Muddy Water help.

[rob199]

Hello,
I just finished constructing a 5,000 gallon pond (24x12 ft) and 3 feet deep at the deepest point.
The pond is built into the side of a hill and has two water falls coming off of it. One main waterfall drops about 4ft into the pond and the other one is a gradual streem into the other side of the pond.

After setting up the pond, the water started to turn a little silty, a lot of sediment from the rocks and dirt around the pond started to get stirred around after it had been built. I decided to drain the pond, completely clear out the bottom and wash all the dirt and rock out of the pond. After I did this I let the water run for about a week and put in my winterizer bacteria, 50 lbs of pond salt, dechlorinator and I started using accuclear.

The pond water after 3 days is still not clear, I started looking on a few websites and people were saying that when building new big ponds it is important to not keep cleaning them out and just letting them sit and establish themselves.

Both of the waterfalls also have bio falls built into them, one with a 7,500 gallon pump and the other with a 3,700 gallon pump. I was thinking that besides the filtering cloth and lava rock they come with if there was anything else I could put in there to help out the problem. I am not buying a filter untill the spring.


I was wondering what everyones advice was on the topic. I am trying to find a good chemical I can use that will clump dirt and sediment and make them sink to the bottom, or if indeed this is true about letting your pond establish itself.

Any help is greatly appriciated!

 

[DrCase]

i didn,t see the word filter.in your post

 

[clm]

Depending on how much sediment is in there it can take a fair bit of time to clear. Especially if you're only usuing biofalls as your filtration.
I like to have an inch or two of sand on the bottom of my ponds. When we put in this last pond, I forgot to put the sand on the bottom before we filled, and it took a very long time to fill the pond. So we added it after, , needless to say, we had quite a cloudy pond for about a week until it settled.

Cindy

 

[DrCase]

i missed that filter line...to get the dirt fines out..try something like pillow stuffing,,,and wash it out every day,or more often if it stops up..

 

[bunnymp]

It won't clear up over night, but you'll see progress after a few days. I like to put sheets of quilt batting (the stuff they put in quilts) over the filter pad in my skimmer box to catch the fine particles. Rinse it out once or twice a day until the water clears up.

 

[rob199]

Thank you for all your reply's so far.

I live in NJ and last night was the first night by me that was under 32 degress over night. When we were installing the pond we heard that you should not run your filter in the winter so we are not buying it unitl the spring, but for the meantime we are trying to use the Bio falls as filters.

An idea I had was buying some extra pond underliner (with very very fine holes) to try to catch some of the dirt, but I will definatly try to get some quilt and pillow wool, that sounds like a good idea, I hope the pond clears up. It has been about 4 days now and its still pretty clowdy.

Do rocks and stuff on the bottom of the pond help as well?

 

[DrCase]

no they just get in the way...i have some large rocks for shelter ,,,but you want to have it clear to net out leaves on the pond floor.

 

[bunnymp]

Concerning the filter - You can run them during the winter or not. I live in NY and I run my all year round. I like the fact that it keeps the water moving so it won't freeze and I like the filtering it provides. If you have a waterfall and it is really cold, you'll have to watch that ice doesn't build up around the sides of the falls causing the water to run off.

Concerning the rocks - That is also up to the user. Some people like to have their Koi in ponds without any rocks or plants - sort of like a Koi pool. Some, like me, like to have a more natural environment. I am able to plant directly into the gravel and it looks nice. Keep in mind though, that this method requires some work. You can't allow the gravel to get too deep, one layer of rock should do it and you have to keep it clean.

 

[rob199]

The Ice Buildup could explain why my pond is losing a little bit of water, also while up on the hill behind the pond i noticed there were many deer foot prints and now I am worrying if maybe they stepped in the pond somewhere and put a hole in it. What is the best method to find where the water is leaking?

 

[bunnymp]

The deer could be drinking the water. I know of someone who had several deer drinking from his pond and it was a significant amt.
To find a leak:
Check the edge of the pond and falls looking for liner slippage or low points. Move rocks around if you need to. Turn off the falls for a day to see if the level drops. If it drops while the falls are off, your problem is with the pond. Now, let it go lower until it stabilizes. Hopefully, the problem is not at the very bottom. Look around at the water line for the rip, tear, etc. If the water does not drop while the falls are off, the problem is with the falls. Check the connection at the skimmer box and the one at the biofalls box to make sure they are secure. Dig up the line to see if the line was compromised. Empty the biofalls box and make sure it is not cracked. Worst case, you might have to do a rebuild.

 

[jessjane]

It won't clear up over night, but you'll see progress after a few days. I like to put sheets of quilt batting (the stuff they put in quilts) over the filter pad in my skimmer box to catch the fine particles. Rinse it out once or twice a day until the water clears up.

In this situations filters can't work. And after few days or wait until weeks. Water will not clear because of air. When air blowing, waves will make the layers in the water and mud is mix in all over the pond. In your case their is a technically problem. First built your base with cement and waterproof material and also it would be thick round about 6" inches. Clean all the place and than fill the pond with water.