I joined here last fall and haven't posted much since the pond was going into winter mode when we moved into our new house...which included the pond. The pond is waking up, frogs all over, fish are active...lost 3 :/ I have a biofalls setup and keep seeing that people say only to clean the things a couple times a year. I have been pulling the media bags and filter pads out nearly every couple days to hose them down...the pads not the biobags. Is this wrong? There are two pads one is more dense than the other and collects a lot of waste. My indicator that the pads are full is that water starts pushing everything up in the falls basin to the point I can see the bags sticking up out of the water. I know that the bags are there to contain good bacteria so I have NOT been spraying them down but they also collect a good amount of floating algae. The pads take a good amount of hosing down to clean up and the dense pad is nearly solid with waste after a couple days.
This last time I actually left the denser pad out and just have the more porous pad in there with the bags. Lilly pads have surfaced and appear to be doing well and growing. I introduced some water cress from the produce section and it is starting to take off. I have watercress on each side of the falls near moving water, as well as two other places in the pond, and then I have a couple plastic mesh baskets with cress in them sitting in the biofalls....all producing roots. The cress in the bio falls seems to growing slower but has a good root mass going. I have room for about 4 of the baskets I am using but currently only using 2...thinking of splitting and using 4.
I guess I assumed that I should keep cleaning the filter pads as needed because when full water flow is inhibited. Here I will admit a poor choice and mistake I made: I can't fully tell how green/murky the water is because earlier this spring I found a jug of aqua-shade the previous owner had...and I applied to much. The water color went way to dark blue but is going away with the tons of spring rain we have been getting. -I won't do that again...ever. I used a make shift quilt batting filter in the skimmer but it fills up over night so I took it out and only use it while I am home to clean it often...doesn't seem to be the most efficient way to get the fine stuff out.
The previous owner was an older couple and he told me he didn't even use the filter pads in the falls as it became to much for him to lift out and clean. I can relate but willing and able to do this and I know this is the mechanical part of the filtration that is necessary (or so I think?). I think I am a little impatient about getting the water cleared up...maybe rightfully so...maybe not since it is still early and the plants are not in full swing yet.
I also have this idea...maybe a dumb one but I keep thinking about how I could add on a veggie filter. The pump is submerged and the piping buried so I am not sure how I would get water to a veggie filter bin. Unless I "tapped" into the water from the biofalls, I don't really want to add another pump so this idea may just not be a good one right now but I thought I would get thoughts or if others may have done something similar.
Wow this is way longer than I expected. If you read and/or respond your time is appreciated.
This last time I actually left the denser pad out and just have the more porous pad in there with the bags. Lilly pads have surfaced and appear to be doing well and growing. I introduced some water cress from the produce section and it is starting to take off. I have watercress on each side of the falls near moving water, as well as two other places in the pond, and then I have a couple plastic mesh baskets with cress in them sitting in the biofalls....all producing roots. The cress in the bio falls seems to growing slower but has a good root mass going. I have room for about 4 of the baskets I am using but currently only using 2...thinking of splitting and using 4.
I guess I assumed that I should keep cleaning the filter pads as needed because when full water flow is inhibited. Here I will admit a poor choice and mistake I made: I can't fully tell how green/murky the water is because earlier this spring I found a jug of aqua-shade the previous owner had...and I applied to much. The water color went way to dark blue but is going away with the tons of spring rain we have been getting. -I won't do that again...ever. I used a make shift quilt batting filter in the skimmer but it fills up over night so I took it out and only use it while I am home to clean it often...doesn't seem to be the most efficient way to get the fine stuff out.
The previous owner was an older couple and he told me he didn't even use the filter pads in the falls as it became to much for him to lift out and clean. I can relate but willing and able to do this and I know this is the mechanical part of the filtration that is necessary (or so I think?). I think I am a little impatient about getting the water cleared up...maybe rightfully so...maybe not since it is still early and the plants are not in full swing yet.
I also have this idea...maybe a dumb one but I keep thinking about how I could add on a veggie filter. The pump is submerged and the piping buried so I am not sure how I would get water to a veggie filter bin. Unless I "tapped" into the water from the biofalls, I don't really want to add another pump so this idea may just not be a good one right now but I thought I would get thoughts or if others may have done something similar.
Wow this is way longer than I expected. If you read and/or respond your time is appreciated.