stock tank water garden advice

[Thomas]

Hi!

So, I'm a newbie, here, and I'm really eager for feedback on my set-up so far. I have a 300 gallon galvanized stock tank, and I've planted it with three water lilies (which are just now having their first leaves hit the surface of the water), four or five marginal bog plants, which also haven't really filled it (they were just planted last week), and two filter/pumps. Basically, they're box filter pond pumps with fountain head attachments--one is 190 gph, and the other is 500 gph. My water is clear, and I test with some pond strips every week or so, and I've got good levels, across the board. I've also got a barley straw bale in there, just for good measure. I recently added some floating plants--three water lettuce, three water hyacinth, and about 1/4 cup of duckweed. I started off with a lot of anacharis, but my first few fish devoured it.

I've got seven fish, so far, and I'm nervous that I'm close to capacity, but I'm hoping that I'm keeping a high enough water quality and flow that I'm not harming them. Right now I've got:

4 comets (1 red, 1 apricot, 1 sarasa, and 1 blackout, not that the colors matter, but I'm proud of them)--each about 5"

2 shubunkin -- one is fat as hell and about 6", and the other's more slender and more like 5"

1 waikin -- 4"

They all seem happy, and they're swimming around like they own the place. The blackout and apricot comets have been chasing the sarasa and red comets, which I think gives me a good clue to the gender. The shubunkins have been more shy. The waikin seems to be a bit of a loner, but it's the smallest fish of the group--everyone seems to be ignoring it, and every once in a blue moon, he'll hang out with the shubunkin, who are often together.

So, I'm happy to take constructive criticism. If anyone has suggestions for what I could be/should be doing, I'm all ears. The picture I've attached was before I added some of the floating plants.

 

[addy1]

Welcome to our group!

Your pond looks neat, as your plants grow they will help.
Where are you located, if in cold land, you may need to worry about freezing.

 

[Thomas]

I'm in Brooklyn, NY. Zone 7b. I'm planning to get a heating element to keep it from freezing over, but if anyone has a strong view on whether to over-winter the fish indoors, I'm open to advice.

 

[addy1]

We are 6b, my wood deck pond, around 18 inches deep freezes solid. (No fish) My small liner ponds in the ground, no fish, also freeze to the bottom, they are around 2.5 feet deep. The solid freezing does depend on the type of winter we have to. This year they did not do that.
That would be my concern with the metal walls. Maybe during winter you could insulate it a bit.

 

[bettasngoldfish]

Hi Thomas, Welcome to the group!

I think you are probably right about being at your limit as far as stocking levels go. This way the current fish still have room to grow (which they will) Keep checking your water parameters as your are and do regular water changes and you will be fine

I love the look of the galvanized stock tank. How long have you had this set up? Should be interesting to see how it looks as the plants fill in.

As far as cold weather and stock tanks goes. I'm in North East Ohio and have a small rubbermaid stock tank (70 gallons) I have kept fish in it over the winter with out it freezing at all but I use a stock tank heater and airstones (made for livestock to keep their drinking water open over the cold winter month) I have the tank up against the back of my house and put straw bales around the open sides and then cover the top of the tank with plywood (only during the coldest weather as I don't like the fish to be in the dark all the time) Not the prettiest but it works for me

Good luck with your pond and keep us posted

 

[sissy]

You could put a hoop house over it with plastic and put the 2 inch foam around the out side .I have one for shade .Just put rebar in the ground and put flexable pipe over it .If you get sun there in the winter it may keep it warm enough

 

[JBailey]

Nice!

I am just getting going with the smaller version of this and already planning some tweaks this weekend. I just have 5 feeder goldfish that managed to winter over in a 40 gallon tub pond set in the ground. They love having more space and plants.
Here's a link to some build pics https://seventreesfarm.wordpress.com/2016/04/11/getting-our-feet-wet-and-hands-muddy/

I'm going to pull out the bog tub and put a plastic grate over the outflow manifold to improve flow and lighten it up, plus put the mini cattails into a basket so they don't get too nuts. I'm also going to raise it up a couple of inches, since the weight really sagged it down onto the concrete block supports and makes the spillway too close to the water surface.

I def need more plants though. Only one Nymphoides, an ugly creeping Jenny, a green goddess calla in a pot on a stand set in the water over the pump, plus the cattails and watercress in the bog tub. The fish ate the fairy moss and baby water hyacinth, so more floaters from the pond store this weekend.

I have a pond/trough de-icer that only pulls 250w that keeps everything warm enough through our deep freezes. Last winter I upended large clear storage totes over the plants so the 'heated' water could make the air under the totes warmer, and everything survived.

 

[bettasngoldfish]

JBailey, love the bog you added to the trough.

I'm really gonna have to give this a try someday.

 

[Thomas]

Agreed. JBailey, that's such a gorgeous pond. I love the inset bog filter.

I'm so new to this--I just ordered that stock tank about a month ago, but I'm eager and impatient, so I feel like I was just looking for something that was a bit more "plug and play." So, for now, I've put in relatively inexpensive box filters with fountain attachment kits. I've planted the bog plants in aquatic planting mix, because I couldn't easily find unadulterated heavy clay soil without peat or vermiculite or whatever else added to it. And I'm really focused on the fish, now--worried that I added them too early, frantically checking the water quality (even though they seem more than content), wanting to make sure I don't have too many.

I'm an anxious person, generally, I'd say.

Anyway, I continue to be grateful for the feedback. Very much appreciated.

 

[Thomas]

Just a quick update. I've been rearranging plants, added a few floating plants and more anacharis (because the fish ate all of the first batch), and threw in some duckweed for them to snack on. I've also built a submerged filter in a brining bucket, which I've used to replace the smaller box filter, so I've got really good filtration, right now. My water's crystal clear, and I've been testing and all of my levels are really good. And I feel like I need a few more bog plants, so I might go out this weekend to look for those.

Here are my questions, though. I know that there are loads of divergent opinions about how much (and what) to stock, but the answers seem to be very fact-specific.

First, in a 300 gallon above-ground stock tank pond, where I've got seven very happy and active goldfish (boys chasing the girls but not too aggressively, no one hiding or laying at the bottom) of between 5"-6" in length (4 comets, 2 shubunkin and 1 waikin), where my water is clear and clean (testing weekly), am I at my limit with those seven fish?

Secondly, I've seen lots of opinions that I should stick to longer, slender goldfish, rather than ryukin and oranda. But then I've seen other commenters who say that they do fine together. So, if the answer to my first question is that it's okay to add a couple more fish, and I added fancier varieties, am I creating problems for myself?

Thanks in advance for the helpful advice.

 

[sissy]

Remember fish will have babies .I love my little fat fantails .

 

[cas]

If it were me, I would stick to the seven fish in 300 gallons. As Sissy says, give it time and you will have more fish.
Of my 11 fish, 5 are babies from previous spawning.