From cloudy to clear?

[PaulT]

Hello,
I hope by joining the forum you might be able to share a few pearls of wisdom!
I am new to the garden pond thing and didn't realise what I was getting into!
I now have a pond fully lined and raring to go.
Yesterday I installed an Oasis50 filter and a Lotus Olympus pump 6500 hoping to see a nice clear pond but alas the next day it doesn't look much different.
The cloudiness I think is probably due to residue clay left at the bottom of the liner after reinstalling because I hadn't thought to dig a ledge around the edge for the rocks.
Am I expecting too much from the filter and will I have to empty the pond again and thoroughly clean the liner before filling with fresh water? (i'm hoping not)!
Or does it simply take days/weeks before clarity occurs?
Cheers

 

[mogsie]

hi paul, i was new to this 6 months ago and went through all the same thaughts as you are now, when you say you didnt leave a ledge for the edge rocks, do you mean you have soil/turf right to the edge ? if so you will prob have run off problems for quite a while every time it rains ! it would be worth you re-digging a ledge and edging the pond with rocks properly to help this, the murky water prob is suspended clay/soil particles in the water, these will settle in time however you can speed up the process by adding a coagulant, i used this one and i was very impressed with the results :
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BLAGDON-CLEAR...Features_UK&hash=item23115aeae9#ht_1169wt_698
however until your pond is established and your pond starts to balance you will probably go through a few phases of having cloudy/murky water, sometimes i could not figure out why it had gone cloudy again but i found that the best thing is patience, and it will clear itself especially when the filter gets established, i found it takes a while for the filter to kick in and start working properly, my water is clear all the time now (unless of course ive been in there working on the planting or something and ive stirred up some dirt ! but now i dont use coagulant any more and after a couple of days it is clear again, some pics of you pond posted up would be good, and think about working on that edge !

 

[addy1]

Welcome to the forum!

If you have a lot of suspended dirt in the water, you can use some fine material to filter it out like quilt batting, or drain the pond clean the bottom, or vacuum the bottom to remove the dirt. My filter is a bog and when we got our pump running, a lot of fine dirt from the pea gravel made the pond super cloudy, the quilt batting removed it in about 2 days.

Like mogsie says, make sure your edge of the pond is higher than the land, or the land slopes away from the pond. Run off from storms will make a big mess in your water.

It takes 6-8 weeks for a new pond to settle down. murk, algae, cloudy water. Patience is the best fix.

 

[PaulT]

Hi Mogsie and Addy1,
Thanks for your prompt reply.
I like this forum already!
The ledge around the pond now supports the rocks placed on top of the liner.
So I guess I will get soil etc running off the rocks into the pond after heavy rain fall for sometime. Its not looking too bad really. Like you say, patience is a great virtue!
I have attempted to upload photos and will try again when I've sussed how to do that!
Thanks again.
Cant wait to introduce some tiddlers!!

 

[addy1]

Rain hitting the rocks and flowing into the pond is not bad. It is a problem if the rain runs off your yard then flows into the pond or behind the liner. That is why you want your edge higher than the yard or the yard sloped away from the edge of your pond.

 

[fishin4cars]

Welcome aboard! :regular_waving_emot It's not uncommon for a new pond to go through a cloudy murky stage when first starting up even without run off getting in the pond, But the run can cause this issue to stay around for a lot longer, If possible it's a good idea while the pond is still very new to go ahead and try to fix the problem now. Don't expect a filter to clear the water over night. It's happened but it's usually on a pond that has been running a while on a small filter and a better more efficient filter gets installed. In a new pond everything still needs to balance. Patience is a big key. Key steps in getting a new pond to run smooth, get as many of the bugs out first, as you see, Your runoff is a bug that needs addressed, make sure all leaks are taken care of and that the pond is functioning properly, Next, balance the water, get a good test kit and get the water ready for fish, start introducing plants, Plants are great for helping keep the water clear, remove unwanted Nitrates, and provide cover and shade for the fish, Then once all this is settled then start adding just a few inexpensive fish and allow them a good 6-8 weeks for the pond to cycle and become more stable. follow these steps and your pond stands a lot better chance of balancing properly and gives you a chance to learn all the newbie things while getting to know your pond. You have come to the right spot to get help and learn about your pond. Glad you stopped in and decided to get information, You'll be glad you did! Look forward to seeing pics!

 

[DrDave]

Welcome to the Forum!

 

[CometKeith]

Hi Paul. Welcome. You might want to look up on old forum threads how to cycle a pond. It will explain how your pond builds up good bacteria and why it is necessary. Enjoy your pond!

 

[j.w]

Paul