Water quality

[Ronfire]

Finally got a good test kit instead of the strip. Turned out the water was mostly good.
I dont understand the ph being 8.0 when the water from the tap is 6.5-7. The pond leaks so there is a constant water change maybe 10% every day with the well water. Pond rebuild in the planning. I wonder if it could be the pea gravel in the bog filter, but in this area we have mostly hard rock granite. Had a hard time holding the viles so I built a wood holder for the next time.
I am planning on keeping a folder with the pics as a water test log, they will all have a date stamp.
.

 

[MitchM]

CO2 can build up in drinking water supply lines.
Water tested after it's taken out of the tap can have a higher PH because CO2 will be gassed off with circulation/aeration.
A KH and GH test will be your best indicator for how stable your final PH will be.

 

[Ronfire]

The water tested from the tap was right at the pressure tank and I let the line flush first so I think it should be accurate. I know we have hard water and have a water softener for the house but it does not supply the pond or sprinklers. Will have to look for another test kit for KH and GH.
At least the fish seem to be doing well, they survived the winter.

 

[bagsmom]

From what I've heard from everyone on here, the exact pH isn't as important as the stability of that pH is. A little acidic or a little alkaline is no problem, as long as it doesn't swing back and forth. Is that correct?

 

[Ronfire]

I just read that Koi like the PH 7.5-8.0 .So the water sample above looks good?

 

[addy1]

My pond finally stabilizes around 7.8 or so. With our real soft water I had to buff up the hardness to get the ph to stabilize.

 

[Lisak1]

@bagsmom makes the point I was going to make - pH that's stable is more important than trying to hit a "perfect" number. Chasing pH can become your full-time job. There are danger zones, but for the most part your fish will adapt to your pond. Our pond pH slowly dropped over the course of the first two years - at first we were over 9... higher than my strips would measure. Now we stay right around 7.8 with no changes on our part at all.

 

[Ronfire]

I think I will not mess with it at this time. I am planning on a major rebuild this summer. It will have 2 ponds and a bog. The fish and water can be transferred to the first pond while I rebuild their pond larger and deeper.Also think I will transfer the pea gravel from the current small bog into the bog to help with the biology and microbes

 

[sissy]

my well water tests different after heavy rains .Crushed oyster shells stabilize ph in my pond .My pond always stays around 9 and my well water is sometimes 6 and after rain it can go up to 8 and that usually takes a couple of days .At my other house it changes all the time because well is shallow at only 100 feet deep .This house the well is over 400 feet deep .The other house is near Bedford Lake and Frying Pan creek runs through the middle of the property .Here there is a lot of shale and red clay and other house is a lot of sand mixed with a grey clay .There can be a lot of factors in well water that change the ph ,just like a pond can change