Questions about using well water for a koi pond.

[Angel22]

I'm setting up a Koi pond this summer and I'm not sure of how to do the Well water. Do I need certain chemicals or how to make it safe for Koi fish?

 

[MitchM]

You should have a water quality report from the well driller or municipality.
Once you have those results, you can address any adjustments that need to be made.

 

[carolinaguy]

Just remember that water has no dissolved oxygen, so spray it in when you add water.

The chemical water qual8ty report is crucial to make future water quality decisions. The pH might easily be 9.0, so you need to deal with that issue. I ve seen some locations where the well water is Brown from the iron content.

 

[Stephen Noble]

Is this your drinking water or well water used for a sprinkler system?
Stephen

 

[addy1]

Our well, drinking, has such a low ph and so soft I had to buffer it up. Didn't know that until I killed the first fish I put in. After the first fish kill I waited a year before I added more fish. Buffered up the hardness added plants got the ph stable then added fish.
So test your ph, hardness etc. Our ph is 5.4 and so soft I get no reading.

 

[carolinaguy]

pH at 5.4 isn’t good. Interferes with respiration. Baking soda with raise pH cheaply. Target 7.2.

 

[Gemma]

I have well water and a very high ph, my fish are doing just fine now that I stopped trying to lower it.

 

[sissy]

my well water can be different .My well is over 4 feet in the ground and not sure if that has something to do with it .If I take the sample straight from the hydrant it is 8 and if I take it from the house after the filter it can be 7 .But I have to get the sample after the filter back flush's everyday .If I get the sample 2 or 3 ours later it can be some times 7 .But even that can all change also from time to time .After long bouts of rain it can be 9 after at least 2 weeks of heavy rain in the spring .I take samples every month and write it down .I am amazed at the swings in ph .I get the fresh water tests off ebay .Some people around here with wells in the 200 foot deep range will get pink water from the clay or it can be rusty colored .Iron also in our water adds to the problem

 

[addy1]

pH at 5.4 isn’t good. Interferes with respiration. Baking soda with raise pH cheaply. Target 7.2.

baking soda never got the ph to stabilize. I added crushed oyster shells and plants, let the pond run for months fishless. The next spring the ph was a nice 7.7 plus minus.

 

[carolinaguy]

Baking soda just brings the pond back in range. We Measure pH every Saturday, just once a week, and if we see a dip to 7.0 or 7.1 we add a couple pounds and the pond is good for weeks or until the next torrential acid rain. We used to make plaster of Paris nuggets with egg containers, but baking soda is cheap and easy. 13,5 pounds for six bucks at sams club, and it lasts for months.

 

[addy1]

I found it easier to fix the hardness and ph and never need to worry about it again. I use rain water to help with water changes and the rain water is a low ph. But even with torrential rains the ph now stays just fine.
I used to check after hard rains, it stayed just fine.

 

[sissy]

I put 4 feet and meant 400 feet must be the heat and humidity getting to me

 

[addy1]

I put 4 feet and meant 400 feet must be the heat and humidity getting to me

lol I was wondering about that. We have no clue how deep ours is.

 

[sissy]

I know from the well driller and when we had to pull the pump to replace it .I still have the bill and measured it when we pulled it and the pipe was 422 feet so figured the well was around 450 feet deep because of the codes .here

 

[addy1]

Ours has not needed replacement, so far, shouldn't say that lol. We did not do inspections when we bought the house, figured we could fix whatever was wrong.

Found the septic tank and lines while digging the pond, ran right into them.

 

[sissy]

The house was new when all this was done so we had all the info and he told us pumps normally only last 10 to 15 years because of going on and off .I then found out the bigger the pressure tank is the less the well pump has to work less .I put in a bigger pressure tank and put in the new welltrol brand .Which is the best out there and also found out just like a water heater they should be flushed to get rid of dirt in them .I have learned a lot with the help of you tube and looking on the internet

 

[addy1]

We bought a new pressure tank, on honies list to do.

 

[MitchM]

Just remember that water has no dissolved oxygen, so spray it in when you add water.

..

I don't agree with that.
Well or tap water will have a buildup of CO2 though, because bacteria are active as they consume various nutrients.
Most bacteria require oxygen to survive.
PH will rise as tap or well water is aerated because the CO2 buildup is equalized with the above ground air.

 

[Lisak1]

Just remember that water has no dissolved oxygen

What now?

 

[addy1]

PH will rise as tap or well water is aerated because the CO2 buildup is equalized with the above ground air.

I need to test that. I know when I pull our tap water it is 5.4 or so, last time I tested it. I do spray the water via the garden hose into the pond. It sort of waterfalls into the pond. But with the volume of the pond the low ph water going in doesn't harm it.