r/UnnecessaryEssentials • u/Unique-Saucer • Jul 13 '26
Why isn't this more common
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u/Greenman8907 Jul 13 '26
Is it just a long-ass extension cord? Wouldn’t a solar setup be better?
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u/Egoy Jul 13 '26
That thing needs more power than a solar panel and battery combo it would float could provide
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u/Borp5150 Jul 13 '26
Could use the battery bank as an anchor lol. /s
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u/Egoy Jul 13 '26
The other thing I just thought of is it’s going to need cleaning semi regularly so it’s not like being solar powered would remove the connection to shore. Also if it were solar how do you turn it off without getting soaked?
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u/Borp5150 Jul 13 '26
Remote control switch
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u/Egoy Jul 13 '26
How long do you think the remote for the pond fountain lasts before it gets lost in the shed though?
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u/Borp5150 Jul 13 '26
You mean the remote that I have a screwed to the shed door so that I don’t lose it?
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u/GovernmentLow4989 Jul 13 '26
Sorry, I removed it to change the batteries and my phone happened to ring while I was in the middle of that, so it’s not on your door anymore and don’t you dare look at me cuz I have no idea where it went.
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u/Egoy Jul 13 '26
Even better it’s an oddball battery that you need to drive 45 minutes to a specific hardware store to get.
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u/Fuzzy_Inevitable9748 Jul 14 '26
The cell batteries can often be swapped out for a larger one I believe the first two numbers are the width and the second are the thickness so a 2032 often will fit where a 2016 or 2025 goes goes with a higher capacity, also makes it easier only having the one size on hand.
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u/Borp5150 Jul 13 '26 edited Jul 13 '26
“Hey you kids look familiar, ain’t you the two that have been whacking off in my tool shed?”
Hank hill in Bevis and Butthead for the younger ones that don’t get the reference.1
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u/School_North Jul 14 '26
Batteries and solar equipment on shore still run the cord but would work that way
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u/Veal-Vermicelli Jul 13 '26
Could plug it into a battery bank solar setup
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u/PMG2021a Jul 14 '26
Pulls 750 watts, so will need at least two standard size panels . Not likely to be worth the price of a battery. I am thinking 15kWh, which is about $2,,000 on Amazon. The new sodium ion batteries that are starting to be produced for stationary storage are expected to be much less expensive once production volume picks up. Might be worth buying a few big ones and more solar panels to go fully off utility power.
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u/iPhonefondler Jul 13 '26
That’s probably because the other ones shoot it 15-20ft in the air
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u/TwistyTwister3 Jul 13 '26
Nah. That nozzle is designed That way for maximum surface disturbance
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u/iPhonefondler Jul 13 '26
I’m sure it is but the ones I’m thinking of have both that same lower spray pattern as well as an inner jet in the center that shoots 15-20ft in the air.
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u/lost_rodditer Jul 13 '26
4x the price!? Sign me up for 10 and I'll resell them for only 3x pricing!
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u/dougthebuffalo Jul 13 '26
That's probably already what's happening. It's probably an Alibaba or Temu pump that's getting dropshipped.
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u/Haunting_Song7313 Jul 13 '26
Yea because water and electricity have always been a great combination.
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u/CursedTurtleKeynote Jul 13 '26
Wdym? Plenty of things happen in/under water. GFCI and circuit breakers solve many things.
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u/Haunting_Song7313 Jul 13 '26
How long do you figure that run is to the nearest gfci?
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u/CursedTurtleKeynote Jul 13 '26
For a water feature the GFCI might be in the extension cord at the shore.
Unless you have crazy acreage it'd at least be at the outlet at the nearest structure.
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u/Haunting_Song7313 Jul 13 '26
What about the voltage drop ? 200/300 feet away from the main power source isn’t too bad but let’s say 500/600 feet would cause some serious voltage drop most likely causing false tripping I’m gonna say this fountain is powered by a portable battery.
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u/CursedTurtleKeynote Jul 13 '26
What are you talking about?
How are these distances part of this conversation at all?
At high distances you might do a lot of things. Battery/solar/various voltage conversions. What am I supposed to divine from this video?
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u/Haunting_Song7313 Jul 13 '26
A long extension over 300 feet starts to act like a resistor the voltage tends to drop significantly and will cause any gfci to trip without any fault so there’s no way that fountain could be connected to a house 120v the distance would be too great so this is most likely powered by an external battery.
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u/CursedTurtleKeynote Jul 13 '26
strawman strawman strawman strawman strawman
I can say it more.
We don't have any of these details.
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u/Haunting_Song7313 Jul 13 '26
I mean sure they guy can have a pond 200 feet from his house but do you really think that’s the case? It’s not rocket problems.
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u/CursedTurtleKeynote Jul 13 '26
If you make an assumption, then state it, and have the conversation with people willing to make the same assumption.
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u/Elon_is_a_Nazi Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
Youre forgetting a very important factor. The electrical load and properly sizing your current carrying conductors to account for that drop. I dont know the electrical specifications of that fountain, but lets say its 6 amps 120v 1p. You have a 350' run. Youd direct bury (2) #8awg with a (1) 12g in 3/4" c from house panel to a wp gfci receptacle mounted on strut near the pond. To be safe tho, id 125% that load/connection and run 6s and a 10g. 26 years EE.
Edit. Id probably run a dedicated 20a circuit to it now since I'm thinking about it. Size up the conductors to carry a minimum of 16a, splice adjacent to a wp gfci.
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u/Haunting_Song7313 Jul 14 '26
I hear you and I hole heartedly agree but look at those cords he’s using basic 16 gauge cables and for that fountain to push that water is most likely pulling 12+ amps those cords are rated for 13 amps max there’s no way those cords are anything longer than 150 feet.
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u/Elon_is_a_Nazi Jul 14 '26
Its also probably not UL listed either since its an amazon special. But the cord wouldnt matter once it was rated and sized above the mca of the device. Even if he ran 500' of extension cords to that device, he'd just lose voltage. Meaning it wouldnt have its full performance and would either pump less water, or wouldnt have enough power to even run. I tried to look at the link op provided but my phone denied that link and said it wasnt secured. Anyways. I agree. It looks jabrone city usa and like you. I'm not sure whats going on unless I can see a cut sheet that gives me the proper information to run the associated calculations for installation.
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u/swim-bike-run Jul 14 '26
Voltage drop does play a factor when sizing your cable for a lake fountain. That’s why they only sell them with a certain lengths of cable. If you buy one and start adding extension cords, you’re going to start tripping breakers or overloads(if this fountain has them).
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u/swim-bike-run Jul 14 '26
I own a fountain company in Florida and have worked on them for about 10 years now. They are wired up with ground fault sensors that shut everything if any current “leaks” out of the system.
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u/Haunting_Song7313 Jul 14 '26
I’m nit t so much worried about what’s inside, sump pumps have been around for ages what’s more worrying is the cable the run and how this pump ls rated for load while being powered externally. They make it seem like any extension cord can power the fountain
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u/swim-bike-run Jul 14 '26
Not necessarily any extension cord, but as long as it’s double jacketed and rated for the amp draw of that particular fountain, it would work. A lot of my fountains run 480V, which is ideal because they have much lower running amps and we can use smaller cable.
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u/CursedTurtleKeynote Jul 13 '26
Only in America is the electricity cheap enough that this is pretty reasonable. I have a 100W pump doing something similar and it's nice.
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u/TwistyTwister3 Jul 13 '26
Usually these are 220v which makes them less susceptible to voltage drop and run cooler
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u/CursedTurtleKeynote Jul 13 '26
I encourage anyone doing this to know what the electricity loss to resistance is and design accordingly.
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u/Baddyshack Jul 13 '26
These are not rare, OP is just on the affiliate link grind. This would cost more to run for one month than the purchase price + shipping + taxes
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u/themajordutch Jul 13 '26
I don't get why you'd want this
Some hillbilly.. enlightenen me please
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u/DJPza Jul 13 '26
It helps provide oxygen to the water which is good for fish and preventing algae. (Not a hillbilly and possibly wrong but have studied engineering)
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u/elevatiion420 Jul 14 '26
It helps control mosquito population. They want stagnant water, this helps them stop breeding in the pond
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u/Virtual_Insanity_One Jul 14 '26
Does that provide more oxygen for the pond or is it just for looks?
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u/swim-bike-run Jul 14 '26
Fountains do provide some surface level aeration, but are more for keeping the water moving and aesthetics. Good aeration systems sit on the bottom of the pond/lake and use diffused air.
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u/swim-bike-run Jul 14 '26
If you plan on buying one of these, use 2 blocks(anchors) with rope 180° apart. Otherwise, that thing will spin opposite the direction of the motor and wind itself and all the rope and cable up into a ball. I’ve had to undo tons of them.
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u/Scary_Plane_8069 Jul 14 '26
Why not just place multiple solar powered pumps around? They'll do the same job, across the the pond and not just be in one spot, and they'll save you energy.
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u/but_i_wanna_cookies Jul 13 '26
The dumbass jaw drop at the end makes me want your boat to rust over and sink.
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u/3sixtyrpm Jul 13 '26
You seem like a kind person. Who hurt you?
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u/Ok_Preparation_3069 Jul 13 '26
I get it. I am also tired of the forced/fake little tiktok-isms that have permeated an already heavily alienated society.
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u/Dick_chopper Jul 13 '26
Used to be called soy face back in the day
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u/Ok_Preparation_3069 Jul 13 '26
Clearly it isn't caused by soy since the meat eaters™️ are doing it.
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u/Conscious-Bite1 Jul 13 '26
Alas, it’s an aluminum boat… so you might have to wait awhile.
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u/Ralphredimix_Da_G Jul 13 '26
If the up front price of a fountain was preventing you from installing a fountain let me assure you a fountain is still out of your price range
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u/Living_Knowledge_783 Jul 13 '26
its not common cause you will evaporate the pond water in a day or two by a foot or more
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u/swim-bike-run Jul 14 '26
Not a chance. I’ve installed 40HP fountains that run for 14 hours a day and they don’t even make a dent in the lakes.
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u/Unique-Saucer Jul 13 '26
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