I need help and advice

[WaterGardener]

We keep a close eye on the water. It really is good here. We are lucky that way. And the temperature isn't even that different with the pond covered. It can actually be warmer. It's never been a issue for us and never a problem for the fish. But it is something to be aware of.

We have the opposite feelings about water. We have always lived where we had well water and can't imagine having city water that is treated with chemicals. I would have no idea how to dechlorinate my pond water. I know what to use, but the process is nothing I've ever needed to do.

 

[GBBUDD]

We have the opposite feelings about water. We have always lived where we had well water and can't imagine having city water that is treated with chemicals. I would have no idea how to dechlorinate my pond water. I know what to use, but the process is nothing I've ever needed to do.

Surprisingly chlorine really isn't as bad as you would think at least in my area being the north east. while chlorine is a very toxic chemical in every form. When it is introduced to our waters you have to remember this is A PUBLIC DRINKING SUPPLY. The big differance being we don't live in it 24/7 to make the chlorine harmless is simply buying a declorinator which is a liquid that is rather inexpensive. a gallon usually is good for like 100,000 gallons add the correct quantity to you pond slowly and into a place with lots of current. That's it....

 

[sissy]

city water never killed me .The only way it can cause problems is maybe with old iron plumbing .But not many houses have that any more as pex came into play and so easy to install .See some house with that pb plumbing and the insurance and government stepped in to help homeowners get it replaced

 

[GBBUDD]

Pex has a LONG LONG LONG WAY TO GO to make even a dent in replacing copper, led pipe. Its crazy how Hillary got on with the hole flint Michigan and the bad water . while some of the water was clearly compromised by high iron with the reddish tint . the other levels are very common else where such as New York and Philadelphia there are still miles of led pipes supplying water to homes and businesses. New York actualy won a taste testa couple years back against other cities and bottled waters.

 

[poconojoe]

Back in the 80's I owned a house that was built in 1932. It was on Staten Island, (New York).
The water pressure was terrible out of some of the fixtures. We had access from the basement and replaced all the supply pipes with copper. (There wasn't PEX at the time). Anyway, those old supply lines were galvanized pipes! They suffered from what I called hardening of the arteries. When we cut them open, there was so much rust inside that the water was only flowing through a pin hole. Crazy!

 

[Bluerooster]

The only "filter" that I have that requires regular cleaning is the skimmer, and the pre-filter for the barrel in the middle of the pond. Other than that, I don't change water, unless it rains, leaks, or evaporates. I've spent too much time allowing this little ecosystem to get established, to screw it up, and make more work for me.

 

[MIKES KOI]

im gonna chime in on this, first if water is good as you say why change it and stress fish? keep up with testing water, if it is stable no water changes are needed.just top it off..keep testing..why change good water? depending on your water source, it may contain things that can harm fish, and the stress starts.only do major changes if you got issues.... the filter what kind ? some bead filters do require a weekly flush.all most all home made bio filters . will suffer .it will take 4-6 weeks to get it cycle...you should never clean a filter with a hose from city water source, it will kill off all of the bacteria..put the media in a container that is treated water not to destroy the colony...1clean out of filter every other mo. takes care of most depending on fish load etc.again watch the testing close..on the feeding ..if you have fish other than koi disregard this , if the water drops below 50.. and stays there for a long time..NO food 50-60 deg wheat germ ...the fish do not need food and will be fine. first winter will have you on edge watch the pond at your location this time of the year for herons.....they can clean out a pond in minutes.....hope this helps mike

 

[WaterGardener]

I have never witnessed any stress to my fish from water changes. In fact, they seem to enjoy them, playing in the water splashing from the hose into the pond. I do have good well water, so nothing bad is being introduced. I realize I'm lucky that way and it's not the case for everyone.

I don't understand how giving fish some fresh water is seen as a bad thing. Some people think the beneficial bacteria lives in the water, but that is not the case. That bacteria lives in the filter media and on surfaces in the pond, not the water itself. 100% of the water could be changed with no negative effect on the cycle.

Just my opinion, and I seem to be in the minority here. This is what I was taught to do by some of the most respected fish keepers in the business. But every person has their own beliefs and practices and we all have to do what we feel works best for each of us.

 

[addy1]

Mine get added water, rain, topping off via well in the summer. But our well water is so acidic I can never do a big water change, it would kill the fish. I killed the first fish I put in the pond, they all died within a hour. That is when I found out our well water has a ph of 5.3 and is very soft barely reads a color.
I let the pond sit until the next summer, buffering it up with oyster shells, plants, time. Finally got the ph up to 7.8 or so and the water hardness up to around 100.

The next fish added survived.

 

[WaterGardener]

Your water is definitely a problem and I'm glad you solved that.

It's very easy to raise the pH safely with baking soda. That would also raise the KH and keep the pH stable so that isn't an insurmountable problem for doing a water change. That's only my opinion for whatever it's worth!

 

[addy1]

I tried baking soda, it made the ph bounce. I used huge bags of the stuff. Time and crushed oyster shells fixed the water.

 

[WaterGardener]

Glad you found something that worked for you. Every pond is different, so I suppose there will always be an exception to every "rule".

I have a friend whose water sounds like yours. She has found no way to fix hers and often loses her fish to pH crashes. I don't know how she keeps doing this. I would have either moved or given up long ago.

 

[addy1]

Tell her to go to Tractor supply buy 100 lbs of crushed oyster shells, chicken grit, put it where water flows over it. That is what finally fixed mine. I actually put 100lbs in every spring for around 4 years. Then quit doing it.

I used a old hot tub to make another pond, I hung a bag of the crushed oyster shells in the water, after running the pond for around 2 months the water ph and hardness stabilized. Only around 350-400 gallons, has fan tail gold fish in it.

 

[WaterGardener]

Thanks, I'll definitely pass that on to her.

 

[GBBUDD]

Any water that has organics LIVING BEINGS in it that does not have any circulation, filtering, and growth will have deteriorating water quality . Observations of my pond says the algae has changed the outter edges have died off. In just a months time since i last vacuumed the pond theres a clear deterioration from the water temp dropping. The water remains crystal clear, but as most know rotting decaying anything in the pond will lead to issue if not now it will once the water warms. The fish though slowed way down due to the temps have breathing slowed as well as excrement's but look at it this way. if you just sit around the house and do little but watch tv the need for a shower is so much less then if you had gone out and played basket ball. While the shower is still needed in both cases one is not needed as quickly. A water change at any time is not a bad thing IF IT IS DONE CORRECTLY. As Watergardener said their pond while adding water the fish came to the source / hose and seemed to play in the new water. I have seen this in my pond and every aquarium I have ever had weather it was fresh, salt or brackish water. If you add water from your home and the water temp is in the 50's and your fish are in low 40's water.Even if they seam to enjoy the warmer water it can stress them out. Rapid water changes is probably the number one stresser of fish. It's not the clean fresh water that will stress them out. If you age the water is say clean trash cans add your declorinater if needed adjust your temps or as addy needed to your ph if need be Make the peramiters as close as possible to the existing then there should only benefits to adding water or water change. I harvest some rain water when it pours the pond has an over flow i really have not done a specific water change in a good 6 months.