ok so we have decided to just keep the size pond we have now and then add to it if we feel we want more next spring/summer (which I'm sure we will) But I've done some testing on my water from the spring and everything has turned out to be absolutely right where it should be. now here is my problem..the temperature unfortunately is only around 50-55 degrees? from what I've read this is too cold? Am I right about this? And if so is there anything that I can do to help this? I dont have electric run to my pond since its all natural but I have been doing some reading about solar powered heaters? any advice will be extremely helpful!! I am totally in the dark about everything ponds other than what I've been learning through the internet and on here. but I am super excited to get my project underway and done!!
Yet another question!
- Thread starter brittany31
- Start date
The temps will get warmer as the seasons get warmer. My pond is hovering around 58 in full sun.50-55 is the cut off for feeding fish. As long as your water parameters are checking out then you should be fine.
Thank you so much! What my pond is a natural spring that runs into it and out so I was concerned that the water would always stay that way and never get any warmer, but I'm hoping as soon as the ground gets completely warmed up then the water flowing into it will be warmer also. I plan on checking it about every two hours today to see how much the temp. is coming up throughout the day! Wish me luck!
oldmarine
Married 32 years
I would imagine that if your pond has a natural spring running through it, your water temps should probably stay the same with little or no variation within any given day. As the weather itself warms into summer, then you might see some gradual warmer water temps.
Happy ponding,
Happy ponding,
koiguy1969
GIGGETY-GIGGETY!!
i gotta agree with oldmarine... unless you can control the flow of the spring your ponds temp is gonna change real slow.. with any kind of real flow but if can adjust the flow you could really regulatye the ponds temp...speed up the flow in the heat of summer to maintain cooler water temps.. slow it down in spring,and fall to warm up water temps, back to fast again in winter to keep from icing over... all this assuming there is a constant fairly good flow naturally.
oldmarine
Married 32 years
I guess the other question would be, can you control the flow of the natural spring?
Happy ponding,
Happy ponding,
Thanks for the great idea about the water control I never thought of that..We have added some river rocks where the water comes in and that has slowed it down some by making small damns above it..so possibly this evening I will look into where I could add some more to slow it down and little. I have been checking it today regularly and around 8 this morning it was at 50degrees I just checked half and hour ago and it was at 54 so it has gone up as the day has gone on. If this would be all the higher my pond temperature would reach how would this effect fish? Would it still be ok to have them in there? We had over 2ft of snow at one point this winter and it never froze over so in the winter we should be safe.
oldmarine
Married 32 years
Hi Brittany31,
The minor temp change that you have noted in your natural spring will not effect the fish at all, they are quite adaptable. It's the extreme and quick temp changes that will stress your fish.
No matter how many rocks you put at the head of your pond the amount of water flowing in the stream will be the same. The only difference will be how it flows into the pond. In other words, the overall water flow may be obstructed, but it will still be the same amount of water. I like the idea of more rocks, round river rock always looks more natural. You will probably like the sound of the water flowing over and through the rocks.
Is your spring water flowing into your pond naturally clear?
Happy ponding,
The minor temp change that you have noted in your natural spring will not effect the fish at all, they are quite adaptable. It's the extreme and quick temp changes that will stress your fish.
No matter how many rocks you put at the head of your pond the amount of water flowing in the stream will be the same. The only difference will be how it flows into the pond. In other words, the overall water flow may be obstructed, but it will still be the same amount of water. I like the idea of more rocks, round river rock always looks more natural. You will probably like the sound of the water flowing over and through the rocks.
Is your spring water flowing into your pond naturally clear?
Happy ponding,
Don't divert your water yet. Nothing wrong with placing rocks or plants to add beauty and sound just keep that water flowing into your pond. You actually have a really good thing going on. You get natural water changes which will help keep your pond clean and you will be able to keep warmer temperatures during the winter as most natural springs run around 50 deg. Just monitor your spring flow and pond temperature throughout the year to watch what it does. Your season may start out a little slower but it will warm up. There are some variables based upon what the flow of your spring is and the size of your pond but I doubt it’s much. I have a natural spring or seep as well that runs year around at 150-200 gal per hour and when my pond was small at 3,000 gal or so it would still get up to 80 deg in the summer. Now I'm at around 40,000 gallons and the natural spring temp makes less of a difference.
Thanks for the advice! I got my rocks tonight and plan on adding them tomorrow. But I am going to hold off on trying to change the water.. The spring does flow in naturally clear and the pond is crystal clear water but does have some mud on the bottem that the spring picks up on its way. I'm not sure exactly how much water the spring is pushing threw per hour but it made me feel much better that your pond reached around 80 in the summer because it is much bigger than mine. I figure my pond is only around 500 gallons roughly. So tomorrow I plan on adding some of the rocks around the sides and front to cover the cement. Possibly getting some ornamental grass to place around the sides. I have water lillies coming any day now! I will try and get some pictures posted soon so and welcome advice! You all have been so helpful so far!
You can measure the flow of your spring by using a 1 gallon bucket and time how long it takes for it to fill. Example: If it takes 30 second to fill your spring its flowing at 2 gal/min or 120 gal/hr. Spring flow changes throughout the seasons so it’s good to measure for each season just so you have an idea what it’s doing. If temps don't increase as summer gets closer you may want to increase you pond volume or surface area or last resort divert some of the spring water. Nothing wrong with bigger if it’s possible. I'm betting your spring will slow a bit as it you hit summer which will allow the water temp to rise even more. How far above is your spring source from your pond? Good luck, sounds like a fun project.