Pond algae

[Crazme]

Taking over bottom of pond due to excessive heat this summer... my iongen controls clarity but algae obscuring almost everything else... no fish...could someone recommend a product; tired of scooping up algae and fighting a losing battle now, anyway!

 

[Jhn]

what size is your pond? How many fish, size and type? Filter system? Pump size and circulation? How long has the ionizer been in use?

You need to figure out the source of the problem, the excess nutrients in the pond. Either from too many fish, lack of properly sized biofilter, circulation ....Couple things to do right away....

Turn off the iongen, It is releasing copper/zinc into the water. Even at low levels these heavy metals are toxic to fish (bioaccumulate in the fish)and extremely toxic to the Amphibian/invertebrate life in the pond. At best it throws the natural balance ponds try to find out of whack, basically fighting against Mother Nature. Check out Meyer Jordan’s article on the use of ionizers, in the article section of the forum.

Cant tell what the algae looks like from your pic, if it is a golden brown could be dinoflagellates, which is common in ponds using ionizers.

Cant stress this enough do not dump algaecides in the pond, it is just a bandaid and will just make the problems worse. Dead algae will just provide fuel for more algae to grow and can lead to oxygen depletion in the pond.

 

[Crazme]

what size is your pond? How many fish, size and type? Filter system? Pump size and circulation? How long has the ionizer been in use?

You need to figure out the source of the problem, the excess nutrients in the pond. Either from too many fish, lack of properly sized biofilter, circulation ....Couple things to do right away....

Turn off the iongen, It is releasing copper/zinc into the water. Even at low levels these heavy metals are toxic to fish (bioaccumulate in the fish)and extremely toxic to the Amphibian/invertebrate life in the pond. At best it throws the natural balance ponds try to find out of whack, basically fighting against Mother Nature. Check out Meyer Jordan’s article on the use of ionizers, in the article section of the forum.

Cant tell what the algae looks like from your pic, if it is a golden brown could be dinoflagellates, which is common in ponds using ionizers.

Cant stress this enough do not dump algaecides in the pond, it is just a bandaid and will just make the problems worse. Dead algae will just provide fuel for more algae to grow and can lead to oxygen depletion in the pond.

Hi,
Thank you for quick response. There are no longer fish in the pond... herons got them five years ago. Iongen is at end of cycle ( needing to be replaced) must say though it kept water very clear ( and may be the culprit) it is the string algae that now needs to be gotten rid of. Since there are no fish I was hoping for a suggestion for algaecide that would eradicate the problem.
PS We have removed the filtration system and one of two large pumps since the fish disappeared, and have not experienced this problem until this summer.... thinking it’s due to excessive heat here...

 

[JamieB]

Make a diy filter, use a container which will allow water to return to the pond, line with quilt batting, run your pump return to flow the water over that. When the batting is full of algae, rinse off in a separate container of pond water which you then dump away from the pond. Since you have no fish, and are fighting thread algae as well, get in there with a nice new toilet brush, scrub and twirl! If it’s still a problem, you could look up others threads on the same issue, but the only products we can all agree on is time, and plants, with a few strong advocates of peroxide use in smaller bodies of water or small areas.

 

[Jhn]

Hi,
Thank you for quick response. There are no longer fish in the pond... herons got them five years ago. Iongen is at end of cycle ( needing to be replaced) must say though it kept water very clear ( and may be the culprit) it is the string algae that now needs to be gotten rid of. Since there are no fish I was hoping for a suggestion for algaecide that would eradicate the problem.
PS We have removed the filtration system and one of two large pumps since the fish disappeared, and have not experienced this problem until this summer.... thinking it’s due to excessive heat here...

You still need your filtration system And proper circulation even without fish, so plant/woody detritus and debris can’t accumulate on the pond bottom And contribute to the nutrients. Like JamieB said you could add quilt batting in the pump out put and stir up the pond so this diy filter can remove it but if you don’t remove the ionizer from the pond this will be an on going battle. This is just a temporary fix though( the diy filter). In all likelihood there is minimal if any invertebrate life in the pond, a lot of the aquatic insects, tadpoles, microscopic organisms feed on the algae, the ionizer is eliminating this organisms from the pond.

Help to have a pic looking into the pond to see what the algae looks like....if the Pond is in balance the heat/sun, etc won’t do anything to get algae growing. There is no quick fix for algae issues, patience and getting the pond in balance will solve the algae problems and they won’t return.