clear to cloudy

[mountaindew]

My pond has been very clear for years,now all of a sudden its cloudy where I cant see down to the bottom.I changed the filters and the uv bulb and also took water out and replaced it.We have had some rain here in Florida but not much.Any suggestions

 

[koiguy1969]

if its a milky cloudiness its likely a bacterial bloom and should subside on its own...water changes can dilute it down.
you can refer to this thread....
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/topic/3753-basic-water-quality-problems/

 

[pecan]

What kind of cloudy? Is it tea colored or is the water green? Can you scoop up a clear glass full, let it sit so any floaties settle to the bottom and take a picture?

 

[mountaindew]

Here is a pic of the pond and a glass of water.It is more of a tea color

 

[koiguy1969]

tea colored water is usually tannins from leaves and other organics degrading in pond... a series of small waterchanges and / or activated carbon is pretty affective at removing the tannins from the water.ya might wanna net the bottom of your pond, to pull out any debris.
** in the picture it looks like it may be an alge bloom. do you have a U.V?

 

[mountaindew]

yes,I just replaced the bulb last week.I just went out to the pond and checked my filter pumps and when I pulled the big pump up there was a rodent sucked half way in the side screens of the pump.It looks like its been there for awhile but it still had some hair on it.Would this be part of the cause

 

[pecan]

Ewww dead rodent.. That hurts my heart. I don't kow if it caused the problem but I know it can't be good for the water. Tea colored water is normal this time of year from the muck that builds up and breaks down over winter. Clear the rodent out, muck out pond with a net, getting any leaves and such out and do regular water changes. That will probably solve the problem. And as Koiguy said you could try activated carbon, petmountain.com has a pretty good deal on it. I just bought some from them to have on hand in case I need it.

 

[mountaindew]

Here in Florida we dont have winter and I dont have any leaves or any other items around that could be on the bottom.I will try water changes to see if that helps.

 

[addy1]

I pulled a dead mole out of my pond, still in one piece, a vulture snacked on it.

 

[mountaindew]

This thing was so mangled I dont know what it was

 

[addy1]

Glad you found it! This is the first dead critter I have found.

 

[sissy]

I use activated charcoal from pet mountain also it is called acurel .I use it in the filters and in the waterfall ,wherever there is moving water .I use quilt batting to pick up all the fine stuff also as we get a lot of wind around here and it blows fine dirt and sand and whatever in my pond.The acurel only cost 4.95 and i buy at least 6 or 7 bags of it .

 

[pecan]

Good post Sissy! Activated charcoal might just be the ticket to clear your water. Make sure you remove it after it is no good anymore (I think 3 months but could be wrong) as it will start releasing all the yuckies back into the pond at that point.

 

[sissy]

you can reactivate it a little with peroxide .Not sure it works but i have tried that when pet mountain ran out of the charcoal .I guess it just cleans it and gives you a little more time .I even tried a salt and peroxide mix as that works with PDQ STALL REFRESHER for horses and you can use that in your pond .PDQ is zeolite and you can refresh it a few times before it is past it's prime .I put it in my filters with the oyster shells and charcoal .I buy those cheap hand wash bags from the dollar store as i found panty hose would fall apart to fast