Questions about my next pond

[Jimmy Gibson]

Is your new pond at a higher elevation than your existing pond......Jimmy

 

[bagsmom]

Is your new pond at a higher elevation than your existing pond......Jimmy

It's hard to say for sure. It's way at the back of the property, though. I think it might be lower, technically. My existing pond is out front.

 

[bagsmom]

I just got a fun book in the mail. Building Natural Ponds: Create a Clean, Algae-free Pond without Pumps, Filters, or Chemicals. By Robert Pavlis. I'm excited to read it!

 

[j.w]

Let us know how they do it @bagsmom as if it is possible I might like to do it.

 

[bagsmom]

So far, the introduction is interesting. The author has degrees in chemistry and biology and he was intrigued with the idea that everything he read about ponds said that you must have mechanical filtration and moving water -- but there are ponds and lakes without it that do just fine out in nature. He says balance is key and allowing nature to do its thing. Having enough plants is important and not having too many fish and not feeding at ALL is important, too. I will be the guinea pig on this! I will say, my two still water container gardens have beautifully clear water. I need to get in and pull out some of the overgrown plants, but they are doing great and have no smell whatsoever. No water changes either.
Interestingly enough, I just talked with a friend who is going to take her pond OUT of the yard. It has had a leak that they've not been able to find, so the pump has been turned off for TWO YEARS. She said the water is clear and the fish are great! And they have so many amphibians, the yard sounds like Louisiana at night. (Her words.). They want to put a patio and fire pit in place of the pond. She said it is a shame, since it's doing very well.

 

[Tula]

Well, maybe they'll just hop on over to your new pond !

 

[j.w]

I do have a bathtub pond w/no filter and just a little aquarium air pump bubbling a little. I refresh it tho w/water on a timer every day in Summer. Just top it off,not a full refill. I noticed a few tadpoles and a frog in there the other day. I also have my little duck weed pond and it stays clear I guess. You can't see anything as the whole top is full of duckweed. I'm sure the frogs use that one also.

 

[bagsmom]

Why not fathead minnows, a.ka. Rosy Reds?

Any suggestions on the best place to get these? I wouldn't want a gazillion, and would like them to be healthy, if possible. I don't know if they are only sold as feeder fish, and in large quantity?
Can you see I'm putting the cart before the horse? (Or the fish before the pond?). LOL

 

[bagsmom]

I do have a bathtub pond w/no filter and just a little aquarium air pump bubbling a little. I refresh it tho w/water on a timer every day in Summer. Just top it off,not a full refill. I noticed a few tadpoles and a frog in there the other day. I also have my little duck weed pond and it stays clear I guess. You can't see anything as the whole top is full of duckweed. I'm sure the frogs use that one also.

I was looking on Amazon and found some air stone "bubblers" with small solar panels. It's nice to know that's an option if I decide I need some aeration!

 

[Jimmy Gibson]

It's hard to say for sure. It's way at the back of the property, though. I think it might be lower, technically. My existing pond is out front.

My point in asking is..... if the new pond was a higher elevation you could tap into the pressure side of your pump and temporarily put a valve and hose to your new pond and let gravity feed back via a hose....it would give you a little water flow to your new pond to keep it from stagnation and also benefit from all the plants eating all the “Nasty “..... that your fish produce...... this could be tested by using water hoses.....just a thought

 

[bagsmom]

@Jimmy Gibson -- that's a great idea and one I would totally consider if the set up was right. But the new pond is lower (we checked) and quite a long way away from the existing pond. Our lot is long and skinny.
PS -- I LOVE Tennessee! My favorite state! If I won the big lottery I'd want to buy up a bunch of land in the Smokies and keep safe from development. Spent many childhood summers in Townsend, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge -- before anything was even there.

 

[EricV]

Any suggestions on the best place to get these? I wouldn't want a gazillion, and would like them to be healthy, if possible. I don't know if they are only sold as feeder fish, and in large quantity?
Can you see I'm putting the cart before the horse? (Or the fish before the pond?). LOL

I can get them at my pond store at 3x the price of the pet stores that sell them more as feeders. But if that was the only thing you are putting in your pond, why worry too much about feeders. You can quarantine them in a tub for a few weeks if you like

 

[Lisak1]

Sounds like you've moved away from the mosquito fish (gambusia) idea, but I wanted to add this for future readers - Meyer Jordan, who shared so much great pond knowledge with us here - quoted some research on a few occasions that showed that mosquito fish don't really do all that much for mosquitoes. It's rather a myth that has somehow managed to become a "fact". If I can find one of his posts, I'll link it here.

 

[Lisak1]

Here we go - I apparently quoted him in another post, so here is me quoting him!

"Here it is. @Meyer Jordan posted this when the question came up about the value of adding gambusia to a pond:

Although the use of Gambusia (Mosquito fish) has been touted by many to be a good specie for the control of mosquito larvae, the facts do little to support this claim. In truth, common Goldfish and even Koi offer more complete control as they are able to prey on the largest of mosquito larvae. Add to this the fact that Gambusia much prefer dining on the zooplankton in a body of water, the eggs and larvae of other fish and even their own young actually imparts more negativity to the impact that they have on an aquatic environment. Often in ponds that have a large population of Gambusia (there is no other size due to their rapid rate of reproduction), Green Water conditions are more likely to occur and be more severe because of the absence of the zooplankton that utilize algae as food.
These two (2) links will provide the complete factual picture of these most troublesome fish."

http://www.gambusia.net/

https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.aspx?SpeciesID=846

 

[bagsmom]

@Lisak1 - thank you! I sort of remembered something like that. That gambusia were a bad idea - thank you for verifying!
@EricV - you are right - if nobody else is in the pond, I guess I don't have anything to lose with feeder minnows.
Now I just need to find a pile of money under the bed and I can get going!!!!