Hello all! Trying to get an inherited pond on track.

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Hello, I bought a home last November and have had pretty decent results with the pond that is on the property up to this point but just wanted to post in here and see if there are any good "new to ponds" tips from anyone. I had a problem with my pump clogging all the time but I figured out that it didn't have the prefilter installed so I will be getting one of those for it today. The pond has a gravity type external filter that seems to work well. The pump has a T fitting off of it that pumps half of the water to the filter and half to the waterfall. The filter then drains the water about 2/3 of the way across the pond so it sucks it up on one side and discharges on the other side. I also have a lot of lilly pads and grass so I am looking for tips on how to keep them under control. Really glad I found this site and hopefully I can get a system down for maintaining this pond and keeping the coi and goldfish in it happy!!! It has a bunch of leaves and muck on the bottom so getting that thinned out is my next order of business after I take care of the pumping problem. Here are a few pics.
 

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DrCase

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Welcome to the Forum
I good pool leaf net will help with the mucky
 

Mmathis

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Hi, & welcome!

Pond looks very natural. Any idea how big it is? Length, width, depth, gallons? Is there a liner? Can't tell from the pics. As well as how many fish do you have?

In the "new-to-ponds" category:

1. before you start having problems [or "learning experiences"], do you know about testing your water for ammonia, nitrites, pH, etc.? That's a good thing to get into the habit of doing, and most will recommend you use the liquid test kits rather than strips. Also, test your "source" water [city or well]. I have city water, and until recently thought that CHLORINES were all that was added. But after I set up a quarantine tank, and kept getting consistently high ammonia readings, realized our city water also has CHLORAMINES added. Keep a record of your results so you can follow "trends."

2. QUARANTINE is another thing you'll see mentioned. Opinions vary on length & type. Quarantine any new or ill-acting fish. Can read more elsewhere on GPF.

3. WHICH RELATES DIRECTLY TO # 1 & #2 ABOVE: Probably the MOST important thing to learn about is WATER QUALITY and how to maintain good water quality. Don't over feed, have adequate filtration for your fish-load, don't over-stock, monitor your water, etc.

Most if not all problems related to fish health (unexplained deaths, sick fish, etc.) are going to be a result of poor water quality.

Ooops, sorry -- soapbox over!
 

sissy

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I put my pump in a bucket with holes drilled in it and put pump inside with lava rock ontop of it .Gives me at least 2 months or more before pump gets clogged .I soak the lava rock to get them clean .Welcome and glad you at least got a nicer pond with your purchase .
 
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First off thanks for all the advice! Turtlemommy, I did some rough measurements tonight and I calculate the pond to be around 750-800 gallons, it is dug out with a liner and then the rocks around the edges. I would say there are about 7-10 goldfish and coi that range from 4"-10", mostly towards the smaller end with 1-3 big ones. I have some grass planted and some lily pads as well as some lettuce stuff that a co-worker gave me today. I also added probably 50-75 gallons of water from my cistern. After talking to the guy at the store tho I believe I am going to use my well from now on since he brought up good points about possible oils/tars from my roof being in the cistern and then getting into the pond. It does run through 3 filters first but from now on I will add water from the well which runs through a filter in my home and a uv light.

I am licensed in water and wastewater treatment so I know about a lot of the terms however I don't work with that at my job everyday so I have to reference a lot. Today I got a pre-filter screen for my pump that will hopefully help keep it from not clogging as much and some new tetra pond round filters for my filter. I also scooped out a lot of crap from the bottom of the pond and then added some sludge decomposing stuff and after running for about 3 hours it was pretty clear again after raising the turbidity from scooping out muck.

My big question/concern is how do you know if a fish is sick? Do I have to pull each one out and check it out or what? Are any of the additives to coat them any good? To be honest I have neglected the fish and the pond since I moved in since I had other things to do but I came to the conclusion it is not fair to the fish so I am trying to get on top of things and make them as happy as can be.

Thanks again and hopefully I didn't run that together to bad!!!

Cale
 

DrCase

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Your pond looks ok
Try to net out the goop and get it under control
 
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I netted out as much as I could for about 20 minutes straight and then let it settle, started up the pump again and added some of this stuff to try and help decompose the rest. http://www.thatpetplace.com/pure-aquatic-sludge-clear

I had just started the filter and water fall up in my pictures after stirring everything up trying to get the new hoses run, so that is probably why it doesn't look to great clarity wise. I am hoping that it will clear up in the next few days so I can see how much goop and sludge is still left on the bottom. Plus the black liner doesn't help with seeing to the bottom all that well.
 

addy1

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When I net mine, I start at one end and just work across the pond, Usually do it after or before the plants begin to grow, sure makes it a lot easier. It takes time because I spend the time pulling out all the tads, snails, etc that I find. Can't just dump them lol
 

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