New Pond Owner - Equipment help

[koiguy1969]

well the lava rocks should be a decent bandaid

 

[mingus2112]

excellent. i'll start looking for a local place to get that pl gel. might be a tough one to find locally.

I think between lava rocks in those basins (and down the falls) and filling up that pressure filter i think i might be ok for at least awhile. Two more questions (i was going to say "last for today. . .but who knows what will come to mind as i'm supposed to be working!").

1) there is "bio sludge remover" or something like that which is sold in tablets and powder. Claims to attract it and clump (kinda like cat litter i guess?) and sink to the bottom for easy cleanup. Would that be beneficial? Right now my pre filters are having one hell of a time staying unclogged.

2) found this powdered stuff also that looks like the bacteria? Is this OK to use?
powder

edit:
This wasn't the stuff i was talking about in #1, but they had something in powder form in lowes that had the same description:
bio sludge remover

 

[koiguy1969]

i use tetrapond sludge remover helps dissolve organic matter on the bottom of pond so it can be picked up by the pump and filter. maybe just use a pool net and scoop out the debris from the bottom. its basically low oxygen bacteria.

 

[mingus2112]

All pretty exciting! I've taken the day off tomorrow because my mother is in town and have decided to dedicate the day to working on the ponds. We have a family picnic coming up on May 30th and I'd like to show off nice clean ponds!

Any tip to vacuum the bottoms of the ponds on the cheap? Seems like they have pond vacuums for around $300, but something tells me you guys don't use those. I'd also assume a large shop vac would be a little too powerful!

Also, i'd like o scrub a little of the algae off the rim of the pond. I know the algae on the pond liner is beneficial, but is scrubbing the top (where the water line is) ok? just so it doesn't look like it's dirty!

-James

 

[mingus2112]

tomorrow's the big pond work day! i'm going to fill the dump basins with lavarocks and redo some of the plumbing. i also wondered if i can swap out the foam (looks like eggcrate) in the two small biofilters with scrubbie pads like you guys all use in the skippy filters. would that work?

-James

 

[koiguy1969]

dont see why not,,

 

[mingus2112]

headed out after lunch for. . .hmm. . .i don't want to say chemicals. . .so... .how about "additives." Is there anything I should add to the list? (Assume I have nothing):

Bio Sludge Remover
Beneficial bacteria
PL Gel to "start the filter"
More dechlorinator

Anything else you can think of? How about brands to watch for?

-James