Rain warter

[Craig ish]

My ponds nearly half full of rain quarter would I have to empty it and fill it with tal Warter before I put my filter in the pond and run it

 

[WaterGardener]

No, but that water is likely to be acidic, low pH.

If you want to cycle the pond before adding fish, please look up fishless cycling.

 

[Craig ish]

So it be OK just to fill the rest up with tap Warter got a de colanater filter to take chlorine out of tap warter

 

[Craig ish]

No, but that water is likely to be acidic, low pH.

If you want to cycle the pond before adding fish, please look up fishless cycling.

Wat u mean mate

 

[WaterGardener]

Look up the nitrogen cycle in a pond and fishless cycling.

Having the pond establish the nitrogen cycle before adding fish will be less harmful to the fish than throwing them in and then having the pond cycle with them there.

If your pond is large enough and the fish load small enough, it might not be a problem. But your pond is not that big and it would be safer for the fish to get the nitrogen cycle established before you add fish.

Just running the filters has nothing to do with cycling the pond. Cycling refers to getting the nitrogen cycle going, not just circulating the water.

Also with the water as acidic as rain water, the chances are pretty small that any fish would survive in that.

Get some liquid tests for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH and KH and test your water. These tests will let you know what condition the water is in and when it is safe to add fish.

If you post the results here we can help you get any issues solved.

 

[Craig ish]

So should I empty it rather than fill the rest of pond up

 

[WaterGardener]

Not necessarily. You can raise the pH with baking soda, so it's an easy fix. Testing the pH would let you know how acidic the water is and how much to raise it.

 

[Mgessert]

I usually mix rain water and tap water in my pond with no ill effects.

 

[WaterGardener]

That would depend on how acidic the rain water is and what volume you mix it with your tap water.

If your rain water has a pH of 4, which is not unusual, and your tap water is 8, and you mix those half and half, the pond water will have a pH of only 6. That's still too acidic.

I always boost the buffer (using baking soda) in my pond before heavy rains. That makes sure the KH is adequate to prevent a pH crash into the acidic range. That can kill fish and the beneficial bacteria in the system.

I'm glad you have never had a problem and mixing the water works for you, but it can be risky.