Introduction and first volley of questions.

[ki5ka]

Pond Size - 600 - 700 gallons.

Pump - Smartpond 1200 gph with 1” hose

Depth - Max depth of pond is 3 ½’, bog is 6” sand and pea gravel with a permeable barrier (underlayment held in place with rocks).

Bog plant load - 20 Umbrella grass, 6 Canna lilies, 4 false bamboo, Lots of watercress

Filtration - Bog. No other filter but I have been running the water through a large shop dust collection bag when the water has clouded, which has been always of late.

Feeding - Typically in the AM and afternoon. Petsmart Koi pellets. We will throw a small handful of pellets in then when those are all gone, throw pellets one at a time until the fish stop eating.

Behavior - Fish are eating actively, no changes in behavior and no behavior indicating low oxygen, i.e. not at the surface, not at the riffles.

Chemical tests consistent over a week, 4 tests.

· Ammonia Level (pond - from pump, pickup at bottom of pond) – Between 0 and .25

· Ammonia Level (bog outflow) – Between 0 and .25

· Nitrite Levels – Does not register and no difference between bog and pond

· Nitrate Level – Bog barely distinguishable from pond. Both 0-20

· Ph Level, pond – 7.5 – 8

· Test-kit –API 5 in 1 strip for Nitrite, Nitrate and PH. Ammonia by API drops.

I read many conflicting opinions about bogs and garden ponds vs Koi ponds vs swimming pools. It is difficult to filter the credible from the rest. This site seems to have a nice balance, so I have decided to ask my questions here


Questions and concerns:

· Pool is intended also for soaking. Looking at a new external pump to ensure safety in the water.

· Pool is not as clear as we want, looking at adding a filter and a larger pump.

· Some nice green growth is developing where the water flow is higher, along with ugly brown slime where velocity is lower. Wonder if increasing flow will get rid of the brown and keep the green in check.

· Want more flow for aesthetics but worried about too much flow, noise, power consumption.

· Want healthy plants and concerned we don’t have enough Nitrates for them (that seems so wrong). Concerned that adding filter will make this worse but want clearer water.


What we are considering changing:

Pump - Sequence 750 Series 4200GPH Pump - $404 - Cascade Pond Supply

Filter - Savio FilterWeir 31 - $144 on Amazon

Lots more questions, but that’s enough for an introduction I think.

 

[j.w]

@ki5ka Nice pond and sounds like you know what you are doing! On the making it people friendly to soak in I just don't know. I know I don't like standing in mine too long as it tends to lean to the fish poopy side w/not so clear water but then I don't have a bog but I wish I did! How many koi do you have in there?

 

[addy1]

Welcome to our group!
I filter with only a bog, a large bog, lots of plants. Keeps my pond water clear and perfect.

The nice green growth is good algae.

You could try feeding less, the fish get plenty to eat in the pond.

 

[ki5ka]

View attachment 114653@ki5ka Nice pond and sounds like you know what you are doing! On the making it people friendly to soak in I just don't know. I know I don't like standing in mine too long as it tends to lean to the fish poopy side w/not so clear water but then I don't have a bog but I wish I did! How many koi do you have in there?

Thanks for the welcome JW. We have 9 small Koi.

 

[ki5ka]

Welcome to our group!
I filter with only a bog, a large bog, lots of plants. Keeps my pond water clear and perfect.

The nice green growth is good algae.

You could try feeding less, the fish get plenty to eat in the pond.

Thanks for the welcome Addy.

Yes, we like the green algae.

With the nitrate levels in my pond being so low it seems that overfeeding is not likely the cause of the cloudyness. Am I mistaken about that?

 

[mrsclem]

Hi and welcome! I'm sure if you have done any reading on this forum that you will have seen that your pond is too small for koi. Even it they are small now, they can grow 18" in one year! Thats a nice size pond and the bog is a great filter but you may want to consider changing out for smaller fish that will still come and nibble on you while you soak!

 

[j.w]

Yep w/9 small koi turning into 9 large koi I don't know how you will keep your water as clean as you want it to soak. Might have to get the shovel out eventually and start digging a bigger pond. Maybe make a separate pond just for soaking w/filter next to your fish pond? Not sure how much room you have tho to do all of this.

 

[Lisak1]

Welcome @ki5ka ! I will also add my caution about those "small" koi - they won't be small for now. Exchange them or re-home them ASAP.

As for keeping the pond safe for use by humans - I have no concerns about getting into my bog filtered pond. The water is clear and smells good, the fish are healthy, the plants are vibrant, there's no muck in the bottom that scares so many people. All in all, I think it's safe, but you'll find lots of people who will disagree.

I'm a little confused about where the flow is coming from - I don't see a waterfall. Do you have any aeration?

 

[Telion]

Welcome nice pond you have their agreed about the coir they will grow fast. As for the pump you would want to look at the Laguna series the cost to power ratio is excellent and next to that any Mac driven pump designed for a pond would be OK as well

 

[ki5ka]

Hi and welcome! I'm sure if you have done any reading on this forum that you will have seen that your pond is too small for koi. Even it they are small now, they can grow 18" in one year! Thats a nice size pond and the bog is a great filter but you may want to consider changing out for smaller fish that will still come and nibble on you while you soak!

Hi mrsclem and thank you for the welcome.

Yes, I have done a lot of reading. As I said in my intro, there sure is a lot of conflicting information out there and I'm hoping that I can get some good advice backed by practical experience here. As we all know, reading and doing are sometimes wildly different experiences

Cheers

 

[ki5ka]

Welcome @ki5ka ! I will also add my caution about those "small" koi - they won't be small for now. Exchange them or re-home them ASAP.

As for keeping the pond safe for use by humans - I have no concerns about getting into my bog filtered pond. The water is clear and smells good, the fish are healthy, the plants are vibrant, there's no muck in the bottom that scares so many people. All in all, I think it's safe, but you'll find lots of people who will disagree.

I'm a little confused about where the flow is coming from - I don't see a waterfall. Do you have any aeration?

Hi Lisa,

The concern I expressed was not concern about bog-filtered water but rather the danger of electrocution.

There is a riffle that is about 15" wide and about 100" of outflow through the permeable bog boundary to oxygenate the water rather than the more commonly and ubiquitous waterfall. I also have a fountain, but it is not operating in the picture I took. While I don't have a means to directly measure oxygen concentration, I am watching fish behavior for the commonly mentioned signs that indicate low oxygen concentration; fish moving toward the riffles or gulping air at the surface. I have seen neither of these behaviors so I don't think concern with lack of oxygen is warranted. Do you think otherwise?

 

[ki5ka]

Yep w/9 small koi turning into 9 large koi I don't know how you will keep your water as clean as you want it to soak. Might have to get the shovel out eventually and start digging a bigger pond. Maybe make a separate pond just for soaking w/filter next to your fish pond? Not sure how much room you have tho to do all of this.

JW, Exactly what I intend

 

[Tara]

Hello, first off your bog is lovely and well planed, wish I had done the same. Personally if I was getting into the pond I would turn off a submerged pump, I would be paranoid that something would go wrong. You could look into a solar powered pump for the times you are soaking, although they may not be as powerful, maybe you could look for information on them.

 

[ki5ka]

Hi Lisa,

The concern I expressed was not concern about bog-filtered water but rather the danger of electrocution.

There is a riffle that is about 15" wide and about 100" of outflow through the permeable bog boundary to oxygenate the water rather than the more commonly and ubiquitous waterfall. I also have a fountain, but it is not operating in the picture I took. While I don't have a means to directly measure oxygen concentration, I am watching fish behavior for the commonly mentioned signs that indicate low oxygen concentration; fish moving toward the riffles or gulping air at the surface. I have seen neither of these behaviors so I don't think concern with lack of oxygen is warranted. Do you think otherwise?

Despite the fact that the fish are exhibiting no evidence of a lack of oxygen, I still would like to see more movement in the water and insuring adequate oxygen levels is one of the prime reasons I am considering replacing my pump with a larger one. I do realize that a waterfall is a great way to do this, but I intend to accomplish oxygenation without one.

 

[ki5ka]

Hello, first off your bog is lovely and well planed, wish I had done the same. Personally if I was getting into the pond I would turn off a submerged pump, I would be paranoid that something would go wrong. You could look into a solar powered pump for the times you are soaking, although they may not be as powerful, maybe you could look for information on them.

Thank you Tara, we are enjoying it!

The external pump I plan to buy removes the danger of electrocution that I didn't realize submersibles presented. It is also rated at 3 Xs the flow rate so I'm hoping the additional flow, along with the filter, will clear things up. What pump do you have?