Converting fish pond to decorative pond?

[bettasngoldfish]

Thank you very much for the great information.

One more question if you don't mind. When I've had aquariums in the past i loved have a Plecos in the tank for algae control. I just love the idea of letting nature handle itself (rather than chemicals). For a pond my size 3000-4000 gallons, would a couple of small Plecos be wise? I know they are aggresive and you dont want to put more than one or two in a pond, but I also am not sure if they would be able to keep up with the algae.

It depends on where you live and how cold it gets. Plecos don't do well in colder water and may not survive if the temps get too low.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Thank you very much for the great information.

One more question if you don't mind. When I've had aquariums in the past i loved have a Plecos in the tank for algae control. I just love the idea of letting nature handle itself (rather than chemicals). For a pond my size 3000-4000 gallons, would a couple of small Plecos be wise? I know they are aggresive and you dont want to put more than one or two in a pond, but I also am not sure if they would be able to keep up with the algae.

First consideration concerning Plecos is your location. Plecos, if I am not mistaken, are classified as Tropical fish and can not handle low water temperatures. Perhaps someone else will supply the actual bottom range temperature for these fish. Likely 50F or higher.
Algae control is of higher priority in an aquarium because the viewing is usually through the sides of the aquarium. Not so in a pond. A healthy algae growth should be encouraged. If the pond is well-balanced, the addition of a Pleco would offer no real advantage and only add to the total fish biomass in the pond.

 

[bettasngoldfish]

I used to have to bring my common pleco indoors once the water got in the low 60's (he would really start to get sluggish) Meyer brings a good point about just adding to the bioload (especially with the large common plecos) I have some bn plecos in aquariums and they stay much smaller and are great at keeping the sides of a tank clean. They can also be kept in groups if given enough space and areas to claim as their own.

 

[MD56]

I'm in Southern California, water temps are in the mid 60's just about year round.

My pond is pretty deep (4.5' in the deepest spots) and the bottom is a dark color, I'm wondering if it would be too hard to monitor a Pleco.

I guess I just like the idea of natural algae control.

 

[bettasngoldfish]

I'm in Southern California, water temps are in the mid 60's just about year round.

My pond is pretty deep (4.5' in the deepest spots) and the bottom is a dark color, I'm wondering if it would be too hard to monitor a Pleco.

I guess I just like the idea of natural algae control.

You can always give it a try. Make sure to give him a piece of driftwood and a cave of some sort to hid in when he wishes. My pleco would come right over at feeding time so I always was able to find him easily. The hard part was catching him

 

[Mmathis]

I'm in Southern California, water temps are in the mid 60's just about year round.

My pond is pretty deep (4.5' in the deepest spots) and the bottom is a dark color, I'm wondering if it would be too hard to monitor a Pleco.

I guess I just like the idea of natural algae control.

One thing I've learned is that any pond with enough plants tends to be its own "natural" algae control. The critters produce the food for the plants. If there's too much food present for the number of plants you have, algae will take advantage of the excess food and will grow [though some algae is always going to be present....it just is].

And another factor in "natural" algae control is sunlight. Providing shade will help. That can be mechanical shade [that you provide via canopies or from trees] or shade provided by the plants themselves [such as water lilies].

 

[MD56]

Switching gears for a minute...

I drained the pond and gave it a good pressure washing a while back. I got most of the algae and other nasty stuff cleaned out but the walls of the pond (concrete) are still stained green from the algae. I was hoping that drying everything out and leaving it in the sun for a while would help but so far it's had no effect. .

Any advice? It may be a long time before it's ever completely drained again so I figured I should try all I can.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Save your energy! Even if you were to get the walls of the pond back to their original color, once you refill the pond biofilm and periphyton will re-establish itself and the walls will be green again. The only way to prevent this is to treat this pool as a swimming pool and maintain a certain level of Chlorine in the water column. This will, however, prevent any addition of plants (or fish).

 

[sissy]

You can use peroxide to clean the green not harmful to many things since it breaks down so fast .I use it in my pond to clean water fall area .I just turn off pumps and pour it in .It can be sprayed on rocks and allowed to sit for awhile and when you spray it with water it turns white and floats away .There are also cold water algae eaters but they are aggressive towards other fish

 

[sissy]

It has not harmed my plants and for 88 cents a bottle at walmart it is a great safe fix

 

[MD56]

You can use peroxide to clean the green not harmful to many things since it breaks down so fast .I use it in my pond to clean water fall area .I just turn off pumps and pour it in .It can be sprayed on rocks and allowed to sit for awhile and when you spray it with water it turns white and floats away .There are also cold water algae eaters but they are aggressive towards other fish

Thanks for the tip, i will definitely give this a try!

 

[sissy]

I have used it for years and no harm to my pond or plants or fish