My pond is looking sad... help please!

[Stuart397]

Hey people....
New to the site so sorry if a sound slightly........ naive :lol:

Right so i have a pond...... the size of it is 1960mmX1960mm by 700mm deep (roughly 2800 litres) now its been running for about 3 years now. I have a Hozelock eco power 4500 (with built in UVC) and the pump to go with it. It kept the pond fairly clear for the first year i had it and since then the pond is always merky! And yes i have changed the UV bulb several times Also i am keeping koi in the pond.

So im thinking of getting a new filter and UVC.... Which one would you recommend i go for is the question??

Cheers, Stu

 

[oldmarine]

I would recommend some periodic water changes in addition to the filter upgrade.

Happy ponding,

 

[D&RW]

I agree with old marine. first and foremost start doing regular water changes if you're not already. if you have fish, stay around 15% unless you have an identified water quality problem. and be sure to add a declorinator sufficient for the volume each time.

do you test your water? water quality maintenance is very complex. and it's harder the smaller the pond. your pond sounds like it's about 700+ U.S. gallons. that's going to be a bit harder to maintain than one 10,000 gallons. there's numerous reasons your water could be murky. regular testing can help ensure your water is healthy for the fish. murky water can be fine for fish and crystal clear water can be deadly. there are lots and lots of discussions on this site about water quality. don't give up. you can achieve pretty clear water if you work at it.

another issue is what are called "fines". this is what it sounds like, ultra fine particles that tend to stay suspended in the water. I am not familiar with your filter, but it may not be doing enough to eliminate fines. how often and how do you clean your filter. do you know if it has very fine weave filter material designed to catch fines? if not there are some great, inexpensive solutions offered by some of the old timers here.

where is your uv light relative to your system? it is best located on the outflow side of the filter. and be sure the rate of flow through the UV is correct. too slow and the algae can overpower it. too fast and the light doesn't have enough time to kill it. have you checked the glass casing in which the UV sits? is it clean?

any major trees or other sources of debris that could fall in the pond? if so you might have to install fine netting or cut off a limb or two.

sounds like maybe the first thing to do is work at discovering what's going on. your current filter system may not be the problem. so buying a new one wouldn't solve the problem and only frustrate. that's all i can think of right now. keep us posted.

 

[DrDave]

Welcome to the forum.