Customer Reviews

 "Its been a month up and running, so I am putting out a review on here. Last month at the CFL Koi show, I picked up my new filter and shower from Zac. I had selected the 16 Zakki Jr, a Multicyclone 50, and a custom shower with roughly 1.6cft of cermedia. Photos of the parts are below from the show. Zac had requested a review and here we go...

Set up was pretty easy. His system is set for Artesian 2 pumps so it was just tightening a few fittings and I was more than half done. I am pumping somewhere between 4500-5000gph through the system once head is taken into consideration. This was installed on a pond roughly 2000g in size with an over stock of koi.

Within a short time my water cleaned up and with the combination of the two retro BD's and the skimmer, my pond was without any debris. This was a large improvement to my use of two pressure filters with submersable pumps. Without the UV, I was shocked to see how clarity continued to improve. With eye level at about 3ft above water level, i can see slight folds in the liner that is 3ft down. The Zakki Jr provided great pre-filtration and eliminated a large amount of materials from the water. What was missed in fine particles seems to be picked up almost in entirty by the MC-50. I have yet to see any build up of waste on my Cermedia. Within 24 hours I can easily remove a good chunk of small particles from the MC-50 and the zakki never needs any attention.

I have run into a couple issues thus far, but nothing major. With the Sieve, the top of the screen leaves a slight gap which initially allowed a few leaves to make it through to the leaf basket. I had an idea that Zak also recommended which was adding a rubber door sweep to the top of the screen. Since then my basket has been clean and my sieve collection has improved. Overall not a bad issue and a fairly cheap fix.

The MC 50 (not actually produced by Zak) needs to have the pump shut down to actually clean it well. The designer notes you can empty it while running, which you can, but turning it off produces the best clean. Once off, you can drain it, close the drain port and turn the filter on again. the splashing water as it refills knocks debris off the walls better, allowing me to drain it a bit more with the pump running to remove more.

In regards to the shower, my only issue is the waterfall has some water creaping up the bottom. I put the shower at a slight forward tilt which has reduced the water loss, but some is still occuring. When my UV light comes up and the pipe is disconnected for its install, I plan on taking the shower apart to modify it. I plan to put two very shallow cuts in the bottom to create a drip edge on the shower and the main base it connects to. I may also just add another strip of the door sweep to create the same effect with less of a risk of damaging the shower if I go too deep.

Bottom line however is the pond is crystal clear, water is testing great, and my koi are far more active than they have ever been. My only regret is that I didn't go larger on the sieve since my pump is pulling more than the max recommended GPH, however a ball valve will be put in after the MC-50 and before the UV so I can reduce the flow slightly to get down a couple hundred GPH to be at the limit."

Written later... "Since I mentioned Zac on another post, I thought I would come back and revisit this post again for an update. Still running good on the products. I am learning to love the shower as for nearly three months, no matter how much I feed, my water readings have been perfect. Ammonia has yet to go even slightly above 0."

 "I was going to write a separate review on the Zakki Jr/MC 50 combination, but it seems appropriate to add it here, since my system is very close to Jimfish98.
I converted a submerged skimmer pump/ waterfall bio system to a new system that has a new retro BD and skimmer feeding the Zakki Jr/ MC50 , which then goes to a new external Performance Pro 1/2 pump and the existing waterfall bio units and EVO 55 UV. Estimated flow is about 4000 gph.
Overall, I have been very pleased with the ease of use and performance of the system . My water is very clear, and the maintenance is very easy.
Every 2-3 days, I flush the MC50 into a 5 gallon pail by closing the ball valve after the pump, and opening the waste valve on the MC50. Takes about 15 seconds and the unit is clean. Couldn't be simpler....
For the Zakki, right after I flush the MC50, I put the system in bypass mode, and wash down the sieve screen. Since my ponds are shallow with lots of plant material, I catch a lot of gunk in the sieve. I find that it is easier to open the unit and hose down the screen into the waste pipe to get the screen really clean. Start to finish, this probably takes 2 minutes. I have not gone more than 3 days between cleanings, although the self cleaning aspect of the screen would allow me to do so. I do not see any reduction in flow after 3 days, but it's a good idea to get the gunk out so it doesn't dissolve into the water column.
I've not really had any problems to speak of, so I'm a happy customer ! Initially, I had a couple install issues ( I did all the plumbing myself ) that Zac was able to talk me through. For a novice, there are quite a few plumbing connections with bypasses and ball valves, that make the plumbing a little tricky. Then, using the system for the first couple hours requires some adjusting of the ball valves to get the flow just right- nothing over the top, but it took me awhile to understand exactly the function of all the different valves. Now that that is all behind me, the system needs no adjustments at all, and the cleaning routine is minimal.
All in all, I would highly recommend this system to folks who want to retrofit their ponds without digging up their old ponds, or who do not want to dig a filter pit and add settlement chambers. Zac was very good to work with, and even sent me the " new and improved " sieve screen with the top seal ( which was developed just after my unit had been initially shipped ) .
I'll keep everyone posted if anything changes..."

Steve 

  "Just to add my two cents in about Zakki products. I have a Zakki Sieve Jr. on my 5000 gal pond that is my pre-filter for both the BD & Skimmer using a Performance Pro 1/3 hp Artesian Pump and Advantage 10 bead filter. I could not be happier about the way this sieve removes pond debris before water enters the pump. I have to backwash/clean it twice a week along with cleaning the skimmer mats and backwashing the bead filter which takes no more than 15 minutes of my time twice a week. The results are crystal clear water with ideal water chemistry. The sieve does what it is designed to do (remove solids) and does it well. I plan on expanding to the Zakki shower in the not to distant future when I split my BD and skimmer into two separate systems so I can increase my fish load from the 8 Koi I have now to 15 or 16 in the future. All I can say is that Zac's products work"     

  "...Clients email states it's the first time in two summers they can actually sit out on the patio, feed the fish and ENJOY the pond! So, I guess it's a success. Thanks for putting together some nicely thought out, well designed/constructed components. You Zakki Jr. pre-filter/sieve helped make this pond into a success from a TOTAL DISASTER!" 

Thanks 

Mike  

''This year for the first time I had a doc problem, that a 40% per week water changes could not solve. Once the Zakki was installed it cleared up almost immediately. I believe it also had something to do with the BD's. They were installed before I knew better. At the time I designed and sold swimming pools.....get the picture. 1 1/2" gravity fed BD's don't cut it. Once the suction feed of 4000 gph thru the main BD started, everything cleared up and the water looks like glass.
Again, best money spent was on the Zakki.'' 

" I must say ive had my zakki shower going for a while now. thing is awesome. works very well. was a great addition to my filtration. once i move my pond and get things ready to expand at my new house i would like to add a second. great product you have there."