Been a long time since I've posted on here. Haven't really had any problems till now. My question is, can a bog fill completely up to where the sludge comes to the top of the gravel?
Bog Filled Up?
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My immediate answer is "no" but a few more details would be helpful. How is your bog constructed? How deep is it? Where do you draw water from? What makes you wonder if this is happening?
Ideally there shouldn't BE any sludge in a bog, so your question raises more questions!
Ideally there shouldn't BE any sludge in a bog, so your question raises more questions!
The bog is 18 inches deep. The pic of the brown is what has been on top since we started it back up in the spring. I always shut it off in the winter and just run the bio filter.
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I had to gravel in all my edges because water was more stagnate there and eventually added enough gravel that about 40% is below water. Do you use well water? I ask because I’ve also had to spay the bog to force the detritus back though the system. Currently with not as much gravel below water and the way I have it channeled nothing builds up in the bog, it’s just at the bottom of the pond.
editing to add a post by @MitchM and @Meyer Jordan discussing Mulm.
www.gardenpondforum.com
editing to add a post by @MitchM and @Meyer Jordan discussing Mulm.
Do I need bottom drains?
but I still think ammonia levels would go through the roof if you had visibly accumulation levels on the bottom of the pond. Not really. The Ammonia that is released by organic decay is gradual and is usually assimilated by the existing algae or oxidized by the Nitrifying bacteria present...
I use city water. That pic is actually in front of the spillway going back into the pond. The spring was late getting here. It was no sun and raining. Now, we are in the 90's. UGH I have a string algae problem, I threw a tarp over the arbor that is above the pond. Trying to slow it down. It keeps clogging my pumps. My poor pond is just a mess this year.
Nice elephant ears... they look happy up there. How big is the pond, what is the fish load, and do you feed them?
I know you all with the bogs are happy with them (I don't have the real estate for one) ... but I still don't get the long term physics of them. The bog filtration system is a closed loop system, but your are constantly having matter added in via fish food, debris blown in, and dead plants/roots. Do you all have pre-filters on your pumps to remove the bulk of matter before it hits the bog? They aren't acting as your only filtration method are they?
I know you all with the bogs are happy with them (I don't have the real estate for one) ... but I still don't get the long term physics of them. The bog filtration system is a closed loop system, but your are constantly having matter added in via fish food, debris blown in, and dead plants/roots. Do you all have pre-filters on your pumps to remove the bulk of matter before it hits the bog? They aren't acting as your only filtration method are they?
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The pond is about 1800 gal. It's kinda split. The one side is 2 feet deep and has a bio filter. This side is 3 feet deep and has the bog. When we added the deeper side, we left a wall between the two. Put a big slab of slate on it and has 9 inches of water above it so the fish can go back and forth. I have 2 koi and the rest are comets and shubunkins. I always give away most of them (except the koi) in the spring, but corona came and I didn't want people here getting them. I feed once a day.
Mmathis
TurtleMommy
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When I still had my pond and bog, I had this problem sometimes. But my bog was more for my box turtle habitat with the added benefit of bog filtration. I also ran a Skippy biofilter. IMHO, my bog was too small for my pond, so that’s why I think it had so much crud. Also, my return to the pond was via 4” PVC. Fiddling with the flow was tricky — too much water and the bog would overflow into the turtle habitat (sometimes I did this on purpose if the non-bog plants needed a drink.).
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I'd love to see a picture of your pond and bog, it sounds really neat !
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Honestly I do worry about build up in the bog. Before I start it next Spring I plan to divert water through the clean out lines away from the pond. I guess what trouble me is the amount of algae I'm removing each day from the bog....alas it is it's first season.
I know you've got a sand & gravel filter, as I do too ( my bog is not my only filtration ) and I kind of wish we could blow out the bog like the filter....but I'm guessing that would blow all the plants out too !
Yes, ours is our only filtration. Our mechanical filtration is handled by the negative edge "skimmer". The water that is pumped to the bog is free of any debris. I know others do use pre-filters or at the very least do not pump water from the bottom of the pond.
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Looks nice. I thought about one of the triangular sail type shaded just because I think they look nice.
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I always have some dirt on top of my pea gravel, I used to take the garden hose and send it over the edge into the yard. It comes back, now I just ignore it. Part of the bog. But I don't worry about my bog being pea gravel pretty.
I did that, sprayed it off, the sludge just kept coming up.