90 gal starter in south California

[Rafinsp]

It all started when i saw in the flea market 2 koi's about 5 inches jammed with other 15 goldfishes in a 10 gal tank, i felt sorry for those guys so i have a 40 gal tank with 2 crayfishes so nobody would mind. after research and some money that i had in the bank i wanted to give a decent life for the koi so i have a 400gph becket pump, filter made with bio balls, 1 layer of carbon filter pad, then the regular white pad, and on the very top carbon with media chips i think they are anti amonia. i placed a couple of Pvc pipes 3" by 5 in lenght. i added frogsbit and the rest is decoration.
I'm new to these culture, is getting colder here in San Diego the water is about 50 at night should i leave the fish to eat the algae that is growing in the bottom or just to feed them very little, i'm very attached to them and i just feel bad if i don't trow a couple of pellets, i'm feeding them the hikari cold/winter diet. i'm really need your help in this issue that i'm having thank you for leting me be part of your for

 

[koidaddy]

You really shouldn't feed if water is below 55ish. Those guys will outgrow thier home in a couple years so start planning your next build.

 

[ididntdoit99]

It's a nice little pond, but like koidaddy said, not nearly big enough for adult koi.

 

[sissy]

Welcome and you really did a nice job on the pond and the fish look healthy .Lve how you did the area around your pond and you must be doing something right as the fish look happy and the water really looks clear and clean.Fish have a way of making you feel guilty ,but remember it is for there health and keep reminding your self of that and you know that you are doing the right thing by them .Good luck and great pond ,thumbs up

 

[j.w]

Rafinsp

Very nice looking pond and pretty fish. You do have it nice and clean looking for such big fish. How warm is the water in the daytime? Most of us stop feeding our fish when the pond water stays lower than 55*F or so. Then we start feeding again when the temps of the water stay above 55*F. Do you have an area where you could make a bigger pond when they get even larger? Glad you joined and happy pondering

 

[Rafinsp]

Thanks for your comments, i will stop feeding them during these weeks I'm thinking to upgrade for a 300 gal preformed in the same area, or to go with the liner and to get it as big as i can fit it in the whole section just leaving a couple of inches away from the blocks it is the best option for me, but i think is way more difficult for the set up. the filter seemed to work good I'm more afraid of setting up the liner and placing dirt or equivalent to make it look more natural.and not disturbing them for the next couple of years any advices?

 

[sissy]

liner ponds are easier as my first pond was preformed and leveling it and keeping it level was a nightmare keeping it level .With a liner pond you just dig the hole and put the liner in ,much easier .Every couple of months I had to relevel the preformed and I packed the dirt under it really hard .But freeze and thaw would make the pond sink or raise up and even heavy rains would cause problems

 

[ididntdoit99]

if you plan to keep the koi to adulthood, you might as well go at least 1000 gallons now, instead of having to step up bigger and bigger every few months.

with that awesome little sqaure you have there... it probably wouldnt be too difficult to make that enire thing your pond... dig it all out lay a liner in there all the way up over the edges... and then build a nice little wooden cap to put over the top to cover the liner... just and idea to go as big as you can!

 

[sissy]

Thats a great ididntoit 99 idea but still a shame that has to be ruined as it is really a pretty set up you have there .

 

[koiguy1969]

i would just get rid of the little gate..finish the wall(s) into the corner.. move the plants,rocks etc. inside the walled area out, and dig out a nice area in the center.. line the whole thing with 45mil epdm liner and have a nice good size pond.

 

[j.w]

Hey Raf where did you get that neat looking floating giant lily pad? Would make a nice place for my goldfish to hide out under too!

 

[sissy]

I have one similar and it had a pump and filter under it so it pumped water up through the flower I wonder if it's the same .

 

[sissy]

you can barely see it

 

[Rafinsp]

j.w the lily, i got it from Home Depot for 20 bucks it's solar and it gives a nice Moonlight/color to the pond at night. They don't have it on the web page but i found this link http://www.ruralking.com/solar-floating-lilly-pond-light.html

sissy and ididntdoit99. how deep should i go? i have about 7'x8' of digging area because the square is 11x10 to leave space for decoration and lights I think or you know like a good blueprint with ideas or different levels for plants, like i said have no experience in the liner set up or underwater plants.

koiguy1969. i live in San diego we don't have extreme weather, the 45mil is thickness for weather or thickness for puncture resistant? i heard that the liners shrinks and stretch because of weather.

The Lavarock/vegetation i would like to keep or upgrade it, i have not seen another pond like mine with this style. I might start this project in a couple of days, i will be on this forum for quite a while, I hope i don't ask you tooooooo many questions. reallly appreciate your effort to help me out.

 

[Mucky_Waters]

Koiguy said what I was thinking.
45 mil epdm is standard stuff for pondliner material, tough and fairly UV resistant. I've never noticed much shrinking or stretching.
You have a nice area there, perfect for a pond, you just need a bigger pond for koi, or for fish in general that you don't want to lose. Small shallow ponds like that can heat up fast in the sun, and I've heard it gets warm in San diego. When the water gets warm (hot) it doesn't hold much oxygen, and big fish in a hot little pond with not much oxygen is a recipe for disaster. Solution? You could easily fit a 3 ft deep 1000 gal pond in that area. As has already been stated, a liner is much easier to use, and if you build the edging properly you won't even see it, and you'll have a much more natural looking body of water. Deeper ponds with larger volumes of water act as a buffer to moderate the temps in the water so you don't get such wide temperature swings, and that's safer for the fish.