Savio Standard Skimmerfilter SS0000 & Weir Assembly

The Savio Standard Skimmerfilter sits below grade and disappears into the landscaping around your pond, instead of sitting on the bank like a plastic tub with a hose sticking out of it. It handles skimming, biological filtration, and mechanical filtration in one housing, and it has a slot for an optional UV system too. For anyone who's tired of running separate plumbing to three or four pieces of equipment, that's the whole point of buying one.

Four Filtration Jobs, One Housing

The SS0000 base unit is the workhorse of the setup. Water enters through the weir faceplate you choose, and from there the unit is doing several things to it at once.

Skimming

A rigid leaf basket with a carry handle sits inside the unit and catches debris before it has a chance to sink and decompose on the pond floor. When the basket fills up, you lift it out, dump it, and drop it back in. There's no wading into the pond or fishing leaves out with a net.

Biological Filtration

Filter media inside the housing gives beneficial bacteria a place to colonize. Those bacteria break down fish waste, ammonia, and other toxins into forms that won't build up and poison the water over time. This is the part of the system that keeps working even when you're not thinking about it.

Mechanical Filtration

Because water passes through the skimmer before it reaches your pump, the pump isn't pulling in leaves, sludge, or debris that would otherwise wear it down over a season. If you're also running a separate biological filter further down the line, that filter gets pre-cleaned water and doesn't have to work as hard to keep up.

UV Filtration (Sold Separately)

The housing has a built-in slot for a UV system, which is sold on its own and not included with the base unit. Once installed, it's a chemical-free way to clear up green water without dumping algaecide into the pond. Savio markets this integrated UV slot as something you won't find on other skimmers on the market.

A Housing Built to Stay Put Underground

The unit itself is injection molded and cylindrical, which matters more than it sounds. A lot of skimmer housings warp or get compacted by the weight of the soil around them within a few seasons, and once that happens the lid stops sitting flush and the whole unit starts to look tired. This one is built to resist that kind of shifting, which is part of why landscape and irrigation contractors keep coming back to it project after project instead of switching brands. Inside, there's enough room for one large submersible pump or two medium-size pumps, so you don't need a second housing just to add a backup pump or push more flow. It also gives you a place to hide that pump and its plumbing, rather than leaving equipment sitting exposed at the edge of the water.

Why an All-in-One Skimmerfilter Instead of Separate Boxes

Most ponds under an acre or so don't need a rack of separate equipment to stay clear. They need debris pulled out before it rots, bacteria somewhere to grow, and a pump that isn't choking on leaves. The SS0000 handles all three from a single buried housing, which cuts down on the plumbing runs and the number of things that can leak or clog. Add the optional UV kit and you've also got a way to knock down green water without touching chemicals. None of this replaces regular maintenance. You'll still want to check the leaf basket during heavy leaf drop and rinse the biological media a few times a season, but you're doing that at one access point instead of three.

Picking the Right Weir Faceplate

The base unit doesn't come with a faceplate attached. You choose one separately based on how much water you need to move and how large your pond is.

8.5-Inch Faceplate

Rated for ponds up to 500 square feet, with a flow range of 1,800 to 5,000 gallons per hour. This is the size most backyard installations end up using.

16-Inch Faceplate

Rated for ponds up to 1,200 square feet, with a flow range of 5,000 to 8,500 gallons per hour. Go with this one if you're running a bigger pond, a stronger pump, or both.

How Big a Pond Can It Handle?

On its own, the Savio Skimmerfilter is rated as a complete filtration solution for ponds up to 1,000 gallons. If your pond is bigger than that, pair it with a Savio Livingponds filter and you'll still get the same water clarity, just with the extra filtration capacity a larger system needs.

Manual and Setup Reference

A full product manual is available as a PDF download for anyone installing this themselves, and there's also a setup video if you'd rather watch someone walk through it than read a manual on a job site. Between the two, most DIY pond owners can get the base unit, faceplate, and plumbing connections figured out without calling in a contractor.

Savio Standard SkimmerFilter Manual