How much shade is ok for koi?..

[Mr.Fus]

I have two small sun shade sails on my koi pond, right now I'm redoing the structure that supports the sails and will be changing the shades for one big one that will cover the whole pond without gaps... I found that I can get a 70% or 90% shade, what do you recommend?

 

[sissy]

May not get plants to grow and as long as fish get some light I would think they will be fine .We all need vitamins from the sun

 

[Mr.Fus]

That is my concern, I know sun it's necessary for vitamin and calcium processing...

The pond will get some sun in the morning and the afternoon but not sure if will be enough for the good health of my koi... Sun gets really hard here on florida, the sails have helped to keep green algae and heat down on the pond but there are some gaps in between the shades where the sun shines through and when I walk to the pond the fish get scared by my shadow and I hate that...

I think big part of why my koi are swimming close to the bottom and don't want to come to eat at the surface it's because of that... If it's a cloudy day they act less skittish.

Probably the best it's to just go for the 70% shade...

 

[sissy]

they must have been scared by a predator .You need to make them associate you with food .I do not feed my babies for a week and then hand feed them and I want all my baby fish to be friendly to the new owners they go to it .It sometimes takes a month or 2 but they see me as the chef that makes their food

 

[Mr.Fus]

Yes that is what happened, a friend of my sister stopped at the house and his son was running around and splashing the water... After that they stopped eating at the surface and just waiting for the water returning from the filter to push the pellets down... I have being spending time sitting around the pond after feeding to try to get them used to people walking around again.

 

[GBBUDD]

I wouldn't worry to much about it. Even the Japanese raise koi in MUD ponds theres next to no light getting down in that water. i'd think so long as you have some sun they can get what they need

 

[Lisak1]

Right. Just because you block the direct sun doesn't mean you're blocking the sunlight. Now if you put a lid on the pond you might have an issue...

 

[Mr.Fus]

They should get some sunshine, I have notice that they are more active and show less stress to people walking by the pond when it's late on the afternoon or overcast...

 

[j.w]

Do you live in a state w/lots of sunshine all the time? I assume you do and think that even w/the shade like others have said, the sun will send enough good rays through. Where I live in Washington, no shade needed. In fact we crave the sun here.
To them the kids are a threat and the fish will hide. They don't know that the kids won't eat them..........................or maybe they will? Well ya never know what some little ones will do

 

[Mr.Fus]

Well, I'm back to give an update on the shade project...

Hurricane Michael tear up Panama City before I was done with the cover, most of the city is still damaged at some level (authorities calculate only 1/4 of the houses on the city are undamaged) but fortunately my house just suffered minimal damage, and the koi survive not only the storm but the two and a half weeks without power or water! The 3 big trees to provided natural cover over the pond got knocked down (one destroyed the neighbors !) so I ordered a 80% shade to cover the pond and the deck.

 

[Gemma]

Well, I'm back to give an update on the shade project...

Hurricane Michael tear up Panama City before I was done with the cover, most of the city is still damaged at some level (authorities calculate only 1/4 of the houses on the city are undamaged) but fortunately my house just suffered minimal damage, and the koi survive not only the storm but the two and a half weeks without power or water! The 3 big trees to provided natural cover over the pond got knocked down (one destroyed the neighbors !) so I ordered a 80% shade to cover the pond and the deck.

That is terrible! ...but I'm glad you and your fish are ok!

 

[j.w]

@Mr.Fus sounds awful what happened to your place but glad only minimal damage. Now you can get back to your ponding. Looks like you will be planting some new trees eventually.

 

[Mr.Fus]

Thanks!.. I will be getting a new tree before the spring so the backyard don't look so "empty", I was thinking to get a Yoshino Cherry Tree for the back and just keep the other side clear so I can have a small area to test fly my drones... The new shade looks nice, it will help to keep green algae under control, the area cool and hopefully will help my koi to stop being so scare of the shadows when you aproach the pond...

 

[Ray G]

For what it is worth there have been suggestions that Koi can get sunburnt. In Australia we have very harsh sun and shading at the middle of the day at least is probably important for their overall health. Apparently if they are sunburnt they could flick on on the bottom of the pond or show other signs of skin irritation. I have trees that are deciduous near my pond to keep the midday sun in the middle of summer off the pond (or most of it anyway). I dont have any plants in my pond as my koi are pretty big and destroy any plants I have put in there in the past.