Hail from SOWEGA

[Bob Newsome]

Hey all, just joined. We live in SOuthWest GeorgiA (see what I did there?) USA. Two and a half years ago we purchased our place out in the boonies and it included one and a half ponds. The one pond is a four tier set up with a poorly constructed bog filter in tier 3. The fourth and final tier is about 1,400 gallons with about twenty goldfish and one (hopefully two) butterfly koi. I say hopefully because the second pregnant female is MIA since we released her about two and a half weeks ago. The other half in the pond count is actually what I've heard referred to is a "sky pond." That being it's a depression in the ground that fills with about a third of an acre of water when it rains a lot and dries up or gets very close to that once a year. Wish I could keep it full though.

I'm looking forward to learning a lot more about keeping up our garden pond.

One question though. We have a 1,500 GPH pump that circulates water from the main pond up to a small tier that overflows into a larger tier with water lillies, then overflows into the third tier filled with papyrus as a bog filter then finally spills into the main pond. We have finally found all or at least 98% of the leaks in the system and are able to run the pump for long times with little water loss. The question is what is the conventional thought, should we run the pump 24/7 or on a timer for a specific period or periods each day. Is there an adjustment based on season/temperature?

Lookng forward to all replies, thanks.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

If fish are present, the water should be circulated and filtered 24/7/365.

 

[sissy]

Welcome and yep for the health of the fish like said 24/7.365 but the 365 days is up in there air when it comes to winter time but since you live in Georgia I guess you don't get much winter .How does your pond do with the water temps. I know mine had to be shaded more since temps have been in the mid 90's evaporation has been a lot in my pond .At least 4 inch's now I have area on my property that feels with water i dug it deeper and put in an underground tank and ran my gutters to it and then filled it with rocks from the property .

 

[Bob Newsome]

Crazy thing about this pond. The previous hillbilly owners had to vacate the property to avoid the law and they took their pump with them so the fish were without any water movement for about a year. They were doing OK when we moved in and I purchased a pump to get the water moving. The system had a lot of leaks so we ran it intermittantly adding water every time. The "city" water the little town supplies is not heavily chlorinated so a slow flow hose to the uppermost tier seemed to dissipate the chlorine adequately.

So with your answers in mind I'll just take the pump off the twist timer and put it on full time but we'll still have to watch the water level. I think there's still a small leak or leaks and loss to evaporation. Yes we have a very light winter here. We may get a half inch snow once or twice a winter every four or five years but we do have occasional nights that will dip down into the twenties. We've seen no adverse effects on the fish either way. Spring, summer, and much of fall the pond is well shaded for most of the day and during the winter the sun is far enough south so the the light is filtered through several bare trees.

I assume running the filter all the time will help with the algae growth. We have a good amount growing on the sides but the water is clear and a local fish store adivsed to force the fish to eat it by not feeding pellets. Is this sound advice?

 

[Meyer Jordan]

I assume running the filter all the time will help with the algae growth. We have a good amount growing on the sides but the water is clear and a local fish store adivsed to force the fish to eat it by not feeding pellets. Is this sound advice?

Continuous filtering of the water will not have any damping effect on algae growth. In fact, it may encourage it, but the less supplemental food that you give to the fish the healthier the entire pond's eco-system will be. Yes, the fish will eat the algae along with other critters that may be in the pond. This is their natural diet.

 

[sissy]

I know from taking ponds out of foreclosed homes that have been late go for years that fish can survive in the harshest conditions and I am still amazed by it .I have taken out lots of preforms that I thought by the smell that no fish could survive it ,but there they were .I would never just allow fish to survive on what is in the pond .But i only feed 3 or 4 times a week so they will keep there own house clean .Your fish have done well but I would still feed them some to keep them healthy

 

[sissy]

I wanted to clarify what I said because once I took these fish out of disgusting water they had issues adjusting and now that you are tending to the pond and there is water movement and water conditions will change now that pump is going .There may be a transition period where they may need some of the vitamins in the food to help them adjust .Then over time the pond will balance out and the joy you will receive in feeding them will make you feel like their hero ..Get a test kit to help you along the way .

 

[Dave 54]

May I suggest you buy an API pond master test kit plus an API Ntrate kit so that you can check your water perameters on a regular basis .
What filtration do you have on your pond and when was the last time you gave them a clean ?
Do you also have a U/V-C on your pond and if so when was the last time you changed the bulb on it.
Welcome to the Forum from Plymouth in the UK .
I take it from your Avatar your former military like myself I spent 9 years serving in the Royal Navy spending many a happy time in the US

Dave

 

[addy1]

Welcome to our group! Post some pictures of your pond when you can, sounds neat.

 

[Becky]

Hello and welcome to the forum

 

[Lisak1]

Welcome!