New Pond ( Needs Expert Help )

[newbiepond]

Hello pond lovers !

I just started a new pond last december and I was wondering if someone here could help me make it better. Last december I started constructing a cement pond with these dimensions.




9ft width

length 1.8ft

and height or depth of water is approximately 1.3 to 1.5 ft ( depending on weather conditions , its hot right now and water levels decrease each day ) .

I use 2 pumps for the 3 fountains.




At first it was just for aesthetics or some way to make the garden stand out with the pond and fountains, and I also love the sound of water from a fountain. But then I realized that it could be a haven for mosquito larvae so I decided to put 5 tilapia fishes to eat them =) I know tilapia fishes are meant to be eaten as food but this was only a temporary solution since I planned on replacing them when there were no longer problems with the pond. So after a few months, there are like 3 goldfish size tilapias and 6 small ones on my pond already. I don't like algae in the pond so I generally clean the water not longer than 20 days ( retaining at least 20 percent of the original water ). These tilapias are survivors and can survive on low oxygen and low food conditions but I want to replace them all with goldfish , or maybe goldfish with another kind/s of fishes.


Last week I bought 5 medium size goldfishes and I'm planning to slowly replace the tilapias * give them to somebody*. I have a couple of questions here hoping someone might be able to help me.


1. Based on my pond size, what is the max number of fishes that I can place there ?

2. Aside from goldfish , what other kinds of fish might be suitable for this kind of pond ?

3. Does the janitor fish help clean algae ?

4. Algae is a big problem , I have no idea putting some kind of filter since I don't space for it , or can i make a DIY or buy an underwater filter for the algae ? I haven't checked algaecides or used any chemicals for the pond yet. I have heard that barley can solve the algae problem , putting water plants . Or based on the pump image I attached, can I put some kind of filter in between that and the fountain ?

5. I see 2 goldfishes gasping for air sometimes and I'm worried about the oxygen levels. Or maybe the water is too dirty and needs to be cleaned perhaps ? Should the fountain pumps need to be turned on 24/7 or 10 - 15 hours is enough ? 1 goldfish actually died a few days ago and I was worried.

6. How often should I feed my fish ? I have fish pellets and would a spoonful be enough each day ?

7. Do I need an aquarium aerator aside from the pumls ?

8. Water decreases each day , I'm not sure if this is normal or not but I have already waterproofed the inside. Or maybe because the sun drieds up the pond ?

7. Any other ideas in pond decorations in the water ? To make it better place for the fishes to live ?

 

[addy1]

to our group

Stick with gold fish, shubunkins or even just rosey red minnows and not a lot of them.

If the fish are gasping, you need to run the pumps 24/7, it could be bad water, low o2 etc that makes them suck the surface. To keep the water clean a filter is what you need. If you change out that much water, make sure you dechlor it, if it city water.
Do you have a test kit? Have you checked you water for ammonia etc?

You should not feed more than they will eat in 5 minutes or so. Mine usually eat all I toss in, takes about 2 minutes.

Check the diy section for some easy and good filters to build.

 

[newbiepond]

max number of fishes for this pond size ?

 

[addy1]

That is 180-200 gallons, I would not put more than 5 fish in there.

 

[newbiepond]

So if I leave the 4 goldfishes there , I can't add like other fishes like 2 shibunkins or 4 red minnows ? I don't have a test kit but I'll purchase it this week. I think i overfeed them with pellets ( like 4 table spoons ) and because of the number of fishes there , that's why the algae grows so fast and makes the goldfishes difficult to breathe. I also don't get it when in an medium sized aquarium you can put a good number of fishes but in a pond setup its different ?

 

[addy1]

The goldfish and shubunkins will grow in size, you are preparing for that growth, also they will have babies. You can put in some shubunkins, rosey red minnows. Just get some filtration, keep up with the water testing, have your pumps run more or put in an aerator, (air pump). I have 11 small shubunkins in my deck pond, which is not big, but the water from the big pond cycles through it keeping the deck pond fresh.

I have over 150 goldfish shubunkins, they get one or two handfuls of food, which is around 3 tbs per handful. For that many fish you should be feeding a few pellets, a pinch of food. Watch and make sure they eat them up. The food will rot and cause a lot of the algae issues and poor water conditions.

 

[newbiepond]

I see you are totally right about the rotten food. My fishfood is placed inside a peterpan peanut butter container and I use the cover to measure the amount of fish food to be given , and now I know that its too much lol. And good thing you told me about the babies thing.

 

[addy1]

I started out with 4 fish, last spring,..............added some small (probably too small to breed fish) later in the summer. I have over 150 now lol. But I do have a lot of water room, a lot of the fry survived because of the low fish load and the water room.

That is way too much food, cut way back. I would do a partial water change, you might, most likely, have high ammonia readings.

 

[ididntdoit99]

You can easily add a filter to those water jet pumps.... even if it is just a sponge prefilter like this, you would have to rinse it out quite often, but it should just slide right onto the inlet of your little pump there. http://www.petmountain.com/product/...utm_medium=datafeed&utm_term=11442-521117

you might find them cheaper somewhere, i just posted the first link i found, google "powerhead prefilter" or "sponge prefilter"

 

[newbiepond]

Isee I just remembered bout filters in aquariums >>

 

[sissy]

welcome and with that pond being also a water feature i would down light it .I have been reading a lot on pond lights lately as mine leaked no matter how i sealed them .I have read that some even add to the bad water conditions i have used in pond lights and changed over from what I call winter lights that are regular low voltage ,I learned just how hot those lights get and that is why I was only using them in the winter and LED 's in the summer ..But was never satisfied with how fuzzy it made the water look and fish viewing was fuzzy also .So I got LED down lights and place them around the pond shining down on the water and what a difference it made in the look and quality of my water .I just bought cheap light housings and LED bulbs .

the bulbs were 18 dollars and the outdoor stake lights were 5 dollars

 

[newbiepond]

You can easily add a filter to those water jet pumps.... even if it is just a sponge prefilter like this, you would have to rinse it out quite often, but it should just slide right onto the inlet of your little pump there. http://www.petmounta...rm=11442-521117

you might find them cheaper somewhere, i just posted the first link i found, google "powerhead prefilter" or "sponge prefilter"

In the pump image above, the one that draws the water to the pump is the one at the bottom , right part is the outlet and it connects to a hose that connecets to the fountain and the front cover of the water "drawer" has been damaged but it still works. The other pump has 2 "outlets" and has 1 drawer. So basically you put the sponge filter and connect it with the water drawer ?

 

[ididntdoit99]

Yes to the inlet of the pump, so then your arent sucking a bunch of junk through your pump, it will also collect all of that stuff and filter your water. You could do some other sorts of filters, but as small as this pond is, I would start there and see how it works out.

 

[newbiepond]

Isee, I should probably make a DIY sponge filter that connects with the inlet , Im not sure if I can find that here. What do you guys think of barley ? Does it work ?

The pond is around 180 gallons ( more like 150 gallons because of the water loss daily ) and I'm planning to leave just 4 common goldfish there.

a. I'm worried about the waterloss in the pond , I'm not sure if there's a leak in the concrete or maybe it's because of the fountain running often ( evaporation ) ? Or should I install an aerator ?

b. If I don't check the ammonia levels and clean the water out of my pond every 15 - 20 days , will my fishes be ok ? I use chlorinated tap water , if I don't dechlorinate it is it safe ?

c. What kind of plants should i put ?

d. If I put gravel or sand , will I have a diffculty when cleaning the pond incase the algae grows ?

 

[sissy]

stay with peroxide ,same thing and not all the gunky funky mess barley makes .I Clean everything with it and then put it back in the pond .I also put some in a spray bottle and turn the pump off for awhile and spray and clean and scrub with a toilet bowl brush and then turn pump back on .Barley straw makes peroxide .