I have a liner pond about 5ft * 3ft and at max about 18ins deep. 6 fish plus one lily some oxygenating plants also bulrushes and 3 marginals. There appears to be a dust like substance covering the plants and all lower surfaces of the pound. Using a commercial product called Sludge Buster, this sinks the dust but not completely it certainly does not eradicate the problem. This dust is easily disturbed. I have not got a external filter but have a small fountain to help circulate the water. What suggestions are there to resolve this problem? Regards.

"Sitting Bull" wrote in message
...

I have a liner pond about 5ft * 3ft and at max about 18ins deep. 6 fish
plus one lily some oxygenating plants also bulrushes and 3 marginals.
There appears to be a dust like substance covering the plants and all
lower surfaces of the pound. Using a commercial product called Sludge
Buster, this sinks the dust but not completely it certainly does not
eradicate the problem. This dust is easily disturbed. I have not got a
external filter but have a small fountain to help circulate the water.
What suggestions are there to resolve this problem? Regards.
==============================================
I would think a good filter would remove it. Start with a fine filter
material such as polyester fiber to trap most of it. Without a filter there
is nothing to remove suspended particles from the water so eventually they
sink to the bottom. They will collect everywhere.
--
McKoi.... the frugal ponder...
~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o

Dust and dirt blow into the pond.
Just a fact of pond life. A natural pond, over
its life cycle is meant to fill in, so your pond
is just doing what comes naturally.

A mechanical filter consists of some kind of
substance to catch all the mulm. A good way
to include one in your pond is to build a waterfall
and set the mechanical (usually comes in combination
with a bio filter - a second set of screens or bio balls
for the growth of benefical bacteria to convert fishy
ammonia) - okay, where was I... set the filter
up behind the water fall. Water goes from the pump
to the filter and then out to the waterfall.

A skimmer can also help keep the water clean
and a bottom drain, even retro-fitted helps with
cleaning the pond.

That said... which seems like a lot of work ;-)
that said, we have a big stock tank at the back
of our waterfall (no skimmer or bottom drain).
The water goes in the bottom and out the top.
We have used black vinyl screening to catch mulm.
Right now we put water hyacinth in the top. The
roots catch the mulm, the plant filters the water.

And we attempt to clean out the bottom of the
pond each spring.

Hope that gives you some ideas. But the 'dust' is
a natural part of the pond.

good luck!

kathy :-)
www.blogfromthebog.com
this week - turtles!

On 2 May 2005 08:04:12 -0700, "kathy" wrote:

Hope that gives you some ideas. But the 'dust' is
a natural part of the pond.
kathy :-)

It is also more common and irritating in a new pond. Those with older ponds
have a coat of fine algae and big fish that move dust (house keeping)
towards the pump or bottom drain. ~ jan www.jjspond.us

~Power to the Porg, Flow On!~