Weird problem in my pond! Need advice asap! PLEASE!

[TrishB]

Have you ever tried adding baking soda to hold your PH at 8.2 ?
You would benefit by Using a KH test kit .
Add 1 lb per 1000 gal once a day until you get your KH up too around 12 drops

I have no idea what any of this is ..as far as the( KHtest kit and Drops ????? But i can order one!) I've never had problems with it before. Got fish when I built this pond and I guess I've been lucky- not really a koi guru..at all , but they haven't died in the 4 years I've had em..or even been sick . Baking soda yes , I had used some mainly for cleaning it and scrubbing when we prep ...but that all gets completely rinsed away and pond is filled and flushed 2Xs before we even add fish. My hubby completely freaks out when there is any algae at all, so he wants to kill kill kill....I hate string algae so I get rid of it ...usually with peroxide ...

 

[TrishB]

You said flues and they were sitting out unused and could they have soaked up things like chemicals you use on your lawn or weed killers to keep weeds down .Cleaning a pond of all the good muck is not good and what was high ph .Crushed oyster shells at a farm store well hold ph stable

Nope ..they flues weren't out with any weeks killers at all ...in fact I washed them all off before I built the shade castle in the pond, some were also older ones. So there were no chemicals.

 

[TrishB]

So, any ideas on maybe putting in an inline UV/ Ion filter ...? Heres what we are working with ...
Pond is almost 1,000 gal- we use Shinmaywa 1/2 HP 50CR2.4s pump with approx 10ft of head. Filter is a 300# Hayward sand pool filter...
we want to keep water flow the same ...will this be beneficial or just a waste of $$$..?

 

[Meyer Jordan]

So, any ideas on maybe putting in an inline UV/ Ion filter ...? Heres what we are working with ...
Pond is almost 1,000 gal- we use Shinmaywa 1/2 HP 50CR2.4s pump with approx 10ft of head. Filter is a 300# Hayward sand pool filter...
we want to keep water flow the same ...will this be beneficial or just a waste of $$$..?

UV and Ion devices only control floating algae. Ion devices rely on Copper which will slowly poison your fish.
Attached carpet algae, as I mentioned before, is the foundation of the biochemical balance in a pond. You do not want to remove it.....ever.

 

[TrishB]

UV and Ion devices only control floating algae. Ion devices rely on Copper which will slowly poison your fish.
Attached carpet algae, as I mentioned before, is the foundation of the biochemical balance in a pond. You do not want to remove it.....ever.

So what exactly is carpet algae??? I have a concrete pond ...not a natural one? I don't want edges all green and gross...

 

[TrishB]

ok ,,,so what about more plants ,..wouldnt they work>?

 

[TrishB]

If the flue liners are the only thing different, you could try taking them back out and start over with the water. Add them in later if the water is good after a month or 2.

But then again, if you completely drained and cleaned, your bio-balance is starting over and this could be the normal pond cycling as all the goodies get growing on the surfaces again.

Not sure what filtration system you have, but you say you've never had this problem before so I'm going to assume it's sufficient for the pond size and fish/plant "usual" load.

I think everything is sufficient as far as flow and filter ...in fact prob more than needed..

 

[Meyer Jordan]

So what exactly is carpet algae??? I have a concrete pond ...not a natural one? I don't want edges all green and gross...

'Carpet algae' is a colloquial term to describe the various species of algae that grow on any and all submerged surfaces as opposed to 'string algae' that typically grows in faster moving water. It provides Oxygen, food and filtration to a pond. Any attempts to permanently remove it is doomed to failure as it will quickly grow back. Retarding its growth in any way will directly affect the Dissolved Oxygen level in the pond as well as reduce those biofiltration benefits that it provides meaning possibly additional aeration and expansion of the present supplemental biofiltration.
The materials used to construct a pond do not really enter into the picture as this algae will grow on any submerged surface, although it does prefer some substrates to others.

 

[DutchMuch]

@Meyer Jordan couldn't have answered better

 

[TrishB]

'Carpet algae' is a colloquial term to describe the various species of algae that grow on any and all submerged surfaces as opposed to 'string algae' that typically grows in faster moving water. It provides Oxygen, food and filtration to a pond. Any attempts to permanently remove it is doomed to failure as it will quickly grow back. Retarding its growth in any way will directly affect the Dissolved Oxygen level in the pond as well as reduce those biofiltration benefits that it provides meaning possibly additional aeration and expansion of the present supplemental biofiltration.
The materials used to construct a pond do not really enter into the picture as this algae will grow on any submerged surface, although it does prefer some substrates to others.

So, since we have to empty and clean every spring (because we live in mt ) I have no choice but to remove it all in winter, plus its a gross mess after the snow and ice thaws YUCK! My dilemma is what to reseal with ..Seal-once or pond shield.>?? My hubby is an engineer (so of course he knows more than anyone) ...but I would like to know opinions on both.

 

[j.w]

Carpet algae can grow on all the underwater surfaces in the
pond and resembles a green carpet (1/2" thick) and is beneficial
to the fish and water quality. They produce oxygen and are
food for the fish when other food is not present.We want it to grow and it is mostly hidden for those of us w/black EPDM liners. By you scrubbing and cleaning your pond each year you are losing the balance in your pond. You are starting all over it could eventually be a detriment to your fish. You have been fortunate so far.

 

[TrishB]

Carpet algae can grow on all the underwater surfaces in the
pond and resembles a green carpet (1/2" thick) and is beneficial
to the fish and water quality. They produce oxygen and are
food for the fish when other food is not present.We want it to grow and it is mostly hidden for those of us w/black EPDM liners. By you scrubbing and cleaning your pond each year you are losing the balance in your pond. You are starting all over it could eventually be a detriment to your fish. You have been fortunate so far.

Well i have no choice here ...so it has to be done unless i build a building over top of the pond ...HA HA ..35 Below zero isn't much fun for them in winter...

 

[j.w]

I found this info on the net that a guy wrote and I don't know anything about freezing in concrete ponds but I was wondering if your pond might not crack if it fits his theory: http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/concrete-ponds-and-freezing-climates
You did say you leave 3/4 of the water in the pond right? And no problems w/cracks?

 

[j.w]

Oh and I'm not saying you should leave the fish out there but you could leave the water and bring the fish inside. That way the pond stays biologically fit over the winter and next year the fish go back into the same water and you start up the pump, filter and falls again. This all depends on if your pond is fit to leave full of water w/o cracking.

 

[TrishB]

I found this info on the net that a guy wrote and I don't know anything about freezing in concrete ponds but I was wondering if your pond might not crack if it fits his theory: http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/concrete-ponds-and-freezing-climates
You did say you leave 3/4 of the water in the pond right? And no problems w/cracks?

Yes ..ours is designed with an outward taper and we allow it to be mostly full ..we drain it to about 2/3 then the snow fills it up t about 3/4/. It freezes pretty thick here but we engineered it to take that ..and yes leaving the water in keeps if from cracking...But like everyone above says about cleaning out is completely out of the question ..I have 3 dogs running on top of the ice...along with the leaves and any other organics that may have decayed in there over winter....IT HAS TO BE CLEANED ! SO ...My struggle is why this year??? why the murky water..?? in 4 years it has never done this ,,,so for now pond is empty and we are going to reseal ( as suggested above) and see what happens ...just trying to find the right one ...