle in and turn the key in the ignition.

Nothing happens, so you first think that You did something wrong.  You try it again and nothing happens.  You look at the car sales person and they shrug their shoulders and say “sorry, this has never happened before”.  Would you buy that car?  Obviously not!  You would probably look at a different brand of car and would tell your friends and relatives about your experience, trying to steer them clear of this “lemon” model of a car.

My illustration is appropriate to the pond world.  Some ponds cost as much as a new or used car.  I have had the unfortunate experience of being called back to a $25,000 pond the day after it was finished.  Why?  Not to get paid, but to see if the client had done something wrong, as the pump had stopped working.  Imagine the extreme embarrassment as I check it out and proceeded to tell them the pump is defective.  Their first question is “Do you think it will happen again?”  They know that I am more than anxious to make it right, as I am about to collect the check, but what will happen in 6 months or a year?  Manufacturers switch pump sources.  If the switch is made to an inferior pump, the installer takes the hit in the field and their reputation is bruised.  How should pump manufacturers respond to this dilemma?  Should there be a uniform code of minimum standards for pump returns?

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Reliable Pumps: The biggest challenge of the pond world

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Mike look at LifeGard aquatics line of compact skimmer pumps. They are high quality models and they are in your back yard. Steve Atkinson 816-835-4191 Kansas city, they also do externals by pentair pool. Buy direct and save. also they have many FT products by pentair pool. jumping jets, waterfall lips up to 8' wide and many other high volume pumps. steve, paola, KS Posted: 4/29/2010 7:01:57 AM