OASE 032232 Pondovac 4 Pond Vacuum Cleaner

This will be my 2nd Pondovac 4. I did look at "upgrading" to a Pondovac 5 instead of replacing my old 4 with a new one.I stayed with Pondovac 4 because my main struggle in the pond is string algae. The two units are very different. Pondovac 5 has a bag to collect larger things that must be emptied by hand. That bag is there to prevent debris from going into the evacuation pump, because only water can go thru the pump and then be ejected up to 30 feet away (even uphill). That's a nice feature - if you need to pump the waste water uphill. Fortunately with the aide of a couple cinder blocks, I can create the right angle for the Pondovac 4 to empty (via gravity as designed) without issue, and have passive waste pipes feeding down to my garden. String algae, even with the excellent powder treatment I use - is not going to make it through the Pondovac 5 evacuation pump. That means I would have to open the vacuum and dump the slimy stuff by hand every few minutes. With Pondovac 4, everything the vacuum sucks up is ejected - no need to touch the yucky stuff. Ever. I've never had to clean the insides of the "4".Even after heavy glops of the stuff are sucked in by the Pondovac 4, they go right out the back end, no extra effort. Same can be said for leaves. If all I had to deal with were leaves, I might have ponied up for the Pondovac 5- but for me, the 4 is superior for my situation, even if the two units were identically priced.This will be my second unit. My first one lasted me 3 years of use and just this week konked out. The motor still starts- It might be as simple as a seal or o-ring - or it could be the motor head unit. Parts to repair including shipping run around $320 for the seal kit and a new motor - yes, I could try the cheapest thing first (seal kit) - with shipping is around $45 - which is already almost 10% of the cost of a new one- so I opted instead to get a whole new unit that gives me all new everything for just a little more than the repair items.As for how everything held up over 3 years, including a big ice storm - Every hose and every attachment is still 100% functional, so I will be using the old hoses and storing the new set. They haven't been babied- the hoses sit out in the sun, wind, rain and sometimes snow - and no problems. One of my aluminum tubes is a little deformed. So overall it's held up really well. The vacuum itself (motor/body) has always been stored in a dry location.For the most part I've been very happy with the Pondovac 4. The main quirk that happens is a little piece of gravel will get stuck in the flaps into the vacuum body and so it will stop working- but dislodging the piece of gravel always fixed it. Until now. It does require at least a 40 degree angle to work in deeper water, so you can't stick it straight down in 4 feet of water and expect it to work well. You've got to be at an angle and make sure the hose isn't wound up in a tight circle for optimum performance.

We have had a 10,000 gallon backyard pond for 10 years now. We have been very "lucky" that it has not needed to be drained and cleaned during that time, until now. Our small ecosystem became disrupted with a combination of wildlife and weather, that pushed the bog filtering system past it's limit. No amount of chemical additives, scrubbing or cleaning could keep the algae at bay. The chemical only made it worse by killing the algae, in turn, ending up a thick muck that blanketed the bottom of the rock covered liner.It looked as though we were going to have to drain, until a neighbor suggested we vacuum. Never using one but reading several reviews we purchased the POV4. It only went up hill from here. First, it came early, packaging in-tact and no damage to contents. Second, instructions easy to understand and very easy to assemble - maybe 10 minutes. If you have a shop vac pretty much the same. Third, unit is light, wheels are large which allows it to move around the lawn with ease.Plugged unit into extension cord, connected hoses, wands and an attachment that allowed the removal of the sludge, leaves and other junk, but did not suck up the rocks. Off I went, thoroughly amazed (yes, like a kid at a magic show) at the vacuums ability to clean and empty itself. After 20 minutes of constant vacuuming I decided to open canister. I was shocked, both chambers looked as clean as they did when I started. The filters covering the two "pump mechanisms" had a small amount of algae on them but it was easily removed with fresh water.Completed 50% of the pond in about 1 hour with one stoppage due to a stick jammed in the attachment opening. Suggestions. First, keep the water fill source ON. This vacuum pulls quite a bit of water out. You're pretty much making a water change in your pond, so watch the pH balance or chorine removal chemistry, if you have fish. Second, if you can, let the unit drain directly out of drain port. The hose provided works, but needs to be on slight incline, as it become full of debris and slows I think another reviewer made this suggestion as well. Third, be patient, let the tool do the work, moving the attachment quickly stirs up more than the vacuum can pull. I found that a frosty beverage in one hand, vacuum in the other, prevents "over-vac" (highly technical term).Finally, I know, right? Keep an eye on the clear part of the vacuum handle. This is a great indicator of how the vacuum is performing. You will see a surge of water and debris, then a pause as tank empties, and then the cycle repeats surge, pause etc. I don't write reviews, but it has been a long time since something has performed, right out of the box, as advertised.

The Oase PondoVac 4 advertises itself as a method of removing pond sludge which it accomplishes with caveats. If you have a fairly clean pond and a good place to discharge the sludge near the pond this is the product for you. If not, be aware that it will take a lot of work to get the job done. I recently moved into a house with a small, pretty shallow pond (about 10' by 6') that cascades via a series of waterfalls and small pools into a bigger pond (about 30' x 12' and 4' to 5' deep). I don't think the prior owner was much on pond cleaning so there is a fair amount of debris and sludge, maybe 4" deep in some spots. After 8 hours of cleaning spread over 2 days I'm maybe half done with the job. The PondoVac 4 does suction stuff up, but every 15 minutes or so the suction drops and then stops. The solution is to completely take apart and clean the unit which takes at least 10 minutes, so this is a time consuming process. Also the unit absolutely requires that it is higher than the discharge hose, it simply will not work if the discharge hose angles up in any way. I had to put the unit up on a small crate to get it to work properly. The discharge hose is also pretty short so if you are actually suctioning up sludge it will be deposited near the pond. I now have a very, very large area of sludge on the ground near the pond. I sure hope it works as fertilizer for the plants. So, I rate it 4 stars as it does work, but it is a pain in the rear to use.