Pipes and fittingsEvery Koi pond needs pipes and fittings. A few words of advice! I'm not normally a person who gets upset with devices mechanical. Except when they don't %^%#^ing well work as they should. For instance, I had a serious sense of humour failure with a valve at my shop when the handle came off in my hand. And when a similar one jammed closed on me and I stubbed my finger plenty sore trying to open it and having it suddenly open when applying all of my considerable strength to it! The bottom line is this. Buy the best possible fixtures you can afford. When your builder is building your pond for you, INSIST on checking out the valves beforehand. But be warned. A valve in the hand is NOT the same thing a month later when it is actually installed in your system. I can promise you that a 50mm ball valve that costs under R120 is rubbish. It WILL give you grief and you WILL come to hate it with a passion - especially when you see how smoothly and easily a GOOD valve works. It's like working with a fast computer. Going back to your marginally slower computer is a nightmare because you now know what a faster one feels like, even if the faster one didn't feel all that much faster at the time... I eventually ended up cutting out all the rubbish valves I used in my shop and driving over them with a 4 x 4 all the while singing 'hallelujah' interspersed with occasional outbreaks of manic giggling because I was just so happy that they were GOING AWAY. Permanently! Using quality valves changed my life and I promise it will change yours too. Valves and quality fittings in general are seriously under rated when it comes to their overall place in a Koi pond system. And then I eventually found quality valves. Hannes has been using them for years - ever wonder why his hands look as if they have been pampered? It's because they never get cut or bruised and abraded by handles that get stuck or by fitting that burst and leak and require monumental effort to fix. So, when it comes to installing plumbing in your Koi pond remember that YOU are the one who is going to have to use it for the next few millenia. It is NOT your builder who is trying to save you a few bucks on the job by using whatever happens to fit and is cheapest. Take it from me - just buy quality valves for ALL your fittings - the ones you use least often are invariably the ones you DON'T want to have to battle with when the time comes to using them... Take it from me who knows! You will never regret the extra cash you spent on a few valves. It makes such a difference when it comes to your maintenance - from a torturous ordeal (that ruins your entire weekend and which is left longer than it should be because it's such a nightmare) to a pleasurable easy to use experience!! |