Clear Fish Pond
I wrote on my blog if anyone has any information about how to make my outdoor fish pond clear as it is cloudy..and look, Shirley sends this to me. Such a caring and thorough email. Deep inside Shirley has a caring soft heart. Thank you Shirley so much.
I post this here hoping it will help others.
Tsem Rinpoche
I read your message in your Blog about your outdoor fish pond. I hope the problem has been resolved.
However, in case it isn’t, this is what I found out from the internet. I am not an expert in keeping fish ponds. So, I can’t say that I do understand what they are talking about. But I hope it does provide some help.
1. The bane of so many pondkeepers’ lives… that green murky (maybe smelly) garden pond. You can change the water and then it suddenly comes back within a short space of time. We’re talking of green murky (sometimes brown) water caused by suspended algae formation. The secret to eradicating suspended algae which is the cause of murkiness (brown or green) is to install both a biofilter and an UV (Ultra Violet) light called a clarifier, incorrectly sometimes as a sterilizer. By pumping water containing algae suspended in the water through a correctly sized UV light the tiny algae particles are forced to “clump” together and they can then be removed in the pond filter. Getting the right size of UV is the secret to success. Viresco is a natural alternative to remove algae in a fishpond.
Source: http://www.pond-doctor.co.uk/longmurkywater.html
2. If you have a pond that has murky water in it, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the water system’s health isn’t in good shape, so as a pond with clear water which doesn’t mean that the pond is in very pristine condition. Aside from the fact that it looks better, pond owners aim for a much clearer pond water so that they may be able to watch the fish as they swim in it.
There are instances wherein the bottom of the pond is still visible although blunt in focus because of the murkiness of the water. And there are cases which are more extreme, preventing the bottom of the pond to be seen. Technically speaking, koi, goldfish and other pond fish types prefer the water to be cloudy since it’s much easier for them to be elusive of predator attacks. Murky water also prevents too much sunlight from entering the pond water prohibiting algae to flourish rapidly. However it is still bothering to have a water system that looks as if the owner does not bother cleaning it.
If the problem of cloudy pond water is still bothering you despite the adequate turnover rates and solid removals, then there must be other causes why the water gets murky.
Newly built ponds are more likely to lose the balance in their eco systems. This is due to the fact that a pond takes time to become mature in its environment, and in the things that it survives with. Also the micro-organisms that are supposed to mature in time are still far smaller than they should be. Therefore a new and unbalanced pond is more likely to have clarity problems.
Oftentimes, a newly built pond is more likely to have overfed fish or uneaten food that contributes to the murkiness of the water. Since the pond is new, that means the bio filter is still adjusting thus making the excess uneaten food and fish wastes stay in the pond.
Ammonia or nitrite presence also results in cloudy pond water. Just to make sure that your pond in not suffering from too much nitrite and ammonia contamination, testing it would be great.
If in case your pond is already in existence for a long time now, then maybe algae are the ones that cause the pond water to be murky. Too much suspended algae are to be blamed for green water which falls to the category of murky water. In this case, the most effective way to avoid pea soup pond water is to install Ultra Violet Clarifiers or Ultra violet sanitizers. These pond equipments are responsible for exposing suspended algae to an excessive amount of ultraviolet light.
The food that you give to the fish in the pond may also cause pond water discoloration. If this thus occurs, ask your koi and other fish dealers regarding the food that you can give the fish which won’t affect the color of the water.
The problem of murky pond water is actually just minor. It is still important to ensure that the pond is healthy enough to house a number of living creatures.
There are various green water control for ponds. Visit http://www.hydra-aqua.us for more pond keeping related articles and view inventory of pond water treatments.
Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?Murky-Pond-Water:-Causes-and-Solutions&id=5295660
3. First of all, it is important to note that murky pond water is not necessarily an indicator of poor water quality in a pond.
Crystal clear pond water does not always represent perfect water quality, either. Most pond owners would like thier ponds to be crystal clear for thier own benefit. This is not a bad thing .. just a natural human response to wanting to view our fish or Koi more clearly!
If you were to ask your koi what water conditions (if they could communicate with you) they prefer, they would choose murky, cloudy water every time – as found in the mud ponds of Niigata.
In any case, before you jump to any conclusions, do a thorough water test on your pond. A complete test (like Laguna’s Master Pond Testing Kit) would include:
- pH
- hardness
- ammonia and
- nitrite/nitrate
If everything checks out with the above numbers, algae could be the cause of your murky water or cloudiness. Excessive algae growth suspended in the pond water can make the water resemble pea soup. Try Tetra’s Algae Control if you are having algae problems.
Remember – a pond filter will NOT remove suspended algae without help from an UVC (Ultra Violet Clarifier). Most filters these days come equipped with an UVC included in the basic design. This is the best type of pond filter to buy.
If your water chemistry is satisfactory, and the algae is not the cause then the solution to improving your water clarity is to enhance your filtration. Many of our customers have found PondCare Simply Clear extremely effective in clearing thier pond water and is worth a try before purchasing larger or more expensive filtration.
Source: http://www.zimbio.com/Pond+Care/articles/4/Help+My+pond+already+m
Happy Ponding!
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I do have a small fish pond at the corner of my front house. One of the biggest frustrations of having a fish pond is not knowing what to do when the water becomes mucky, green and gross. I am glad I found this article and learn some useful information of how to take care .Looks like I will need to install Ultra Violet Clarifiers or Ultra violet sanitizers to clear the water. I still have a lot to learn to maintain the fish pond.
Thank you Rinpoche and Shirley for sharing this useful tips.
Thank you for the informative sharing about managing outdoor fish ponds. There is much knowledge in the upkeeping and maintenance of it. From this article, I came to realise that murky water does not necessary mean poor water quality. The utmost priority is to ensure the water condition is suitable for the type of fish(es) living in it.
Thank You for sharing Shirley, it’s very thoughtful of you! We must take the responsibility to clean up the fish ponds if we have them at home. So it is very important that we contemplate before we get any pets. They are all lives, once we take them in we must take care of them and love them..
Thank You for sharing Rinpoche.
Love, beatrix.
With the various fish ponds coming up in Kechara Forest Retreat, this information is quite relevant and vital now.
I cannot wait till we move all the fishes from Haven to their new home in KFR. They will have so much more space and a natural environment to be in…!
I used to think that having a fish pond/tank/aquarium is an easy job. How ignorant I was! To make sure that the fishes are swimming in a clean and safe pond we have to take so many factors into consideration!
We should always do our research on the types of pets that we are planning to adopt, not only fishes. To provide the best environment for the pet to grow is very important to ensure that the pet will grow healthily. Pets are living creatures and they deserve the best they can get..
Thank you Shirley for being so thoughtful and so thorough with the research. =)
Thank you for sharing, Rinpoche!
Dear Riponche,
I’ve always been an avid fish enthuast. Shirly did a great job in doing the research.
But based on my experience in keeping my pond water quality clean / crystal clear without any sediments… the following steps would be solve the problem in the long term. (I’m not an expert ah.. just a fish pond hobbist”
1. Have a mechanical / bio filter that is at least 33% of the pond’s cubic capacity. Most problem with green or cloudy water occurs when the filter capacity is not sufficient to handle the load of the waste produce by the fishes. So if you got this wrong, this will be a recurring problem.
2. Over feeding of the fishes. I know you love to feed your koi, ryukins and lampangs. I’m guilty too… But koi and goldfish would eat and eat till they literally puke out the excess food. So, feed them sparingly, make sure they finish all the food before giving more. Normally I feed my wakin’s and ryukins once a day. The best supplementary diet on top of fish food for gold fish is green carpet algea that grows naturally on the pond walls. “note : these are not the greenish brown hair algae but the carpet grass looking ones”
3. There is this product call BIOZIME enhancer, what this product does is to buffer up the natural bacteria that breaks down nitrits and ammonia which is the main food source of unwanted algea that causes the water to turn green or murky. I normally add in this enhancer after a 30% water change I do religiously every 6 months. “YES, my water quality remains very clear without monthly water change… :)” If you don’t mind… I’ve got a crate of that stuff in my store room… I can give you a bottle of two to try out.
4. Another trick is adding heaps of plants like lotus, water lily, cat tail reeds ect to help absorb all excess nitrates… but most serious koi hobbist use the plain old pandan plant which can survive half submerge in the water. They normally just plunk a couple of pandan plants in the filter chamber… and you know the plant is doing the job when the plant really blossom…into a hugh bush..
Hope my input helps, again I’m quoting from my limited experience in fish pond keeping.
Have a great dat and get well soon rinpoche.
For some reason it caused me to contemplate on the mind and if it is clear or cloudy
Rinpoche,
Your outdoor pond water problem could be simply due to the filter materials being dirty and needing a wash or change. This is especially true if the filtration is not frequently cleaned.
Although the UV light is on, the life-span of the UV bulb could be up, or the UV bulb is not working alltogether. The bulb can be easily changed. In general, a UV light bulb has a working life-span of around 9 to 15 months, depending on the make.
I recommend the following things to do:
1. Clean,or change if need be,the filter materials (be careful not to destroy the bacteria in the filtration coz these are the
good guys that maintain the water pH and keeps the water quality).
2. Check the UV light if it’s in order.
3. Do a partial water change (around 25% should be fine).
Hope this helps.
Regards
Wow! What a thorough research done by Shirley! Definitely something we all should emulate!
Thank you Shirley for the inspiration!