Rocks on bottom?

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are there any reasons to not put river rocks on the bottom? I thought it might help me see the fish - maybe create filtration?
 
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You will get a variety of opinions on this topic! I think it comes down to personal preference. I am in the pro rocks group. I like mine and I do think they provide more surface area for beneficial bacteria. Others feel that they collect gunk and muck and make it hard to clean out debris. I do think having a skimmer helps me avoid debris dropping to the bottom. If I didn't have the skimmer and had a lot sticks and leaves to scoop out, I might be less fond of my rocks.
Share some pictures of your pond - or sketches of your plans, if the pond is in progress. We love pictures! :)
 
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I will when I can! My liner failed so I think we’re gonna redo some things as part of replacing it. Add shelves (its slippery and steep on all sides at the moment), maybe add a dugout for a filter and skimmer? It has neither and the amount of leaves is a lot…. It was part of the house when we bought it, could easily have been made 30 or 40 years ago….
 
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As bagsmom mentioned; there's various opinions. It's true that rocks on the bottom make it harder to clean out--unless you don't have any buildup of debris! It's true you CAN see your fish 'easier', but once they get covered by algae, it'll be the same as algae on liner--unless you don't get algae on every surface in your pond! It's true rocks on the bottom give more surface area for bacteria to colonize, unless...uh no, there is no unless for this one! Totally true. Now, if you have a bog type filter that is adequately sized, you won't need to depend on this extra surface area for colonization.

And rocks on the bottom are best 'seen' in the shallower parts of your pond, or you have SUPER clear water (bog filtration again), then you'll see down to the bottom for miles. Right GB??

So, there, debate has begun! Think of it this way too; IF you really want rocks on the bottom, just do it, but if you ever think you'll regret it, well, don't call on the OTG to come help get them out. Not in our job description!

You may ask; so what does brokensword have on the bottom of HIS pond? I like breaking rules, so I have SOME larger rocks (for UW cam considerations/view) and a thin layer of pea gravel (for the reasons YOU are thinking!) plus fake logs, plant pots empty or filled. But I don't get debris in my pond, don't need a skimmer, and have a large bog.

Jus' sayin'!
 
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This is the Cadillac build for bogs.
Then you have the simpler pea stone bog
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/thr...upflow-filter-eco-filter-wetland-filter.6894/

And yes my pond is 6 feet deep WITH rock and you can see a dime or penny sitting on the bottom surrounded by rock the same size. But one thing that is rarely mentioned about the biological filters vs also having stone in the pond is All life like to have food ,Oxygen and most like sun to be in that equation. CERTAIN STRAINS OF BACTERIA, Micro organisms and algae absolutely thrive when you have all three. The biological Bog filter while i agree works fantastic for me. I feel the surface area in the pond that is in the light is key to round off the ecological balance of the pond This video was after I had a water leak due to Excessive PLANT GROWTH and 5 koi three large two medium and some babies had there Collection pond dry up and died. The ammonia shot up as I was traveling and didn't get to it for a couple weeks . The bog was able to handle the load, i did get an algae spike as well but i lost no fish in the main pond. Do i promote the bog OH YEAH . BEST PART IS the only maintenance is pulling out plants as they over grow the bog and in the fall cutting them back .
 
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This is very interesting but i’m not sure it would be practical for my 8x8 pond. There’s basically no room to expand in any direction. I also have a lot of leaves falling in and it has no skimmer so i figured adding that would be a top priority. would a skimmer and bio filter be a lot more work? We currently have a bio filter just before the waterfall.
 
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My pond is bare liner, no rocks. I also have a bottom drain that keeps the bottom clean of debris. Putting in rocks would defeat the purpose of the bottom drain.
 
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This is very interesting but i’m not sure it would be practical for my 8x8 pond. There’s basically no room to expand in any direction. I also have a lot of leaves falling in and it has no skimmer so i figured adding that would be a top priority. would a skimmer and bio filter be a lot more work? We currently have a bio filter just before the waterfall.
if you're only getting leaves mainly in the fall, just use a close weave net; saves you a lot of labor and water issues. Re bog filtration; you COULD do something where you actually go OVER your pond with a raised box. Would be some engineering but not onerous. The benefit is your bog box would already be high enough and you'd get a lot of good waterfall/water movement from it. Look at what a bog filter is/does and you'll see what you have 'before the waterfall' is puny in comparison (for effect and size thereof). If you have green water, murky water, lots of algae, a bog can eliminate much of that, along with some pond floating plants, not over stocking or over feeding. A skimmer will help as long as the leaves make it that far and don't sink before hand. If you have a lot of leaves, a skimmer can get overwhelmed.

And GB's vids tend to be on the 'largesse' side; a bog can be almost any size and ALWAYS helps, but the aim is 30% of the pond volume, there abouts, give or take.
 
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I did try netting it one year, and it was a problem because of the surface area - the net was designed to be flat over the pond, but I couldnt' remove the leaves as they fell and it sank into the pond - - so I bought a heavy duty net over a frame built like a tent to put up this year, and did not get around to it..... Oooops.

I'm amazed my fish have done so well...I am not giving them optimal care. but I intend to redo the whole thing this summer. I'm looking seriously into the bogs. I like the idea of an elevated one on the rim for the water plants.

I'm having trouble finding much about smaller bog builds...
 
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I did try netting it one year, and it was a problem because of the surface area - the net was designed to be flat over the pond, but I couldnt' remove the leaves as they fell and it sank into the pond - - so I bought a heavy duty net over a frame built like a tent to put up this year, and did not get around to it..... Oooops.

I'm amazed my fish have done so well...I am not giving them optimal care. but I intend to redo the whole thing this summer. I'm looking seriously into the bogs. I like the idea of an elevated one on the rim for the water plants.

I'm having trouble finding much about smaller bog builds...
search for 'planter bogs'; those tend to be smaller but the principles are the same, just the size container different, and of course, hoses, pumps, to be commensurate with the size you need. For instance, I have a temporaray 'mini bog' in my basement for overwintering turtles in a 1000 gallon pool. Made it with a 3'x2'x8" mortar box (plastic), cut and shaped a weir on one side, overhanging the pool. I'm using 1-1/2" flex and solid pvc because I have it laying around. The whole bog concept is pretty easy and comparable to a store bought box filter, but you have LOTS more of the imporant stuff; the biomedia for the bacteria to grow on and lots of room for plants.
 
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I don't know if this is exactly what you would want to do, but it might have some helpful ideas?
watch
 

addy1

water gardener / gold fish and shubunkins
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@mrsclem built some real nice planter bogs, she will chime in with a link to her thread.

Here is a link to her build

 
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Bagsmom, Great video! Thank you for posting

On the topic of adding rocks, I recently had a horrible problem with inexplicably high pH of 8.5 in an aquarium. Turns out, it was the gravel I was using, which had a high concentration of marble in it. Marble hardens the water and can cause the pH to spike. From now on, before adding rocks to any fish inhabited water, I will test them first by leaving them in water overnight to see if that changes the parameters. Just a thought.
 

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