I am from Croatian and few people know to give some tips for things like this, so I wanted to hear your opinion.My pond is 1000 liters(220 gallons) with 15 koi's of different sizes from 10cm to 15 cm, I have water pump 8000l / h,filter 10000 l / h with 12Watt UV lamp and a small pump 1000 / h, which is used to pump waterfalls.This small works all day and I put the filter to work three times a day (morning, afternoon and evening) for two hours and half.I'm intrested in your opinion is it enough and would give something needs to be changed .Thanks
Filter the water in the pond
- Thread starter kraljcojo
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Depends on the type of filter and amount of food you feed in additional to size of the fish which you gave. The easiest way to tell if a bio filter is good enough is to test ammonia and nitrite. If zero the filter is fine.
8000 liters/hour going thru a filter is a lot, so maybe you have a large bio filter?
9000 liters/hour of water thru a 1000 liter pond is a lot. Your fish must get a lot of exercise.
Assuming a normal growth rate 10-15cm Koi would be about 5-6 months old. At 1 year old they should be 25cm. At 2 years old they should be 40cm. At 3 years old they should be 50cm. A 1x1x1 meter pond would be 1000 liters. I don't see how 15 Koi 50cm long would physically fit in the pond. They'd have to take turns moving. Fish load density can be very high given enough filtering and water changing, but even that has its limits.
I assume the 10000 liters thru the UV is suppose to be 1000 liters?
8000 liters/hour going thru a filter is a lot, so maybe you have a large bio filter?
9000 liters/hour of water thru a 1000 liter pond is a lot. Your fish must get a lot of exercise.
Assuming a normal growth rate 10-15cm Koi would be about 5-6 months old. At 1 year old they should be 25cm. At 2 years old they should be 40cm. At 3 years old they should be 50cm. A 1x1x1 meter pond would be 1000 liters. I don't see how 15 Koi 50cm long would physically fit in the pond. They'd have to take turns moving. Fish load density can be very high given enough filtering and water changing, but even that has its limits.
I assume the 10000 liters thru the UV is suppose to be 1000 liters?
Yes, agree with WB on fish capacity. I keep 15 koi in approx. 3500 gallon (13,250 liters). They range from 12 - 24" (30 - 60 cm). I could probably easily add 2-3 more of that size with our filtration system but we don't want to load the system.
I usually don't recommend that people keep Koi in anything less than 500 gallons and than only one or two. The other issue is with a pond under 500 gallons, the depth is usually not sufficient for wintering over Koi. In most areas that get snow, you should have at least 3' of depth and preferably 4' to minimize winter stress on the fish. Yes, many folks manage with two feet and even one foot for years with no issues. Than one really bad winter...... Obviously the more temperate, the shallower you can go.
Also, with the 12v UV you have, I doubt that it is meant to function at the high rate of flow that your pump is providing. I.e. The higher the rate of flow, the lower the exposure to the UV light This is countered somewhat by the a higher number of passes through the UV. But since you only run the system a few hours a day, that might be negated. You might find that the UV adds more value if you split the pump flow and send some water back directly to the pond while only sending a portion through the UV. Another option would be add a smaller fountain type of pump dedicated to just pumping water through the UV and using that 24 hrs. I don't like that too much as I only like running filtered water through the UV.
I might suggest that your waterfall pump is probably more than enough to run the whole system, I'd pull the bigger pump and use the waterfall pump with the filter and UV and back to the waterfall and keep it all running 24 x 7.
Than use the bigger pump on your next pond.
. That bigger pump probably could handle about a 12,000 liter pond with the right filter and UV and a reasonable fish load. (12-15 koi max).
Craig
Craig
I usually don't recommend that people keep Koi in anything less than 500 gallons and than only one or two. The other issue is with a pond under 500 gallons, the depth is usually not sufficient for wintering over Koi. In most areas that get snow, you should have at least 3' of depth and preferably 4' to minimize winter stress on the fish. Yes, many folks manage with two feet and even one foot for years with no issues. Than one really bad winter...... Obviously the more temperate, the shallower you can go.
Also, with the 12v UV you have, I doubt that it is meant to function at the high rate of flow that your pump is providing. I.e. The higher the rate of flow, the lower the exposure to the UV light This is countered somewhat by the a higher number of passes through the UV. But since you only run the system a few hours a day, that might be negated. You might find that the UV adds more value if you split the pump flow and send some water back directly to the pond while only sending a portion through the UV. Another option would be add a smaller fountain type of pump dedicated to just pumping water through the UV and using that 24 hrs. I don't like that too much as I only like running filtered water through the UV.
I might suggest that your waterfall pump is probably more than enough to run the whole system, I'd pull the bigger pump and use the waterfall pump with the filter and UV and back to the waterfall and keep it all running 24 x 7.
Than use the bigger pump on your next pond.
. That bigger pump probably could handle about a 12,000 liter pond with the right filter and UV and a reasonable fish load. (12-15 koi max).Craig
Craig
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My filters go all the time and I have 2 of them .Koi need lots of filtering .I only have 2 but after 8 years they are over 2 feet long .
Hello everyone
As I have written before, and wanted some advice and opinions I have another question related to algae in pond.Last month I put plants and fish in the pond, Koie and gold fish, a waterfall pump works all day and pump and filter that cleans especially as almost the entire day, the water is clear, however, stones and pots of plants around the pebbles green.I'm interested is that a normal process and there is no other solution.
thanks
As I have written before, and wanted some advice and opinions I have another question related to algae in pond.Last month I put plants and fish in the pond, Koie and gold fish, a waterfall pump works all day and pump and filter that cleans especially as almost the entire day, the water is clear, however, stones and pots of plants around the pebbles green.I'm interested is that a normal process and there is no other solution.
thanks
Algae is a normal part of the pond. There is nothing wrong with a nice growth of bright green algae from 1/4" to even maybe an 1" long on your rocks and liner. I use the touch test. If it looks like something smooth and soft and something that is actually inviting you to touch and feel it's softness, it's probably good. The fish graze on it and it acts like other plants do in the pond. String algae and fine single-celled floating algae (the cause of 'pea soup' ponds), are usually considered unsightly and reduce the enjoyment of the fish.
If you expect an aquarium clean type of pond, forget it. Doesn't happen. But it sounds like you have a normal pond right now.
Craig
If you expect an aquarium clean type of pond, forget it. Doesn't happen. But it sounds like you have a normal pond right now.
Craig
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My first thought too is that the numbers seem rather wonky. 220g is rather small to keep that many koi. And a pump that's doing 8000/ or 2000g per hour for a 200g pond seems excessive!
It took a while to find some good pics on the internet. This pond is typical. Green liner with clear water. Nothing wrong with this.
The second picture is actually from an aquarium site. It considers this "bad" algae. It is called beard algae according them. Mainly because in a small aquarium it becomes the main feature and is unsightly. In a pond, this is good algae. Fish will graze on this and keep it in check in a pond and it takes up nutrients used by the floating algae that cause pea soup. It also hides the liner and makes it look more natural i think.
Craig
The second picture is actually from an aquarium site. It considers this "bad" algae. It is called beard algae according them. Mainly because in a small aquarium it becomes the main feature and is unsightly. In a pond, this is good algae. Fish will graze on this and keep it in check in a pond and it takes up nutrients used by the floating algae that cause pea soup. It also hides the liner and makes it look more natural i think.
Craig
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I am no expert, but I think you have too many fish for the size of your pond and will need to filter continuously but slower. Your koi are small now, but they will outgrow & overcrowd your pond very soon.
We have a 200 gallon hot tub and I would only temporarily raise a handful of koi in something that size. Or maybe use it as something to keep small ones over winter inside while it is cold out.
200 gallons makes a nice size garden pond for some plants, various small fish, a water feature, etc, but is insufficient for koi which will grow to two-three feet in length. I think 1000 gallons would be a minimum to keep koi. Which isn't actually all that big either. I'm finishing a ~1500 gallon water feature, and we're only talking a 12ft circle that's between 16" and 36" deep.
I understand maybe you just have this set up as a temporary pond, but it seems very unbalanced as far as volume, fish, filtration ...
We have a 200 gallon hot tub and I would only temporarily raise a handful of koi in something that size. Or maybe use it as something to keep small ones over winter inside while it is cold out.
200 gallons makes a nice size garden pond for some plants, various small fish, a water feature, etc, but is insufficient for koi which will grow to two-three feet in length. I think 1000 gallons would be a minimum to keep koi. Which isn't actually all that big either. I'm finishing a ~1500 gallon water feature, and we're only talking a 12ft circle that's between 16" and 36" deep.
I understand maybe you just have this set up as a temporary pond, but it seems very unbalanced as far as volume, fish, filtration ...