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Old 14-09-2004, 07:48 AM
jammer
 
Posts: n/a
Default Filtering out dirt and fish waste question,.building a small waterfall, fish dieing, help me?


I wish i were able to post captioned pictures but i am not.

Oh my, what a two weeks i have had. First let me say "hi!" to
everyone, i havent kept up with the group but no doubt will for a
while now again.

okie dokie...... I had the 70 gallon pond sitting in the ground with
only fish and no pump, filtration, etc. My fish were two years old and
big and happy...little clowns they were. Well, live and learn! I
pulled up a plant and i guess released the mulm into the water and my
3 fish went belly up. I have done at least a 75% water change since
then, but fish continue to die if left there but tend to recover if i
put them somewhere else. I have never had to worry about ph and stuff,
everyone was happy.

Here is what has changed:

I added about a 150 gallon raised preform that runs into the bottom
pond. I built a little waterfall to run into the new top pond and
dropped a 250gph pump into the bottom pond. This is when i notice
large dirt particles being circulated around. ('ll be cleaning it soon
but still...) I know i need a filter but what is the easiest/cheapest
way to go for my small set-up? A rubber maid tub with some sort of
material...... I can do a web search but what can i use that is fish
safe? I itch just thinking about insulation, anything easier to
handle/clean? And why are my fish ok in the top pond but not the
bottom?

On a sour note, My waterfall made the side of the pond tilt and most
of the water ran into the yard. Tomorrow i tear out the old and make
new. I DID have some fish in the bottom and so i had the pump running
in there but the fish got distressed so i removed 3 of the 4, turned
off the pump, and added all i had, a very very small bubbler. I dont
know if anyone will be alive tomorrow or not. The waterfall has to go
in a very small area between the pond and fence. I used rock and dirt
to make the slope, covered with liner hanging into the pond a bit, and
used flat rock to build 'er up. It was great until the whole thing
tilted...

I think i saw brown speckles on the gold heads of the distressed fish?
One that died last week looked like blood pooled in it's stomach.

?