• Intake bay added to solve skimmer clogging and reduce daily pond maintenance
• Orono, Minnesota
• Built in 2025
• Cost $20,000
• Filtration upgrade for large swimming pond

Project Overview

One of the biggest frustrations for owners of large ponds is pulling dead frogs and debris out of the skimmer every day.

This 2025 project in Orono, Minnesota addressed exactly that issue. Despite having good filtration (stream, BioFalls, wetland), the skimmer in this large, fish-loaded pond was constantly clogging with leaves, organic debris, and dead frogs, requiring daily cleaning and creating a risk of reduced flow.

We solved this problem by replacing the skimmer function with a properly designed intake bay, significantly reducing maintenance and improving system reliability.

Installation of an intake bay with AquaBlox to improve water circulation, reduce debris buildup, and support better filtration in a large swimming pond in Orono, MN

Existing System

Prior to this upgrade, we had already improved water quality by:

• building a stream connected to a large Aquascape BioFalls
• installing a substantial wetland filter

These upgrades improved water clarity, but did not solve the core maintenance issue related to the skimmer.

Next stage of intake bay construction with AquaBlox installed, liner in place, and initial stone work forming the intake area to improve debris collection and filtration performance in Orono, MN

Solution

To eliminate the problem, we designed and installed a large intake bay.

Compared to a traditional skimmer, the intake bay:

• handles higher volumes of debris
• reduces clogging risk
• improves overall system stability
• significantly reduces daily maintenance

This allowed us to remove the dependency on constant skimmer cleaning.

During construction, multiple underground utilities were encountered and had to be carefully relocated, adding complexity to the intake bay installation and slowing down the project in Orono, MN

Construction Challenges

The installation required additional work due to site conditions.

The area contained multiple underground utilities that had to be carefully relocated.
This slowed down construction but ensured a safe and reliable long-term solution.

Completed intake bay integrated into the pond system, providing better debris handling, reducing maintenance, and eliminating the need for daily skimmer cleaning in Orono, MN

Result

After installing the intake bay:

• debris is managed more efficiently
• daily maintenance is significantly reduced
• risk of system shutdown is eliminated
• the pond operates more consistently

The homeowner can now enjoy the pond without needing to clean the skimmer every day, even during heavy leaf seasons.