Discuss – This is because you are going to need to take the time to care for koi much like you need to take the time to care for pets. You want to be sure that your koi pond is a very healthy environment so that your Japanese carp will flourish.
You might be tempted to let Mother Nature, tend to your backyard
pond, and who could blame you? After all, she does a pretty good
job of taking care of really big ponds, so why would your
backyard ecosystem pose much of a challenge to her?
Unfortunately, the fact is your backyard pond is only going to
get some cursory attention from Mom; the rest of the work is
going to be left up to you.
In the “real world” chlorinated water doesn’t find its way into
ponds very often. “Big” pond water passes through a great many
natural filtration and oxygenation systems, and the various fish
and flora work together to keep the pond clean and fresh. Our
backyard ponds don’t have quite that much help, so here’s where
you need to step in:
If you are going to keep fish then you absolutely must remove all
traces of chlorine from your pond before your favorite Koi set up
housekeeping. Pond fish cannot live in chlorinated water so don’t
even try. There are many products available to remove chlorine
quickly, or you can opt for the old-fashioned, natural way if you
have the time to spend.
Discuss – Building a fish pond entails more work than just digging a hole in the ground, and filling it with water. The first thing individuals have to do is use a plastic lining to separate the ground from what to become the fish pond.
If you opt for ‘a la natural’ then expect to wait about 8 to 10
days for the chlorine to dissipate. You will need to make sure
that your pump and filter are running and that you have set up an
aerating method such as a waterfall or “splasher” to bring oxygen
into the water. Make sure that the pond is exposed to plenty of
sunlight (the natural enemy of chlorine), and use a chlorine
testing kit to check the water daily.
Me? I just drop some de-chlorinating product into the pond and
check back the next day.
Even if chlorine is totally removed, you still have nitrite and
ammonia to worry about. These two toxic buddies are byproducts of
fish waste and can wreak havoc with your Koi’s health. After a
while Mother Nature will kick in some help by allowing beneficial
bacteria colonies to develop that enjoy eating nitrite and
ammonia for breakfast, lunch and dinner. They won’t be present in
new ponds, however, unless you buy some bacteria starter kits to
kick start the process.
Discuss – Those who want to have plants on their fish pond should keep in mind that they should place their fish pond in a place where it can be exposed to great amount of sun light.
Your garden pond could become overtaxed, ecologically, if you add
too many fish too quickly. Start out adding no more than two per
week so that the newly introduced bacteria do not get overwhelmed
by the waste that will be produced.
Just when you think you’ve got it all under control that ugly
thing called “pH” raises its head. Testing for pH levels is also
very important since neither plants nor fish will survive very
long if the pond’s pH is out of whack. Your pH test kit should
show a reading of between 6.8 and 7.4. You can add the proper
chemicals to raise or lower if as neccessary.
Speaking of test kits, get one that will allow you to test the
pond’s salt levels as well. Unless you’re raising baby Sea bass,
too much salt is not a good thing.
After your pond is fully established, Mother Nature will lend a
bigger hand and you can settle into a routine of testing every
three of four weeks unless something serious, such as flooding,
has occurred in between.
Discuss – Including an assortment of plants inside the fish pond, and planting it around the edges will help manage and absorb the nutrients in the fish pond. Some water plants will also help to control the presence of algae.
Brett Fogle is the owner of MacArthur Water Gardens and several
other pond-related websites including
MacArthurWatergardens.com
and
href=”http://www.pond-filters-online.com”>Pond-Filters-Online.com. He
also publishes a free monthly
newsletter called PondStuff! with a reader circulation of over
9,000. To sign up for the free newsletter and receive our FREE
‘New Pond Owners Guide’ visit MacArthur Water Gardens today!
Filed under Koi Pond Maintenance, Koi Water Pond by on Jan 24th, 2009. Comment. 
Discuss – However, if you still do want to keep potted plants in your KOI pond, we recommend wrapping netting over the tops of the pots, to keep the fish from digging in the pots. Another thing you can do is to top the pots with 1′ of pea gravel, and then larger river stones or similar over that.
For many parts of the country, it’s getting to be that time of year again. Time to start thinking about getting your fish and plants ready for old man winter…
Every year, as the weather gets colder and we start heading into winter, many of our customers ask us how to prepare their ponds for winter. Pond owners should be aware of several simple things to do in preparing their ponds for colder months.
Fish and plants need very different things in the winter, but can be kept in top condition for the following season if the appropriate steps are taken (see related articles).
Fish should be fed less, floating annuals should be thrown out, potted hardy plants should be cut down and moved to the bottom of the pond, filters should be cleaned & drained, and pumps shut off.
Another good practice that we recommend is to do a partial pond cleaning and water change. It’s not necessary to drain the pond completely, but we recommend draining 25% – 50% of the water and net out or remove as much organic debris as possible (IE: leaves, plants, etc.)
The reason for this is because rotting leaves, dead plant material, and other organic wastes will give off toxic gasses as they decay during the winter. This can be especially dangerous if the pond is allowed to freeze over.
A thick layer of ice can easily form over the pond in sub-freezing temperatures, which can prevent these gasses from escaping from the pond. If allowed to build up, your fish will suffer. The most likely result will be a weakened immune system, and a more vulnerable fish you will have come spring time.
Anything you can do to reduce stress on your fish prior to and during winter, will pay off handsomely in the Spring. Your fish will be much more vibrant and healthy.
Another important reason not to let your pond ice-over is because the oxygen levels in the pond water can drop to dangerous levels. By keeping the pond surface from freezing over, or by at least keeping a 2′ – 3′ hole in the ice, you can eliminate or greatly reduce these dangers.
Oxygen levels should be maintained during winter if at all possible. If you have a standard aquarium air pump – plug it in outside and let it run all winter.
Discuss – There is no universal guidebook to use when building a Koi pond, be sure to keep in mind however the major differences between a Koi pond and a water garden and know which one you are truly wanting before you make the sizable investment of time, money, and energy. Be sure to consult a professional landscaper with extensive experience specifically with Koi ponds, as he will be aware of dangers that you may not be aware of as well as knowing where the best place to place the pond on your property would be.
We also recommend maintaining your salt levels during winter. This keeps your fish’s slime coat strong, and immune systems strong all winter long!
About The Author
Brett Fogle is the owner of MacArthur Water Gardens and several pond-related websites including macarthurwatergardens.com and pond-filters-online.com. He also publishes a free monthly newsletter called PondStuff! with a reader circulation of over 9,000 pond owners. To sign up for the free newsletter and receive a complimentary ‘New Pond Owners Guide’ for joining, just visit MacArthur Water Gardens at our website.
Filed under Koi Pond Maintenance by on Jan 3rd, 2009. Comment.
Discuss – There are also bubbling devices that can be placed in koi ponds to provide aeration if installing a waterfall is not practical. Especially in the bottom of the pool, koi pond aeration is a necessity, since this area is farthest from the surface.
It seems that there are always questions this time of year about winterizing plastic ponds. To begin with, clean out all the gunk (composed of fish and plant waste) at the bottom of the pond. Specialist garden catalogues have a little gizmo that attaches to a hose and when the hose is run, the gizmo acts like a vacuum cleaner, sucking debris from the bottom of the pond. Or, more simply move your pond pump to the pond bottom and direct the output to the ground and not the filter. If you don’t remove the plant debris, it will continue to decompose. Decomposition uses oxygen as one of its primary fuels and this means that oxygen will be taken from the water to fuel plant decomposition. If there is an ice-layer over the pond, and there will be shortly, the water will not be able to replace that oxygen and the pond will go into an anaerobic (without oxygen) state under the ice.
Discuss – Make sure that when constructing a natural pond, that you dig deep enough, so that the pond does not freeze over during winter. Also, consider what types of aquatic life you want to include in the pond before digging.
Now, you’ve never quite smelled something until you’ve taken a whiff of a pond that’s in that state. It is basically your very own backyard sewage system. Aside from getting rid of the smell, the reason you remove the bottom layers of material is so any fish you’re leaving in the pond will have enough oxygen to survive the winter. And survive they will as long as you stop feeding them when the water gets cold – the water (at less than 50F) is really too cold for them to feed and any food will simply rot. The fish will survive as long as the water doesn’t freeze solidly to the bottom of the pond. If the pond is three to four feet deep, it will not freeze and your fish will be fine. Shallower ponds will either have to have a bubbler, a pump left running to keep an open area open or the fish removed to an aquarium for the winter.
Discuss – Pick a design for the fish pond. First individuals would have to decide on the size of the pond they want to build.
But start with removing the gunk.
Doug Green, an award winning garden author, gardens and answers questions in his free gardening newsletter at http://www.water-gardens-information.com
Filed under Koi Pond Maintenance by on Nov 22nd, 2008. 3 Comments.