advice on garden switch

[cliff1010]

Hi I have installed a duck pond and this needs emptying frequently, I have purchased a pump on Ebay and will use this as an inline pump to just empty the pond. My question I dont want the wife to just switch the pump on and walk away then messing up the pump. or switch it on with wet hands etc.. Should be the other way around wife first then pump. Can i either have a switch we need to keep pressed and if so what is this called or can i get a switch as a timer so i can time the pond emptying and set this up.

This will not be wired into the mains so i assume i am allowed to do this havnign a switch between the cable and the plug ?

Any advice would help.
Cliff

 

[ban-all-sheds]

I have installed a duck pond and this needs emptying frequently

Sounds like it's too small to be used as a duck pond.

I dont want the wife to just switch the pump on and walk away then messing up the pump.

Do you want to be able to do that?

or switch it on with wet hands etc..

What sort of pump is it? Where is it supposed to be used? Surely a pond/outdoor pump should not be designed so that it's dangerous when wet?

Please say it's a reputable CE marked item, not some cheap rubbish made in China....

Should be the other way around wife first then pump.

You want your wife to get messed up and then the pump?

Can i either have a switch we need to keep pressed

Yes.

Do you want one? How long does the pump take to empty the pond?

and if so what is this called

Momentary push to make/retractive....

or can i get a switch as a timer so i can time the pond emptying and set this up.

Possibly. How long does the pump take to empty the pond, and how accurate does the timer have to be?

This will not be wired into the mains

It's a battery powered pump?

so i assume i am allowed to do this havnign a switch between the cable and the plug ?

TBH I'm not sure you should be messing with outdoor electricity.

 

[cliff1010]

Thanks for the reply;

Yes it's a correct outdoor pond pump, it can be used as a submersible one or an inline one depending on what you want to use it for. As I will only use it to empty the pond I want to use this as an inline one.

The pond is a small one 6ft X 4ft and will be upgraded when we move the ducks, if the pump and everything works I will just use the same set up for the next pond.

The question about the switch was because I thought I needed to cut the cable and add a waterproof switch. My idea was add the switch near the pond so we can see when to turn it off. If we need to go inside to switch the pump on and keep checking it we would be going back and forth all the time.

The pump is plugged into the mains, I suppose I could just add a timer at the plug if you feel the cable should not be cut to add a switch into that.

It is a 630 litre pond and the pump pumps 6600 litres an hour so should empty quite quickly.

if I have estimated correctly about 6 to 10 mins

Cliff