fish are dying

[Dave 54]

Johny do me a favour and got to Amazon .com its the US version of the Amazon.co.uk there you will see a number of Books , I recomend you buy one and read it start to finish that way you'll be clued up as to what your doing :-

The Manual of Fish Health ISBN 0861013869. Dr Chris Andrews Adrian Exell, Dr Neville Carrington.

The cost of this book a few dollars on there as does :-

Hand Book of Fish Diseases (All Fish) ISBN 0866227032. Dieter Untergasser.

They stood the test of time with Val and I are a goldmine of information all you'll need to know to become a successful fish keeper

Dave

 

[Johnny d.]

Johny do me a favour and got to Amazon .com its the US version of the Amazon.co.uk there you will see a number of Books , I recomend you buy one and read it start to finish that way you'll be clued up as to what your doing :-

The Manual of Fish Health ISBN 0861013869. Dr Chris Andrews Adrian Exell, Dr Neville Carrington.

The cost of this book a few dollars on there as does :-

Hand Book of Fish Diseases (All Fish) ISBN 0866227032. Dieter Untergasser.

They stood the test of time with Val and I are a goldmine of information all you'll need to know to become a successful fish keeper

Dave

Not to be a smart tail but I've had seven ponds in 25 yrs and have always had success with my fish. U can call it dumb luck or taking care of my fish but have had good luck. I had a 125 koi pond yrs ago and never lost a fish. This just happens to be my first bio filter pond and need to let it cycle. I always have things to learn but at 52, I'm not a complete idiot. After some water testing, I hope to get water quality straight.

 

[Dave 54]

Not to be a smart tail but I've had seven ponds in 25 yrs and have always had success with my fish. U can call it dumb luck or taking care of my fish but have had good luck. I had a 125 koi p.o..d yrs ago and never lost a fish. This just happens to be my first bio filter pond and need to let it cycle. I always have things to learn but at 52, I'm not a complete idiot. After some water testing, I hope to get water quality straight.

So what are your perameters then Johnny we still need to know them to help you with your pond, QTing your fish is the first thing you learn when keeping any fish . it seems something your unable to grasp nor the amount of fish load your pond can take as your very words were as follows .

I had about eight baby gold fish and two small koi and the fish had plenty of room. This is my sixth pond I've had and never has this happen . I know not good but I never check the levels of my water.

Those where your very words not mine all I suggested was you do yourself a favour and buy a couple of books to help you .
"I'm trying as are others to help you to the best of my ability of my 28 years experiance plus our knowledge of fish health issues, something you may well need the service of if you stick around by the sounds of it"!!!!!.......
Nobody puts that load on a new pond sacrificial fish are normally used to cycle the pond then the greater fish load is added when matured nobody adds new as the old were dying because that is just throwing away lives for nothing , just so you know Johnny a goldfish can live 40 years a koi 80+ years
The information for the books comes from our Library of which those two books were part :-

https://www.gardenpondforum.com/articles/our-updated-library-with-reviews.11/

enjoy

Dave

 

[Nepen]

Hi Johnny, Welcome!

I'm sorry for all the fish lost you had. You said this is your first bio-filter pond. What did you have before?
I know that with new pond, with any type of filter, the method of cycling is the same with same type of bacteria and same amount of cycle time (give or take). I now have a bog filter but my bog is new and still use the same amount of cycle (same type of bacteria still grow in the bog too) before my plants can contribute.

I hope your pond balance out soon.

 

[Johnny d.]

Hi Johnny, Welcome!

I'm sorry for all the fish lost you had. You said this is your first bio-filter pond. What did you have before?
I know that with new pond, with any type of filter, the method of cycling is the same with same type of bacteria and same amount of cycle time (give or take). I now have a bog filter but my bog is new and still use the same amount of cycle (same type of bacteria still grow in the bog too) before my plants can contribute.

I hope your pond balance out soon.

I had a uv light with a filter that had to be open and cleaned twice a week and my pond stayed green most of the time. My new bio filter is meant to never be open and cleaned, just flush out the waste from the bottom, once a week. I am always open to suggestions and even after 25 yrs of pounding, still have much to learn. I'm pretty much self taught witch explains some of the problems.Lol I really do appreciate all the help and suggestions and I'm working on the pond as we speak. Thanks everyone

 

[Nepen]

I see. Here is what I thought. (I dont know what you know so I'm writing it base on that)

Your pond now is small and not cycle yet. Meaning the bacteria that help turn Ammonia to Nitrite is not enough for your fish load. And also the same with bacteria that convert Nitrite to Nitrate. Good bacteria live on the surface in the pond, be it pond liner, rocks, mechanical media, and bio media. So even your old set-up, there are the same bacteria in there. The more surface you have, the more bacteria you have, that's where bio-media comes in, to give more 'surface' for the bacteria to colonize.

Goldfish and koi are poop machine. They produce so much waste. So with new pond where the bacteria is not enough to cover the load, the water became toxic. If you need to keep all the fish in that pond while waiting the the pond to cycle, I suggest you do water change often. When your pond is mature, you will not have to do water change as often.

Algae is a good thing, unsightly, but a good thing. It will help absorb fish waste. So while waiting for the pond to cycle and you see algae, leave it be

Good luck!

 

[Mmathis]

@Johnny d. The administrators have locked your other post so all posting will be via this one. That's to avoid confusion between the 2 posts. And for some continuity, he put in a link to this post to guide everyone over here.

Just out of curiosity, how did you make your new bio filter? Is it the "skippy" type [which is what I use]? When you said it empties from the bottom and is designed to never be cleaned, that sounds like a Skippy. But not the part about not having to be opened...... And how big is it? I don't like my Skippy, but it really has done a good job of keeping my water healthy. My pond is a tad over-stocked (goldfish only), but I've never had an issue with ammonia, etc. Do you have a picture?

I wasn't going to bring up the issue yet of quarantine. But that is something you might want to consider before adding new fish. There are some people who never quarantine -- QT -- and they get by just fine. But there will be that one time when a fish comes in that is sick or has parasites. That fish might look just fine, showing no outward signs of illness. But when it gets added to a new environment, and especially an environment that is already stressed [in this case, an uncycled pond], that illness can become a problem.

As soon as you get your test kit, let us know what your readings are.

 

[Lisak1]

A willingness to learn is the first hallmark of a good ponder - so good for you @Johnny d. for hanging in there with us and all of the advice you are sure to get. Be patient, make small changes and one at a time (so you know what worked when you get the results you hope for), hold off on adding any more fish until you get the issues all straightened out. Many of us here have learned by doing so we know mistakes are sometimes part of the process. . Hopefully you can sort them out before you lose any more fish - we all know how much that pains the ponders heart!

Do consider, though, sticking to goldfish. I know you say your koi are small, but take if from those of us here who once had those adorable tiny koi - they grow fast and furious! There are so many pretty, unusual, uniquely colored goldfish that are perfect for smaller ponds. They are less demanding on your pond ecosystem and are just as much fun to watch as they add color and life to your pond.

 

[Mmathis]

Well stated, @Lisak1

 

[Johnny d.]

I see. Here is what I thought. (I dont know what you know so I'm writing it base on that)

Your pond now is small and not cycle yet. Meaning the bacteria that help turn Ammonia to Nitrite is not enough for your fish load. And also the same with bacteria that convert Nitrite to Nitrate. Good bacteria live on the surface in the pond, be it pond liner, rocks, mechanical media, and bio media. So even your old set-up, there are the same bacteria in there. The more surface you have, the more bacteria you have, that's where bio-media comes in, to give more 'surface' for the bacteria to colonize.

Goldfish and koi are poop machine. They produce so much waste. So with new pond where the bacteria is not enough to cover the load, the water became toxic. If you need to keep all the fish in that pond while waiting the the pond to cycle, I suggest you do water change often. When your pond is mature, you will not have to do water change as often.

Algae is a good thing, unsightly, but a good thing. It will help absorb fish waste. So while waiting for the pond to cycle and you see algae, leave it be

Good luck!

Thanks for the help and so far, so good. I haven't lost a fish in two days and the water has turned a little greener. I removed about a quarter of the water this morning and replace when I flushed my filter. Getting ready to buy a kit to check my water.

 

[Johnny d.]

A willingness to learn is the first hallmark of a good ponder - so good for you @Johnny d. for hanging in there with us and all of the advice you are sure to get. Be patient, make small changes and one at a time (so you know what worked when you get the results you hope for), hold off on adding any more fish until you get the issues all straightened out. Many of us here have learned by doing so we know mistakes are sometimes part of the process. . Hopefully you can sort them out before you lose any more fish - we all know how much that pains the ponders heart!

Do consider, though, sticking to goldfish. I know you say your koi are small, but take if from those of us here who once had those adorable tiny koi - they grow fast and furious! There are so many pretty, unusual, uniquely colored goldfish that are perfect for smaller ponds. They are less demanding on your pond ecosystem and are just as much fun to watch as they add color and life to your pond.

As for now that is exactly what I will do and hopefully in the coming weeks, I'll have my pond running like clock work.

 

[Dave 54]

I had a uv light with a filter that had to be open and cleaned twice a week and my pond stayed green most of the time. My new bio filter is meant to never be open and cleaned, just flush out the waste from the bottom, once a week. I am always open to suggestions and even after 25 yrs of pounding, still have much to learn. I'm pretty much self taught witch explains some of the problems.Lol I really do appreciate all the help and suggestions and I'm working on the pond as we speak. Thanks everyone

Good to hear Johnny as are we, all thats happened is you have picked up some bad habits along the way thats all.
The books I suggested would help iron out those problems no-one is knocking you but you have to be open to suggestions like the ones we made .
People who know us on this site know we will go the extra mile for anyone in tracking down a fishes problem as will others .
But you have to be willing to learn

Dave

 

[Johnny d.]

Good to hear Johnny as are we, all thats happened is you have picked up some bad habits along the way thats all.
The books I suggested would help iron out those problems no-one is knocking you but you have to be open to suggestions like the ones we made .
People who know us on this site know we will go the extra mile for anyone in tracking down a fishes problem as will others .
But you have to be willing to learn

Dave

Appreciate the help and after I test the water, I'll let y'all know what I find out.