Update:
Fact Review:
Pond is above and below ground. About 1600-1800 gallons. It was filled with fresh water about 2.5 weeks ago, There is nothing on the bottom but liner. There is a ledge that runs around the pond. It has rocks on it (that were power washed before adding). There is also a big stack of rocks under the waterfall. There is a bottom drain; a skimmer; and a waterfall filter. The pump is more powerful then required. Filter in the waterfall are the green mesh, and the blue mesh kind. On top of those are two bags of filter floss. Between the mesh is activated charcoal.
I think things are getting worse. I don’t think the water is any darker, but the fish are not swimming anywhere that I can see them. Previously, there were very active. They also don’t seem to be eating.
About 2 weeks ago (before I had fish) the ph was 8.0. Today I took a water sample to the pet store (I have a test kit but am colorblind. My son was not around to read it). The ph is 6.8. I assume this is because of all the rain. He said the ammonia level was a little high but not bad (whatever that means).
Two days ago I put 10 lbs of activated charcoal in the waterfall. The pond is only 1600-1800 gallons so that is a pretty good amount (yeah, I washed it :- ) I also did a partial water change (just a small amount). I also added more of that bacteria starter stuff (I read it is BS, but since I paid for it anyway …)
I cleaned all the filters in the waterfall. They were not clogged. Whatever this stuff is, it is small.
I did a lot of “googling”. I found four posts where people had similar issues. Two of those were also above ground ponds. One was new like mine. Since there are no leaves, mud, or any residue on the bottom, these folks reached a different conclusion. I thought it was the pollen. But one thing we had in common was that our ponds are under trees. Also, it started after a hard rain. Their hypotheses is this: Rain hits leaves. There is tannin in the substance that coats leaves as well as the cells. The rain probably was not hard enough to damage cells, but the “coating” is water soluble and the tannins probably came from there. For some reason, a woman had buckets of pond water nearby that also turned brown.
So, the only hard fact I’ve got is that the PH is low. I’ve read enough posts here so as not to do a knee-jerk reaction (like dumping in baking soda).
I ordered some barley straw and Microbe Lift 4-Pound Pond Calicium Montmorillonite. Don’t know if it will help, but from what I have read, it can’t hurt.
What else can I do? Does anyone thing I am at a point where I should add baking soda or do any other thing labeled “knee jerk” in other posts?
The following are photos taken at different times of the day to get an idea of the color. They were taken two days ago (when I could still see fish).
Thanks again for the replies!
