CanadianCowboy wrote:

Don't let any "pond guys" tell you that you need this and that and
whatever to make your fish live.

Like Ann said :-)

There's not a lot of "pond guys" here will tell you that you need much
technology. I haven't even got that from my water gardening centres. It's
the landscapers you have to be careful about.

My pond is only 8 by 4 and less than 3 feet deep. I only have 1
waterfall and a spitting frog for water circulation. NO FILTER and
NOTHING ELSE. I was told I need a bio filter and yet I have not lost a
fish all summer of 2004. I have feeder goldfish and NOT KOI and they
still lived.

I should think! That's a huge pond for a few (even 50) feeder goldfish.
I've grown goldfish to 8" in 20 gallons of 3" deep water in a lotus tub,
without any kind of filtration or pumps (it was an accident - they get
there as eggs attached to plants from the main pond).

I get green water but I just replace the water every month
or so and get back the crystal clear water. I was told I need water
conditioners and yet my fish are healthy.

Never used them...

In the winter I was told to shut off my pumps and get a heater, either
floating or submersive. I just kept the pumps on and although the water
stopped flowing they generated enough heat to open up a hole and keep
the water from totally freezing. Winter is over and my fish are still
alive (over 50 of them) and they have gotten bigger.

There are those here who swear by heaters. More, I think, would recommend
an air pump - even in Toronto. I rather doubt it was the heat of the pump
that kept the whole open, it's the movement. Air pumps will do the same
for less power. Water pumps should be raised off the bottom if you do that,
to allow some still water at the lowest part of the pond.

If you have a limited budget you can maintain a pond
without spending a fortune. Fish live in natural surroundings and don't
need all the bells and whistles that pond people try to load on you.

This year I'm putting in a pond at an off-grid home. Technology, is _not_
an option :-)
--
derek