Complete fountain clean out

[Nancy Tisdale]

Sometime over the winter I have developed a leak and my in custom in ground fountain which will require me to remove all the water, plants and fish and repaint the plastic lining. I assume I should put the fish in containers with the water currently in the fountain while the clean out and painting takes process. Once I refill the fountain and dechlorinate the water, how soon can I replace the fish and plants? I also need to clean the tile on the top. Any suggestions on a cleaning product that won't harm the fish and any other tips for a first timer would be appreciated.

 

[peter hillman]

Hello Nancy. That's a beautiful fountain, definitely worth the repair. Make sure you provide some aeration to the holding containers while the fish are in them. You may want to give it a good rinse out once the repair is done. Should be able to put them back as soon as the temperature stabilizes. What kind of fish do you have?

 

[Nancy Tisdale]

Thank you, Peter. I'm really hoping that another coat of plastic paint is all it needs. I didn't realize I would need to oxygenate the holding containers so I'm glad you mentioned it. I have about 7 shubunkins of different colors that look striking inside the black colored lining. They're still in hiding so I plan to hold off on the clean out until the temperature warms up.

 

[morewater]

What type of paint are you planning on using? If your fountain structure is concrete based, I'd recommend Pond Armor.

 

[Nancy Tisdale]

What type of paint are you planning on using? If your fountain structure is concrete based, I'd recommend Pond Armor.

It's now lined with Herco Pond Sealant. Can you put Pond Armor over top of that?

 

[morewater]

I would think so. I didn't know that you'd already used a sealant, never heard of Herco.

How long ago since the last application of the Herco stuff? I've put in Pond Armor more than 10 years ago and it's still holding on with no leaking , no flaking.