could/should I add a bog?

[poconojoe]

Mine was doing great until the fierce spawning caused everything to get stirred up. It's still way better than it was before the bog, but I can no longer see the bottom clearly. I image when the fish calm down, it will clear up again.

 

[GBBUDD]

Fish went bazerk for two days breeding chasing the girls. staring up and digging up ants and dirt. I stoped feeding and the water was clear the next morning.

 

[Dosry5]

No change really....yet

 

[GBBUDD]

if your going to compare photos try and take the pic at the same place the same time same angle. But you have to remember bogs are basically a three step process. Bacteria getting established. The Sludge getting mixed into the bog clogging the easy path for water to escape from the bog . And final is the bog to become planted.
the bacteria stage you should have a doot up on seeing as your pond is not new and the seed will get into the bog .
The natural clogging for lack of a better word of the stone will take some time.
The plants one question for you are you putting the soil into the bog with the roots of the plant? or are you washing off the dirt Gently and then bury the roots. you will most likely go through hair algea this year and next maybe some green water and less hair by the time the plants start to exploded the algea will disapear.

 

[Tula]

I've heard you should put the plants into the bog with the dirt on their roots.....but mine arrives w/o dirt, so that's how I planted them. I think mine went through a bit of transplant shock, but are perking up now

 

[Dosry5]

if your going to compare photos try and take the pic at the same place the same time same angle. But you have to remember bogs are basically a three step process. Bacteria getting established. The Sludge getting mixed into the bog clogging the easy path for water to escape from the bog . And final is the bog to become planted.
the bacteria stage you should have a doot up on seeing as your pond is not new and the seed will get into the bog .
The natural clogging for lack of a better word of the stone will take some time.
The plants one question for you are you putting the soil into the bog with the roots of the plant? or are you washing off the dirt Gently and then bury the roots. you will most likely go through hair algea this year and next maybe some green water and less hair by the time the plants start to exploded the algea will disapear.

We gently rinsed the majority of the dirt off. We’ve had a crap ton (that’s metric) of rain since Sunday when we turned it on so the pond is pretty dirty. I’ll take your advice and post from the same spot/angle as much as possible to document progress. I know some people have had clearing in a weeks time, but I was hoping for some marked improvement within 2-3 weeks. Fingers crossed!

 

[GBBUDD]

We gently rinsed the majority of the dirt off. We’ve had a crap ton (that’s metric) of rain since Sunday when we turned it on so the pond is pretty dirty. I’ll take your advice and post from the same spot/angle as much as possible to document progress. I know some people have had clearing in a weeks time, but I was hoping for some marked improvement within 2-3 weeks. Fingers crossed!

I know jhn had just built his bog the same time you were talking about it . you have to remember he did the aqua blox bottle cadalac" and his pond was very well establish and he knows what what with his pond. hIs bog is 12 x 12 with very established plants. Give it time.

 

[Dosry5]

One week with the bog....

 

[Tula]

It sure is pretty and will only improve. My pond water is very clear now, after being fairly green earlier. I still have algae in the bog, but the plants are starting to grow. I figure this is my first season with the bog and things need to mature.

 

[poconojoe]

Everything looks great!

 

[GBBUDD]

This is where patience comes into play. The bog is a living breathing filter it takes time for Nature to move into a closed system. Your bog looks to be less then 30% of the pond so it make take a year or two. But all is not lost Water cress is a plant that grows very very fast and the best part to it is it is easily removed. Very fast growing plants are what you want to get going untill the biological aspect can catch up. Lotus is another fast grower but it NEEDS TO BE CONTAINED IN A Planter or such so that the roots don't get into the folds or takes over. Another great plant is hornwart or coontail these are aquatic plants that also give off tons of o2 Green algae blooms also decrease the amount of dissolved oxygen it's all in the cycle. Forget me nots are another good choice . Creeping jenny grows fast as well but it can get out of control and leave on 1/4 behind with its roots and as Jack Nicklson said I'M BACK.

I am way over 30m percent am closer to 50 % or more and it has taken two full years for the pond to stabilize.

One last thing i would look at and many here will disagree is benificial bacteria. I have not used many of them that are out there but i have used nualgi and when i had hair algae i could watch day by day the hair change to a higher form of algae. Some would start to raise and bunch up Bubbles start to form all over and it will lift the algae up and to the skimmer or to be netted. but all in all PATIENCE

 

[j.w]

Looks great clearing up really nice now!

 

[Dosry5]

Well I haven’t posted updates because it’s taking some time to find balance. I get clearer days, and then green days. I’m in full sun and the afternoons are just brutal right now and it produce super green water for a few hours daily. I just checked the pond an hour ago and kinda freaked out over water levels. I didn’t go outside yesterday so didn’t see where it was then, but’s it’s definitely down 3-4 inches from 2 days ago. I can’t find a leak, and we have had a week in the 90s with lots of wind. Plus I have lots of plants in the bog. HOPEFULLY that means it’s all natural water loss......but it could also be wicking under the waterfall where I overlapped the two liners. Hmmmm. You can see in these pics where the liner is kinda crusty, that was the water line a couple days ago.

 

[Dosry5]

But on a positive note....the Lilly pads I put in a month ago were not looking good, so 2 weeks ago I dropped them to the bottom and they’ve raised, increased in size, and I have my first ever bloom!

 

[IPA]

I have a small pond and loose a couple inches every couple of days; hot hot days I’ll loose that much in an afternoon. I notice that as the water level drops I will start to loose less and I am guessing that I am loosing a fair amount to wicking as well, the folds in the liner are always wet an inch or 2 above the water level. I bought a cheap water timer and have a plan to have it come on for an hour or 2 every day once we get into the steady 90’s. I use a small sprinkler to fill my pond now, get tired of standing around holding the hose. I have to aerator the water because it is toxically high in free iron. Aerating turns it into cheated iron instantly which is safe and my plants get watered at the same time.