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#1
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Murky pond...
Hello all - first post here.
We moved into our first home in September last year and have inherrited a pond in the back garden that is about 2m x 3m. It has a dead looking lilly pad, a load of pond-type water plants, a few frogs and a fair few fish. For the past 5 months the water has been clear but the last month it has gone really murky with brown/fury sludge appearing on the rocks. There is also some foam/bubbles appearing where the water from the pump flows back into the pond. There is also a shed load of frog spawn. I cleaned the pond filter in january and I also removed loads of the pond-type water plants - will this be the reason for the watern being cloudy now? I've done a course of Interpet Pond Health Test Kit with all results coming back normal and I've done a course of Interpet Pond Balance (clears blanket weed) all to no availe. I also found a pooly fish a week or so ago tha looks like it's fins and gills had some sort of fungus infection that killed it. Can anyone help with clearing the water and getting the pond back to a healthy balance agin - we'd like to keep it as we want to encourage more wildlife into the garden. Thanks. |
#2
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Murky pond...
Sounds like you have too many nutrients in the pond.
Spring is here and algae is growing. The biggest contributer to nutrients in the pond is fish waste. The foamy water is probably due to the frog spawn. I would remove some fish and some of the frog spawn. You can set up a kiddy pool with some of the algae growth for the frog spawn in a shady spot in the yard. k :-) |
#3
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Murky pond...
Bootfit wrote:
Hello all - first post here. We moved into our first home in September last year and have inherrited a pond in the back garden that is about 2m x 3m. It has a dead looking lilly pad, a load of pond-type water plants, a few frogs and a fair few fish. For the past 5 months the water has been clear but the last month it has gone really murky with brown/fury sludge appearing on the rocks. There is also some foam/bubbles appearing where the water from the pump flows back into the pond. There is also a shed load of frog spawn. I cleaned the pond filter in january and I also removed loads of the pond-type water plants - will this be the reason for the watern being cloudy now? Def. not helping. Plants use up the nutrients in the water. More info on pump and filter installed please. -- Pete C London UK |
#4
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Murky pond...
Bootfit wrote:
Hello all - first post here. Welcome! We moved into our first home in September last year and have inherrited a pond in the back garden that is about 2m x 3m. It has a dead looking lilly pad, a load of pond-type water plants, a few frogs and a fair few fish. For the past 5 months the water has been clear but the last month it has gone really murky with brown/fury sludge appearing on the rocks. There is also some foam/bubbles appearing where the water from the pump flows back into the pond. There is also a shed load of frog spawn. I cleaned the pond filter in january and I also removed loads of the pond-type water plants - will this be the reason for the watern being cloudy now? Could be. You need to test the water for ammonia, KH, pH, & nitrites. What is the water temp? If ammonia is zero, do a 10% water change (take 10% out, add 10% back in with proper dechlorinator or ammonia binder plus dechlor if water source is treated). Do the 10% water change every day or every other day till the water clears. Then do it once/week. http://www.vcnet.com/koi_net/H2Oquality.html ~ jan ------------ Zone 7a, SE Washington State Ponds: www.jjspond.us |
#5
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Murky pond...
On Sun, 30 Mar 2008 18:14:56 EDT, Bootfit
wrote: Hello all - first post here. We moved into our first home in September last year and have inherrited a pond in the back garden that is about 2m x 3m. It has a dead looking lilly pad, a load of pond-type water plants, a few frogs and a fair few fish. I usually work with gallon figures, since that is what I need to treat the water, so many ounces of treatment for so many gallons of water. For the past 5 months the water has been clear but the last month it has gone really murky with brown/fury sludge appearing on the rocks. There is also some foam/bubbles appearing where the water from the pump flows back into the pond. There is also a shed load of frog spawn. Pretty typical this time of year. The water usually clears in winter and begins to go South when the water warms and frogs and toads begin to appear. I cleaned the pond filter in january and I also removed loads of the pond-type water plants - will this be the reason for the watern being cloudy now? About what I did too, and my pond is not only murky, but beginning to show green color along with the murky look. I was hoping my new filter wouldn't have to be cleaned so often and plants would take enough nutrients out of the water, so I wouldn't need to use the bucket filter with quilt batting to keep the algae down so I can see the fish. I've done a course of Interpet Pond Health Test Kit with all results coming back normal and I've done a course of Interpet Pond Balance (clears blanket weed) all to no availe. Not familiar with that treatment. I've used Alum (aluminum sulfate) with good results although temporary, and the latest, one by PondCare named Algifix. Chemical solutions to clear a pond are temporary at best. Alum will kill algae and cause it to clump in masses on the bottom and if not removed will rot and release the nutrients it absorbed to grow back into the water again. I think all chemical remedies for green or murky water are similar and require repeated treatments. I also found a pooly fish a week or so ago tha looks like it's fins and gills had some sort of fungus infection that killed it. I'm like most of the others here who don't want to make a guess, but the plants should have been removed before being killed by the cold and decaying in the water. The water lily can simply be pruned and left on the bottom, but floating plants should be removed in winter and replaced in spring when the water begins to warm. Some plants begin to grow at 40F, but most really get going when the water reaches about 70F. Plants absorb some nutrients that the filter action leaves behind, at least that is the theory. Water quality goes down when things are left in the pond to decay and parasites wake in the spring about the same time the fish's immune system is beginning to come back online and sometimes the parasites and disease kill fish this time of year. If water quality isn't good that can happen any time of the year, but this is the beginning of the battle for this year at my house. Can anyone help with clearing the water and getting the pond back to a healthy balance agin - we'd like to keep it as we want to encourage more wildlife into the garden. Okay the first part is filter, clean filters clean debris off the bottom and add plants to help absorb nutrients that algae feeds on. The theory being that nutrients absorbed by larger plants will take away nutrients needed by algae. That may not be totally correct, but it seems to work. About wildlife in a fishpond. If you want healthy fish, you need to remember fish have a toilet bowl existence and wildlife just brings in more ammonia. Fish in the wild live in more gallons of water per fish. Birds carry parasites in their droppings and they drop where they drink. IMHO a wildlife pond should be much bigger than a garden fish pond and I see a big difference. I have no experience with a wildlife pond and try to keep fish in mine. Good luck! -- Hal Middle Georgia, Zone 8 http://tinyurl.com/2fxzcb |
#6
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Murky pond...
On Sun, 30 Mar 2008 18:14:56 EDT, Bootfit wrote:
There is also some foam/bubbles appearing where the water from the pump flows back into the pond. There is also a shed load of frog spawn. ........... http://weloveteaching.com/puregold/more2.html#spawning I cleaned the pond filter in january and I also removed loads of the pond-type water plants - will this be the reason for the watern being cloudy now? .... getting rid of the plants did not help your pond. put them back in or better build a veggie filter for the pond. Ingrid |
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