Dying fish please help

[don't ask]

I would think weekly should be fine, aerator will be helpful too but you could if you place it on the bottom of pond.. you want water exchange not just the bubbles which placing on bottom will help to do.. or using a pump and drawing water from bottom of pond and allowing it to cascade down waterfall or possible even connecting to a spitter... a waterfall is more efficient the greater the distance the water travels before hitting the water, yes it adds more noise and yes more splashing

 

[pdpond]

so the 5000 gph pump that all comes down the waterfall should be more than enough water exchange?
I know its hard to see in the picture but the water does have 3 teirs of drop, the smallest being about 8 inches the largest almost 12 inches
I don't want to spend more money if I don't have to, I was under the assumption the waterfall would be give plenty of oxygen

 

[HTH]

Please measure the nitrate level in the pond. Either get a test kit or have a pet shop do it. Liquid tests.

High nitrates to a goldfish is like having a neighbor who plays loud music all night. The music does not harm you directly but the lack of sleep can lead to any number of problems.

I know you just did the water change and that is a good thing but we need to know if nitrates were the problem and if so was the water change enough.

 

[pdpond]

the measurements I gave earlier were from test strips, are they not accurate enough?

 

[Mmathis]

do I need an aerator as well as my water fall?

I would, if it was me. It can only help!

I know you're frustrated.... I'm a newbie at ponding (started a year ago). At first, everything was so confusing 'cause there was SO much information out there. But one thing I've learned is that almost everything interacts in some way with something else -- so there is a balance. If one thing gets out of whack, it can cause a chain reaction of events. Which means, sometimes there is more than one solution to a problem, or more than one cause.

 

[don't ask]

pump is fine, you're turning over water almost 4x an hour... not saying your waterfall doesn't work or help properly.... i neglected to ask is your pump submerged or external? with the flow you have you're pulling water very well and thats a good thing.. just trying to give suggestions as to what should help your algae bloom and fish getting better

 

[don't ask]

I would, if it was me. It can only help!

I know you're frustrated.... I'm a newbie at ponding (started a year ago). At first, everything was so confusing 'cause there was SO much information out there. But one thing I've learned is that almost everything interacts in some way with something else -- so there is a balance. If one thing gets out of whack, it can cause a chain reaction of events. Which means, sometimes there is more than one solution to a problem, or more than one cause.

that and always remember what we offer to you as suggestions and ideas is not law... not everything you read and hear will work or apply to you... but because you have an issue you want help with we are more than happy to tell you what works for us.. hang in there

 

[pdpond]

the pump is submerged under water, the inlet size goes to a big filter box, it has two filters, rock media and the black balls that, as well the waterfall has the same type of filters/media
I tried to do as much research as possible and thought it was easier to restrict some waterflow then be shy of the amount needed so I bought the 5000gph
as mentioned I put in a UV light today as well, from what I understand they can be good and bad, they kill all single cell algae, so I don't plan on running it all the time, only when I feel the algae is at a state that it needs to be cleaned up a little

 

[don't ask]

you may already know but will say a uv light needs reduced flow.. you pumping 5000 gph is too high to go directly to that... if your pump is pulling water from bottom of pond then you are doing it right as opposed to drawing just from skimmer... also if you can get a small basket and place batting in it, can get pretty cheap from wallmart, and let waterfall drop into that to help clear up the fine matter of algae....

 

[pdpond]

the UV light I bought is a 55W and has a max flow rate of 4400GPH I do have the flow restricted down between the pump and the waterfall with a ball valve, because the flow was so much that the waterfall was more like a water jet, so I'm pretty sure I'm well within that 4400GPH
I'm one of those research before you buy kinda people,

just these dying fish and algae is something I couldn't figure out on my own

 

[pdpond]

I missed one thing you mention putting batting in a basket under the waterfall, I'm not sure exactly what you mean by batting, is that a specialty item?

 

[don't ask]

not at all... Sissy, one of the members has pics but i''ll describe as best i can

just an inexpensive basket, laundry or the ones they make for ponds that you can get from lowes or a pet store i would think.. nothing too big unless you have the room for it like a milk crate.. add the batting you get from wallmart, the type for making a pillow or seat cushion. place batting in basket and allow overhang of material.. let waterfall cascade into basket or if you can, add a t from your pumps output and use a flexible hose to let water flow into basket, toss out batting as it gets dirty and batting is full of algae, you should be able to get several cuttings or more out of a roll for about $10.. or you can do as Sissy does and use peroxide in a bucket i think and clean the algae ridden batting for even longer use.. think i explained properly, again Sissy has pics to maybe better show you how it works

 

[pdpond]

ahhh that sounds easy enough I will definitely do that, I have a couple of milk crates and can get the batting tomorrow,
another question, someone mentioned putting a cement block into the pond so pond plants would fit into the holes of the foundation block and they wouldn't fall over
I'm worried if I do that some of the cement chemicals will get into the pond and cause fish and plant damage
what do you guys think?

 

[don't ask]

am going to say mixed ideas or reactions to this one.. don't think one or maybe two will adversely affect your water quality.. will raise ph most likely and i would check daily to monitor water quality. another possible issue would be fish scaping against rough surface either by accident( being startled) or by choice(an itch or illness) and then creating more of an issue for you...but all in all i honestly don't know much about using cinder blocks in a pond for what you wish to use them for

 

[pugle1]

Hi pdpond,

I'm going to chime in even though I'm no fish expert. My only experience with ich was quite a few years ago with some aquarium fish that I had. It started out as little clear "bubbles" adhering to the fish. The "bubbles" eventually turned white like little tiny cotton balls stuck to the fish. If I remember correctly, ich is a fungal infection rather than a bacterial / viral one.

I put my pond in three years ago loaded with goldfish and some common brown minnows, and so far ( fingers crossed ) they're all healthy and thriving, even giving some offspring. I'm wondering about that 6.4 pH reading you got. I've been told to measure pH several times a day as the pH can vary though the course of a day. My pH seems to hover between 8.0 and 8.4, but again from my understanding, a big factor is big pH swings. You might want to look into that.

Someone suggested that you take your fish to a vet or an aquatics / fish shop to see if they can say what it is. It's a good idea. If it is ich, there's an anti-fungal medication you can get to add to the water, however I've only seen indoor aquarium sizes for that medication. As for the batting that don't ask suggested; it's the synthetic white "pillow filling" I tried using that in various ways when I first started with my pond. If you have a big algae problem, that stuff works well to start, but clogs up really fast. My pond is only 600 to 800 gallons, and I don't know if this works with single cell algae, but I use a single 250 ml bottle of 3% hydrogen peroxide once every two weeks to keep string algae at bay. Others have differing opinions on this, but it seems to work well for me.

Good luck and I hope you get your problem solved.

Paul