Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Green Water.

[Craig Brown]

In a previous thread, I outline the mystery of why my new pond went from clear to brown overnight. In summary, caterpillar Armageddon occurring 50' up in my oak tree (its raining poop). The pond is about 1800 gallons, above ground. It's got 10lbs of activated charcoal in the filter and quilt batting in two places. Still, it kept getting darker.

Looking at light traveling through the water, it looked like varying densities (so it was more then just coloration). I have two waterfalls, so under normal circumstances I would think the water is oxygenated. But, since I didn't know what was causing the color (chemistry was acceptable) I wanted to be sure my fish were ok, so I got an air pump and stone. Four hours later, it turned green. My son's hypothesis is that the brown was "unhappy algae" (he is a geologist, not a biologist). I gave it what the algae needed.

Is this a step in the right direction?

The Ammonia level actually went up from 2 to 3. Nitrate 0. PH 8. Nitrite 0.5

BTW: I got a pretty powerful pump and it makes kind of a small "fountain". My Koi seem to like hanging out by the bubbles. I assume this can't be harmful to them (just catching a buzz)?

 

[Meyer Jordan]

If these test results are accurate then forget the green water for now as you have some other major problems with your water quality. An Ammonia level of 2, much less 3, combined with a pH of 8 is quite toxic to Koi at any temperature. This is likely why they are hanging out by the bubbles from the aerator, as Ammonia will burn their gills and interfere with their ability to absorb Oxygen. An Ammonia binder such as Seachem Prime should be applied to your pond ASAP or you may experience some fish mortality.
All effort should be expended to determine exactly why your pond's Ammonia level is so high. This is not a new pond, is it?

 

[morewater]

Time to administer some Ammo-Lock and figure out why your ammonia level is so high.

 

[Lisak1]

Yikes! Get on that ammonia!

 

[Craig Brown]

Yes. Just put fish in two weeks ago. I was told that this was OK while the different cycles balanced out and I should not interfere. Is this incorrect?

 

[Craig Brown]

I'm at work but asked my son to take care of it now. Fortunately, my local Petco has it.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

You evidently started off with too many fish for your size pond.. This just extends the time that is needed for the biofilter to establish the needed levels of bacteria. In the meantime your fish are in danger.
You were given some very bad advice.

 

[Craig Brown]

Yes, I adopted 10 Koi of various sizes in a short period of time. The pond eco-system was not adequately set up. It was due to a timing issue, no longer relevant (since I the fish are all there). The pond is part-above, part below ground. Has a bottom drain with 3" pipes that feed into the Skimmer. And it has a waterfall filter with the 3 mesh filters, plus the bio-bags with 3,000 feet of filter floss. Powered by a pump with capacity for a bigger pond. Where I went wrong (I guess) is on the equilibrium stuff.

That said, 10 Koi (mostly small to medium) in an 1600 - 2000 gallon pond (not sure of the exact size because it connects with a water garden) is not a heavy fish load.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

That said, 10 Koi (mostly small to medium) in an 1600 - 2000 gallon pond (not sure of the exact size because it connects with a water garden) is not a heavy fish load.

It is a very heavy fish load for an un-cycled pond.

 

[Craig Brown]

Yeah. That's the thing about learning by reading forum posts. I read hundreds. But all questions and answers are effected by context. If you search for fish load, lots of people give formulas for "inches of fish per gallon" etc. I did not read any that had the caveat "but this is not valid until X happens".

 

[Craig Brown]

Update: Things are good now. PH is fine. Ammonia is low. Caterpillars have stopped pooping. No fish loss. Algae continue to obstruct visibility. I installed a 18w UV two weeks ago. I also have a lot of plants.
The water is definitely clearer, but I can’t see to the bottom. I’ve read about Algaecides, so I won’t even ask that. The fish are very active and though I wish I could see them better, I’m not doing anything to “rock the boat”.
Thanks to all that have helped me along the “learning curve”.