04.03.08

Proper Filtration

Posted in New Pond Construction at 1:49 pm by Administrator

The key to a clean pond is balancing the pollution rate with the removal rate. What do we mean by that? Your pond is a “dirt magnet” and attracts every particle of dust that floats by. It is the depository for a rain-cleaned atmosphere. It will catch and collect leaves, twigs, papers, car emissions (that oil slick on the water?) and things you don’t want to know about. Birds leave you presents, in the pond. Bugs are doing bad things in there. Your fish are up to no good, filling the water up with extra proteins, ammonia and carbon dioxide. The plants, at night, are giving off carbon dioxide and eating up oxygen. They are dropping their dead and dying leaves to the bottom of your pond, to biodegrade quietly. Your skin oils and hand cream… right into the pond. It’s all garbage!

What means do you have of removing all this? I mean, even your tap water adds fluoride, chlorine, chloramine, ammonia, minerals… stuff. Look at your annual water company report, it’s all there. The odds are stacked against you! Lined ponds are no match for Mother Nature. You have to have filtration equal to all that is going into the pond, on a daily basis. Can your filter handle that?

After the first year, your entire pond will become the filter. That’s what is meant by a “seasoned” or mature pond. The beneficial bacteria are colonized, and helping. There are three parts to a filter: mechanical, chemical, biological. The mechanical has to remove larger particles, suspended particles, and prevent dirt from building up on the bottom. The chemical will remove harmful elements, such as zinc, copper, and potassium. Then, the biological will do the conversion from ammonia to nitrite, and then to nitrate. It will do denitrification in the anaerobic zones of your filter, in the bio-film. The rotifers and nematodes will clarify the water in much the same way, removing smaller particulate food matter as it comes within reach.

Your part in this is to select the size and type filter that will accommodate all of this for your particular pond. How large, how much of a flow rate, and how often it needs to be cleaned, will depend upon your stocking level and feeding habits more than anything. More fish, more mess to clean. Less fish, less mess. Time will tell if you have the right system for your pond

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04.01.08

TEMPERATURE FLUCTUATIONS AND FISH

Posted in New Pond Construction at 2:46 pm by Administrator

When installing a pond with fish in mind it is of utmost importance to research your area’s frost line. How deep will it freeze if the temperatures remain below 32F for weeks on end? In different parts of the country and even different parts of the county you live in, you will find variations in the depth of ice in the pond. No fish will survive being frozen solid once it thaws. Once it freezes, it dies. Some fish will tolerate cold temperatures better than others, especially if they are native to your area, so the pond construction is paramount. It is equally important to place the pond in an area away from the worst winds and weather conditions whenever possible.

While living in Zone 7, on Long Island, NY, I found an ideal depth for a koi pond to be six feet. Further north, I should think even deeper would be better. This depth allows the fish some respite from searing heat in summer and icy cold in winter. Thermal inversion is the proper name for the condition in which the more moderate temperature is always at the bottom of the pond, much in the same way that ice cubes will float in your soda. But more important is the overall stability of the pond.

Shallow ponds are a nightmare for the fish if placed out in the open where they are subjected to heating in the day and cooling at night. The less water, the faster the water will adjust temperature with the surrounding environment. So, now I live in southwest Florida. I have no trees to shade the pond and will have to use a pergola. But I will dig the pond down to the deepest allowable in order to protect my koi from heat exposure. We do not have winters, so ice and snow are a thing of the past. We have to face severe sun and extreme heat. It doesn’t so much matter what the temperatures; as long as they do not fluctuate rapidly the fish can adjust.