Small scale or homegrown operations can require baffles for a variety of reasons. In a backyard pond, baffles can be used to eliminate dead zones, protect pumps around a fountain or sediment from being caught in filters. A particularly delicate shoreline that’s being eroded away may require protection by redirecting a current via baffles. If you’re trying to breed your own fish, you’re going to want to separate smaller and younger fish from any cannibalistic neighbors or predators. Small baffles can be used to protect pumps or valves from sediment and the aforementioned fish in order to separate input and output flows in a circulating reservoir. Even the septic tank in your backyard will utilize baffles to protect valves or pumps from debris and to separate flows.
For whatever reason you’re baffling your pond/tank/reservoir, you’re likely going to want lightweight material that is easy to install and move. The baffles should also likely be resistant to sunlight and temperatures that come with being exposed to the elements. Floating baffles can create cells or chambers within your pond with relatively little installation effort.
Floating baffles are held atop the water with a floatation device, usually made of foam, where a reinforced geomembrane skirt hangs down. These are typically attached to the ground or stationary buoys with ballast chains and anchors. Some baffle curtains allow water to pass through via windows or open panels, creating serpentine paths for the water to travel while being guided by the baffles. Other kinds of baffles also include a long skirt, like in the case of silt or turbidity curtains. These can be permeable or impermeable, depending on the conditions and their intended use.
If you’re wanting to eliminate short circuiting or improve circulation, you’ll want to place your baffles in a way that redirects and encourages flow. Increasing the hydraulic retention time, or HRT, of the water within your pond will also encourage sedimentation, reducing the overall turbidity of your pond. This not only makes the water clearer and more attractive, but vastly improves conditions for all levels of aquatic life.
When it comes to aquaculture, in caged or penned nursery ponds, baffles can be used to separate juvenile fry from bigger, predatory fish. These mesh barriers ensure that the small fish are given time to mature into fingerlings without being hunted or outcompeted for available food. While isolated, the aquaculture farmer can keep a closer eye and make direct adjustments to the conditions of the fry growing within the enclosed pen. Baffles are used to keep fish from intermingling, and sometimes provide a barrier between nursery pond water and the water of later growing stages.
A popular choice when it comes to low-cost, efficient baffles, are portable and flexible geomembrane curtains. Reinforced polyethylene (RPE) is a popular option within pond liners, baffles, or other applications. It is lightweight, easy to install, and can be manufactured in very large single panels so that seams are not required. RPE’s reinforcing scrim layer prevents both tears and punctures, and the qualities of polyethylene (HDPE and LDPE) make the material naturally resistant to UV exposure. BTL Liners’ AquaArmor products are fish, plant, food, and human safe (AquaArmor is NSF-6 certified for containing potable water.)
