Algae problem in Dallas

[kcrepps]

My girl friend and I are new to the forum and very new to pond activities. We purchased a home in Dallas in Novemer with a very nice pond (about 1,100 gallons). The sellers did not have any fish in the pond but the pumps were working and the water was pretty clear. However, there were leaves and other "goop" at the bottom. We have purchased four small koi, one Hi Fin shark (about 4") and a bull frog tadpole. With spring, the water is no longer clear and I believe it has some sort of "algae bloom" problem. I clean the filters at least twice/weekly. The filters are typically coated with a very black sticky substance. I have been told that this is algae. I have also been told that the goop in the bottom of the pond is the source for the algae; nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Do I need to drain the pond and clean up all the goop? How would I go about this? How do you get the water out? What do you do with the fish? What cleaning supplies would one use to clean up the goop (don't want to hurt the fish)? I have attached two pictures of our pond . Thanks for any help.

 

[sissy]

welcome and no do not drain you will make things worse .Get a pool net and net all the gunk up you can .But do it very slowly or you could kill your fish ,better yet if the fish are small take them out and then net the bottom and put quilt batting in your waterfall in a basket to catch all the fine stuff that gets stirred up .Your plants may need repotted in the pond also since you have no idea if they have been redone.Do you have well water and you will need a liquid test kit

 

[sissy]

sorry nice pond .You can check the clarity of the water with a glass and see what color you see the water is .green algae and shades of brown could be built up gunk from leaves in the bottom rotting and you don't want that to harm your fish .Brown water is the worst and can kill fish .

 

[hdavid44]

I had the same problem ever since I built my ponds in CT several years ago. Until this season the problem plagued me and I tried several things including a glass bead filter, UV lights, microbe lift, etc.

Finally I posted a topic in this forum under "STill Struggling to keep water clear" and I had several helpful responses for those on this fora.

The advice I found most helpful was that I needed some sort of biological filter and several suggested a vortex filter that can be home made.

Since I had already built a bog alongside the ponds that were really doing me no good, I decided to install in the bog a bunch of sponges, lava rock in a lace bag in order to create surfaces for bacteria to live. This bacteria is what breaks down the algae and leaves behind a residue that settles to the bottom leaving the water clear.

So you can either build a bog alongside or outside the ponds and use a small pump to pump water into it from the ponds where the fish are and let this bog overflow back into the pond. Put sponges and lava rock etc in this bog. For sponges I used the spongy filter at the bottom of my waterfalls -- you can buy these at a pond supply place -- and I used the lava rock that were in a bag in my waterfalls.

My ponds cleared up within a week and the solid matter from the algae etc settled in the bog. If you do not use a bog but put the lava rock etc directly in the pond you will find this solid matter settle to the bottom of the pond which you can clean out occasionally.

I did put some microbe lift initially but find it is not necessary anymore.

There are other posters with far more experience and addy1 and bays etc were of great help.

Harry

 

[kcrepps]

Sissy and hdavid44: Thank you very much for your help. I will not drain the poind. Sissy, what exactly is quilt batting? And I put it in a basket in the waterfall? This sounds very useful but I can't imagine what it would look like. You wouldn't happen to have a picture of a link would you? Also, I don't have well water.

 

[lovinglife]

Go to your nearest craft or sewing store, or Kings, you will find it in big bags, quilt makers use it for the inside of their quilts. It is cheap and easy to use.

 

[kcrepps]

Thank you.

 

[sissy]

Yep and you need a basket that has to allow you waterfall water to spill into it for awhile .It will pick up all the fine stuff and then you can take it out .Best time is when you are slowly getting some of the muck from the bottom .I have seen people on here that loose all there fish due to toxic water .I put my quilt batting in the top of my home made filters to collect all the fine stuff

 

[Waterbug]

I clean the filters at least twice/weekly. The filters are typically coated with a very black sticky substance.

That is how mechanical filters work. If you're not having to clean them a few times a week they're not working. To me it's not a very efficient way to clean a pond. One vacuuming will remove as much muck as cleaning that filter a 100 times.

I have also been told that the goop in the bottom of the pond is the source for the algae; nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.

This is true If you go by popular vote. Most people do think there is a connection. Most people also think algae blooms come from nutrients and/or sunlight. If you go by science there is no basis for these beliefs. Nutrient levels in clear ponds are just as high or higher than green ponds. When a pond goes green the algae consume nutrients to reproduce, so nutrient levels drop. When the pond goes clear all that algae dies and release all those same nutrients back into the water in addition to a lot more due to all that photosynthesis which created more organic matter. So the opposite of popular belief is actually true which is common. Very easy to test.

Do I need to drain the pond and clean up all the goop? How would I go about this? How do you get the water out? What do you do with the fish? What cleaning supplies would one use to clean up the goop (don't want to hurt the fish)?

You don't have to clean a pond. Depends of the kind of pond you want. Wildlife ponds like the muck on the bottom as it's an important part of the food chain. But sounds like you'd like to keep a clean pond, which is perfectly fine. I suggest vacuuming.

I don't like emptying a pond to clean, but it is commonly done. Fish are moved to a separate tank. Water is pumped out with a 1/3 HP or better water pump form the hardware store. Shop vacs are used to vacuum up the muck. It's a huge pain. Your can hire it out. The largest pond builder uses this method and most every local pond company is aligned with that company.

 

[addy1]

welcome to our group!

As you can see lots of different opinions out there, read up on ways to take care of your pond and pick what will work for you. I have a goldfish, wildlife water garden, I don't let the muck get out of control, but I also do not keep it as clean as some koi ponds are kept. Sort of a happy medium, stuff for the tads, snails, critters to live on, but not enough muck to stink and grow healthy tree like string algae.

 

[kcrepps]

Sissy-the quilt batting is working! We lined a colander with it and hung it under the hose that comes back into the pond from the filter and that thing was black this morning, but we can see the fish again! Cleaned it and put a new one out this morning.

Waterbug-sounds like a vacuum is the way to go. We'll have to invest in one I guess.


Thanks everyone for all of your great advice!

 

[sissy]

I hose the thick stuff off before I soak it .I keep a barrel close by with peroxide and water in it to clean the quilt batting and put it back in the waterfall to pick up more and the peroxide helps kill algae also .I use peroxide to clean everything that goes in my pond .After you can get crushed oyster shells to buffer your water and they sell them at tractor supply they make chicken eggs stronger .I buy the fine laundry bags at the dollar store to put them in or you can use nylons also .The dollar store bag I buy is green .I put that an activated charcoal in my filter in the bags .I also have found that zeolite works great .I buy pdz horse stall refresher as it is zeolite and when it gets dirty I just soak it in solar salt in water and it refreshes it .I buy the blue bag .I do the same with the activated charcoal at least once a month ,I just keep dunking it up and down to get the dirt out .Zeolite needs to soak at least a day ,but since the bag is so big I just pour it in a bucket to soak and refill nthe bag with new stuff .Used up stuff I put in my garden and the flowers seem to like it .

 

[j.w]

Mark and Karen
Lots of idea's here. I just use a net to get the big stuff off the bottom and then use the batting for cleaning out the finer stuff. I do partial water changes now and then. Use clay kitty litter for plants and stick some barley straw in for keeping algae away and also some crushed oyster shells to keep the ph where I want it. The kitty litter also IMO helps keep the algae at bay.Very pretty pond you have there by the way and love all the types of plants growing around it!

 

[Becky]

Welcome to the forums! :wave:

 

[kcrepps]

We worked very hard on the pond this week end (we bought a Muk Vac) and the pond is slowly clearing.