Hi Everyone,
***I AM A TOTAL NOVICE*** :bye2: ...and i need your advice ASAP to save my fish! :goldfish:
My name is Mark and I am a complete novice when it comes to ponds so please go easy on me!!! ;-)
Here is my story to fill you in really quick on our pond situation.
Bought a new house...it has a pond with fish and a waterfall feature.
Pond spec:
The pump we inhertited failed and died.
The pump was running to a filter and then into the water fall.
The filter was also...disgraceful...apparently! :-(
Spoke to a supplier and they said the pump was too small for the pond.
So...I made an enquiry to a supplier..."What do I need please?"
Supplier "For that pond size you need this pump
(a hozelock, cant remember the spec but it is good and serves the waterfall spec, great pressure)
and a Velda 100 clearwater filter with 2x built in UV's."
"I said "Ok how much?"
"£1000"
Shit!...I didnt have that sort of money
so I bought a £150 hozelock pump and stuck that in...
we didn't connect it to the filter of water fall.
We just put it in the pond and turned it on. :disappointed_anim:
Yes, yes I know...
I did say I was a novice...
please dont judge :regular_waving_emot
Anyway...
a big fish died soon after.
So I called them back
and spent £1000 on their system.
The pond was green by the way...
you could only see down about 10inches, if that.
They sent me a hoover for free
(hozelock)
they said if I clean it it will help the filter.
I tried but it was fruitless...
the hoover kept blocking...
the pond was
6inches deep in pond sludge on the base.
(I found this out later)
Then the filter began to leak after about a month!!!!
It was full of sludge.
By the way the pump was not on the pond floor
I suspended it abouy 2 foot from the bottom with some rope
attached to my pond cover grid system.
Called in an expert pond cleaner.
Cleaned the filter.
He emptied the pond.
Put the fish in a holding tank.
Cleaned out all the sludge.
Cleaned the liner.
Began the refill...used the right 'treatment' to treat the new water.
Put te fish back in.
We paid him and he left.
It took us about 2 days 'on and off' to refill back to the previous level.
All looking good.
Pond super clean.
Fish happy.
We are happy.
And then the water began to drop!
2 foot in 2 days
now it's 6 inches per day and still dropping.
I am now down to 18ins from 4.5 feet in 6 days.
SHIT!
We didn't have a leak before...in 3 years of ownwership.
We've had guys in the pond fitting the grid sytem about 18months ago...no leaks since then. All fine.
The pond cleaner guy cleans it 7 days ago and it's not stopped dropping since.
I've spoken with him several times.
He says...
This has never happened before.
He said it might be:
the sludge was blocking a leak that was already there
he found several large stones on the base and said it may have been those
he said it may have already been leaking for all he knows (suggesting i'm at fault)...it has never done this before.
what he wont do is "CONSIDER" the "POSSIBILITY" that he might have split it during the clean.
...and so, here I am.
He has offered to help, but what do you good people make of all this?
I obviously need to find the leak and he has offered to help.
He hires holding tanks so I'll leikely take him up on this.
He said he has not been happy with my attitude!!!
I have no issues with leaking in 3 years...neither did the previous owner
He spends one day in my pond.
It is now leaking...and hasn't stopped...YET!
now I'm no brain surgeon but... :regular_waving_emot
could it have been him?
could sludge block a leak?
could rocks land on the base, create a leak but then that leak be blocked by either the rock or the sludge?
(remember...this pond has never dropped it's level other than when it has been a really long hot spell with no rain in the warmer months...we lose say a few inches over 4-8 weeks.
This is normal right?
It never drops in winter
So...I'm thinking call the guy back...get one of his tanks, put the fish in and put my small pump in that has a fountain feature to keep the oxygen going.
Then sort the leak...issue...no idea how to do this though!
Over to you guys...
Thanks - Mark
Sorry it's a long story but at least you have all the details.
***I AM A TOTAL NOVICE*** :bye2: ...and i need your advice ASAP to save my fish! :goldfish:
My name is Mark and I am a complete novice when it comes to ponds so please go easy on me!!! ;-)
Here is my story to fill you in really quick on our pond situation.
Bought a new house...it has a pond with fish and a waterfall feature.
Pond spec:
- 4.5 foot deep approx
- 10m2 area
- black plastic liner
- pond put in by previous owner about 10 years+ ago
- pond is at ground level
- water fall feature made from large stones...2ft drop approx
- 130 small to medium (palm size) fish including lots of goldfish and one large koi (about 24ins in length)
- using a velda clearwater 100 filter (size of a small dustbin), 2x UV's built in...it's a beast!
- decent powerful pump (hozelock) can't remember the spec but it works superb and powers the water fall really well.
- black reinforced flexi-hose from the pump to the filter and then from filter to waterfall.
- We also have a huge plastic grid frame system which is on stilts and 'covers' the pond my 3 small children are safe. (was professionally installed)
The pump we inhertited failed and died.
The pump was running to a filter and then into the water fall.
The filter was also...disgraceful...apparently! :-(
Spoke to a supplier and they said the pump was too small for the pond.
So...I made an enquiry to a supplier..."What do I need please?"
Supplier "For that pond size you need this pump
(a hozelock, cant remember the spec but it is good and serves the waterfall spec, great pressure)
and a Velda 100 clearwater filter with 2x built in UV's."
"I said "Ok how much?"
"£1000"
Shit!...I didnt have that sort of money
so I bought a £150 hozelock pump and stuck that in...
we didn't connect it to the filter of water fall.
We just put it in the pond and turned it on. :disappointed_anim:
Yes, yes I know...
I did say I was a novice...
please dont judge :regular_waving_emot
Anyway...
a big fish died soon after.
So I called them back
and spent £1000 on their system.
The pond was green by the way...
you could only see down about 10inches, if that.
They sent me a hoover for free
(hozelock)
they said if I clean it it will help the filter.
I tried but it was fruitless...
the hoover kept blocking...
the pond was
6inches deep in pond sludge on the base.
(I found this out later)
Then the filter began to leak after about a month!!!!
It was full of sludge.
By the way the pump was not on the pond floor
I suspended it abouy 2 foot from the bottom with some rope
attached to my pond cover grid system.
Called in an expert pond cleaner.
Cleaned the filter.
He emptied the pond.
Put the fish in a holding tank.
Cleaned out all the sludge.
Cleaned the liner.
Began the refill...used the right 'treatment' to treat the new water.
Put te fish back in.
We paid him and he left.
It took us about 2 days 'on and off' to refill back to the previous level.
All looking good.
Pond super clean.
Fish happy.
We are happy.
And then the water began to drop!
2 foot in 2 days
now it's 6 inches per day and still dropping.
I am now down to 18ins from 4.5 feet in 6 days.
SHIT!
We didn't have a leak before...in 3 years of ownwership.
We've had guys in the pond fitting the grid sytem about 18months ago...no leaks since then. All fine.
The pond cleaner guy cleans it 7 days ago and it's not stopped dropping since.
I've spoken with him several times.
He says...
This has never happened before.
He said it might be:
the sludge was blocking a leak that was already there
he found several large stones on the base and said it may have been those
he said it may have already been leaking for all he knows (suggesting i'm at fault)...it has never done this before.
what he wont do is "CONSIDER" the "POSSIBILITY" that he might have split it during the clean.
...and so, here I am.
He has offered to help, but what do you good people make of all this?
I obviously need to find the leak and he has offered to help.
He hires holding tanks so I'll leikely take him up on this.
He said he has not been happy with my attitude!!!
I have no issues with leaking in 3 years...neither did the previous owner
He spends one day in my pond.
It is now leaking...and hasn't stopped...YET!
now I'm no brain surgeon but... :regular_waving_emot
could it have been him?
could sludge block a leak?
could rocks land on the base, create a leak but then that leak be blocked by either the rock or the sludge?
(remember...this pond has never dropped it's level other than when it has been a really long hot spell with no rain in the warmer months...we lose say a few inches over 4-8 weeks.
This is normal right?
It never drops in winter
So...I'm thinking call the guy back...get one of his tanks, put the fish in and put my small pump in that has a fountain feature to keep the oxygen going.
Then sort the leak...issue...no idea how to do this though!
Over to you guys...
Thanks - Mark
Sorry it's a long story but at least you have all the details.