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i put a dye in my pond, it was blue, the water brown, (muddy)
(new pond) not it’s turned the water a green.
If I used your blue dye u sell , will it turn the green to blue?
Thanks,
Ralph
Hi Ralph – With a new pond, it’s really hard to say what color the water will turn with the addition of dye. Because you previously used blue, it will probably turn a similar color until the pond has a chance to settle.
Hello. Really enjoy the blog…lots of great info here.
I bought a house on 23 acres in central Missouri five years ago. It has a pond which I estimate to be between 3/4 to one acre in size. The year after I moved in it was taken over by duckweed. I went to the farmstore and they gave me Tsunami DQ. Although it kills the visible duckweed, it continues to return with a vengeance. Re application just continues the cycle and costs me 300 dollars (minimum) a year. Mid-summer comes and there is no stopping it.
The pond is a focal point from our deck out back and the duckweed makes the beautiful pond look like a swamp. I put in five grass carp (after checking Mo laws) and still nothing. It has already this year covered the edges of the bank as I type this entry. Any ideas?
Hi Wade – Grass Carp typically take 1-2 years before you will notice less vegetation in your pond. Do you have an aeration system in your pond? Duckweed prefers to grow quiet, undisturbed water. Aeration Systems give the water enough agitation that duckweed is kept to a minimum. We offer a free mapping service for our aeration systems. Just give us a call at 866-766-3435.
The other product to consider is Sonar AS. Sonar AS is a season long herbicide that will kill duckweed and many other common pondweeds.
I do not have an aereation system. The pond has pretty good flow in/out. Are you saying that the Grass Carp may be an effective tool to rid the pond of duckweed? It seems everyone around me claims that is how they keep their duckweed down.
Will the Sonar KILL the duckweed in my pond and possibly rid it until it is carried back in later or will I have to reapply every year?
Thanks, Appreciate the info.
Hi Wade – Yes, grass carp can be an effective tool to rid ponds of duckweed, but like I said, it can take up to 2 years before that happens. Yes, Sonar will kill the duckweed and then prevent growth for the season. Additional applications will need to be made in following years. Please note, if you have any outflow, Sonar will not be as effective. We also recommend using Pond Dye to protect the active ingredients for degrading. Pond Dye also helps you to determine the amount of dilution is happening in your pond.
I had a successful summer with my pond this past summer. I just can’t sit back and let my plant life die and then start all over again next year. I bought an inflatable pool, 8′ feet around. I’ve brought in most all the plant life. I have 5 tropical Lilly plants & all of them have 4 blooming flowers. I have many grow lites on them. I have a filtering pump & a fountain pump circulating the water. I bought some new koi and put them in also. So far so good.
Is there anything that you can suggest to give these plants a chance. I have been told that this probably won’t work but I still want to try.
This pool is in a heated garage & I have a heater & a thermometer to manage the water. No chemicals yet.
THANKX. Jim.
Well, you know that your plants need sunlight, nutrients and water to survive. If you plan on keeping your plants active and alive you will have to provide ample amounts of sunlight (most likely from grow lamps) and regularly dose the water with liquid fertilizer. You can also try to create a mini ecosystem by moving some of your fish into the indoor pond as they contribute to the nutrient load…they however will increase the need for aeration, circulation and may outproduce your plants filtration capacity.
Me and my wife have a 9,000 gallon pond with 18 koi fish. Our pond was very clear over the winter seasons by simply adding a cup or two of baking soda. When summer came it turned green (Swamp green). We have two 4 ft. water falls that give a lot of flow and circulation along with an assortment of plants for oxygen. I clean out the filters about 2 or 3 times a week but is still stays green. I am so lost on how to turn it nice and clear again! Advise? Please?
While baking soda may have kept your water clear over winter, it does nothing to break down the organic debris that are left to accumulate. Ponds have a habit of greening up coming out of winter as the cooler water temperatures have done away with most of your organic eating beneficial aerobic bacteria. Also, regularly cleaning out your biological filters means you are cleaning away any beneficial bacteria that may have formed. There a couple of things you can do to keep your pond clean and clear for your spring transition.
1) When water temperatures drop below 50 degrees, apply a cool water bacteria like Pond Logic Seasonal Defense. These guys stay active throughout the cooler months to help break down debris and remove organics.
2) When you do your spring start-up, do an initial cleaning and inspection of your biological (pressurized / waterfall) filter media, add some PL Gel to your filter pads to inject bacteria, and leave them be so they can collect bacteria colonies. If you are sucking up a lot of algae & debris that clog the media pad, cover your pump with a PumpBuddy pre-filter to catch it before it makes its way to your media pads.
3) Shade your pond. Your water is typically clear coming out of Winter. This allows the sun to shine right to the bottom of your pond which stimulates weed and algae growth. Install shade structures (plants, trees, decor, etc) around the pond to limit sun exposure, or add some Pond Logic Pond Shade to the water to give it a sun-restricting tint.
To help get your pond back into shape faster, you will want to perform a 15-20% water change to remove some of that green water and organic debris. Refill your pond and, if you have fish, add some Stress Reducer PLUS to neutralize your tap/well water. Once your water temperatures are above 50 degrees again you can switch back over to a warm weather bacteria like Nature’s Defense which is included in the DefensePAC along with your other pond maintenance products.
Over night, something came to my pond and ate fourteen of my fish! What do you think came? I feel like it’s a raccoon or cat, but I really don’t know! How can I prevent this, and who do you think did this?
Raccoon are common nighttime predators but we would be at best guessing without more details. Pond netting works well to keep a wide variety of predators out of your pond. Fish shelters will also give your fish a place to hide from predators. Since your pond seems to be a nighttime target, installing a few Nite Guard Solar units should do the trick. We know it is hard to tell, but look for prints or animal droppings to help I.D. your predator.
hello pond guy,
we have a 1100 gallon pond with 7 smal koi. the pond measures 12 ft by 6 ft by 2 ft deep. We have finally gotten the pond correct with all filters, aeration etc…we did put salt in the pond about a month ago for issues we had and treated the pond due to a very sick fish we had to remove from pond. all the other fish are fine now. my question now is we just reciently had a large amount of rain. does rain affect the water conditions and should we add a little more salt? how do i test the amount of salt that is possibly still in the pond. do not want to over do the salt. do they make a salt tester ? thank you so much in advance. also we are using a pool filter/ pump in the pond and since we added it the water is sooo clear and all water tests are perfect(before the rain of course).
Hello Lynn,
Yes the rain water can dilute the salt level in the pond. We finally offer a salt test meter that can help you out with the task at hand: http://www.thepondguy.com/product/3609
It resembles a large glass thermometer. You simply toss it in the water and it will float at a certain height (depending on the level of salt in the water). Whatever marking the water level is at will be your measured salt level.
Be careful with the pool filter. Most of them use sand which we strongly advise against. The reason being that as debris get trapped in the filter’s sand, the water will start to channel and can become trapped in “pockets”. These pockets will hold water and let it stagnate which is a perfect breeding ground for disease. Sand filters are great for catching debris but they are only practical for pools because you use chlorine and other chemicals to kill all of the bad stuff in the water. You can’t do that in a pond without killing all of your plants and fish.
If the filter uses beads you are ok. High end koi ponds regularly utilize bead filters. They work the same way as sand but allow for easy flushing/cleaning of the bead media to release trapped debris.
I somehow recieved your catalog in the mail; was very surprised to see you have a product which removes muck from the pond. I will admit I’m still skeptical. I have about a 1 acre pond; over the yrs have noticed the muck build up on the east end. thought I had to drain it an dredge it. If your product works I will be a very happy dude. I know nothing on pond maintenance; have used grass carp and copper sulfate in past for weed control. Pond is spring fed; water level is pretty constant even during hot summers.
I have a half acre pond, everything was going good for about two years. Then my pond started having a green slime over the top of it. The slime looked thick but its not. I have about 2000 catfish in there and they started dying. I lost about 100 so far. I feed them every day with about 5 lbs of food. What could be wrong with them?
From the sounds of it you may have a lot of organic waste in your pond that have been accumulating in your pond for two years. All of those fish and the daily helpings of fish food means there is a lot of fish waste in the water. That waste accumulates and turns into algae food and parts of that waste can start harming your fish in high concentrations. To help improve your pond you will want to eliminate some of that waste and create a balanced environment. The best way to go about this is to install an aeration system to get a lot of air into the pond and circulate the entire water body. The oxygen will help natural aerobic bacteria eat up some of the decaying organic buildup in the pond. If you can help it try to limit your feedings to once a week so they are not creating as much waste. This will give you an opportunity to catch up and you don’t have to worry about your fish starving as they will find bugs and other things to munch on if they get hungry. Also, you will want to add more beneficial bacteria to help break down all of that accumulated muck and dissolved organics in the water. Pond Logic offers a package of the products called the ClearPAC you would want to add to your pond to balance the water out. Since you have catfish I would suggest either buying a ClearPAC without Algae Defense or testing your carbonate hardness before treating with Algae Defense to make sure it doesn’t bother your fish.
How do I get rid of a blue herion coming to my pond? It ate up all my fish I think.
Hi John,
Heron Decoys work well as long as they are not placed during mating season and are moved often.
Is Karmex unsafe for use in a pond where kids are swimming? Also, if it is safe, what is the wait time before they can go in?
Hi Nancy,
This product is not approved for aquatic use and should not be used under any circumstances for ponds. If you are looking to treat algae or weeds try an aquatic approved chemicals like Algae or Pond Weed Defense. Neither of these products have swimming restrictions though I always reccomend to wait 24 hrs so you are not in direct contact with concentrated chemical.
I need to reduce the algae Chara from swimming ares and reduce the muck. Do algeasides ship to Vermont? If not can you ship to NY or MA? I have close relitives that I could drive to to pick up a delivery.
Hi Cherie,
We can ship to Vermont. Would reccomend Algae Defense for algae pending you do not have koi or trout and Pond Clear and Muck Away to reduce the muck in the pond.
I noticed your truck and service people working on a pond near my home and stopped to talk with them. I was ecstatic to hear about the company! I’ve been trying to get answers about pond maintence for years. I’m looking forward to a response to my email to schedule an appointment. Based on the various information on this blog, it looks like I found the right company to help me. Thanks!
Glad we could help Jean, feel free to ask us any of your pond questions.
Hello Pond Guy. Great Website you have here. I have just a couple of questions. I have a pond that is 95′ x 65′ and 5 feet average depth. I have cattails along one edge of the pond. The other day I went out and pulled the dead growth from the stalks. The growth seperated from the stalks right at the water surface. Is this method acceptable or should I cut the Cattails further under the water? Also what product do you reccommend to treat a pond this size to get rid of the muck caused by leaves and such. My pond has a cascading waterfall stream that empties into it. I have 3 SLV-56 pond pumps that take a suction on the pond via skimmers and it just recirculates, but I do have algae problems sometimes. I currently am using aquashade to help. Any comments or help is appreciated.
Hi Barry,
Any of the cattail stems that remain in the pond will just continue to break down. It sounds like you removed the majority of the dead debris so now its just a matter of visual satisfaction. In reading the description of your pond, just to be sure are these cattails that you have planted in a lined pond or are they growing freely in an earth bottom? To treat the muck in a pond that size I would use Muck Away or Pond Clear natural bacteria.
Hi,
My pond is a lined pond. I raked most of the muck away from the bank however there is a small amount of muck stuck to the rocks. You can see a pic of my pond at the following website. http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/5411-74th-Ave-NE-Marysville-WA-98270/38517909_zpid/
We have 2 lined ponds, one is 250k gallons and the other is 275k gallons. One is spring fed, and the other we route water to from April/May to October. We had been good about keeping the cattails down until about 2 years ago when we weren’t able to treat the cattails with Rodeo. They took off last year, but after the winter it seems that all have died and now we just have a bunch of dead cattails. Can we just rake the dead material without hurting the pond liner any more?
Also what would you suggest to use to clean up the vegetation that grows (cattails and other), but is safe for wildlife.
You said your pond is lined. Are the cattails growing on top of the liner, before the liner starts or are they pushing through the liner? Try using a rake with plastic tines instead of metal to avoid punctures. You can use bacteria products like Pond Logic® MuckAway™ and PondClear™ to help digest and remove dead organic debris. Both products are natural and wildlife friendly.
I have 1 acre pond. My question is this. I have bass- blueGil and crappy in the pond, I recently was told to put catfish in to help with keeping the pond clean. How many and will this help? The pond is 80% better since adding airation, twilight blue dye and raking many loads of weeds and grass. I plan on adding muck away and twightplus this spring
Hi Peggy,
Many pond owners do have catfish however aeration, dye and bacteria to remove muck deposits will provide more of an impact on your pond that what the catfish could nibble away at. A large amount of catfish will also stirr up the clay or sand in the bottom and actually cause the pond to become cloudy.
I have what I think are bloodsuckers in my small preformed pond. I have not noticed them attacking the fish but these little red worm like critters with sucker mouths are visible on things I see in the pond including the filter system. They cling to surfaces and are difficult to dislodge. I will be taking my fish out for overwintering in another tank but don’t want to transfer these little creatures. I will be draining and cleaning the inground pond but how can I prevent these little creatures from showing up again next year and do they overwinter somehow in the water plants or in the ground where they may re-enter the pond next spring? Could they be attaching themselves to the fish gills? How do I safely eradicate them? Yuck!
R Marq,
What you are describing are leeches. There are a wide range of leeches with various sizes and not all are parasites. If the leeches are attached to your fish, this may cause a problem. The leeches can leave wounds, where they were attached. These wounds then could harbor bacteria and/or fungi, thus increasing the risk of a secondary infection. Plants in the pond will also harbor leeches and is often the way that they enter the pond. Fish will enjoy feeding on the leeches if they are accessible to the fish. If the pond is drained and let to dry out it will kill the leeches. Remember that plants in the pond may be the harboring leeches so check them thoroughly. Since you are draining the pond and cleaning it you should be able to gain control. Once you refill your pond in the spring, allow it to stand for 5 – 10 days (with the filters running) so the whole system is cleansed thoroughly. Keep an eye on your fish during their indoor season for any signs of the leeches on the fish.
Another way to remove leeches is to make a leech trap. You can create a leech trap by:
1.) Take a container with a lid, such as a plastic deli container or coffee can.
2.) Poke holes in all sides of the container from the outside in, that creates a burr in the inside of the container.
3.) Put some raw meat, liver works well is not expensive.
4.) Put the lid on and submerge it completely in your pond. Adding a few rocks helps to have it sink. Attaching a string or
some method for retrieving the container.
5.) Leave in pond for several days to a week
6.) Remove the trapped leeches from the container and repeat the process.
This method will cause no harm to your fish and has been found effective at removing leeches.
We have a pond 10 feet long by 6 foot wide and 18 inches deep. There is a water fall on each end. The water is clear but we get green slime on the rocks and it will turn to black slime
We have used Muck buster on the rock that helps for a few days then it is back.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Diane,
Algae is able to grow in your pond due to a build up of nutrients in your pond. Using beneficial bacteria, such as Nature’s Defense, helps to reduce the overall amount of nutrients in the pond. That in turn, reduces the amount of nutrients that are available for algae growth. Plants are also an excellent filters for your pond as they draw on the nutrients for their food source. If you are looking for season long pond care, you might want to check out our DefensePac.
Hi there pond guy,
I’m a member of a Labrador Retriever club near Fargo, ND. We have a good deal of water to train our retrievers in, however within the past few years, excessive weed growth has become a problem with keeping the ponds clear and swimable by our dogs without them returning with 5 extra lbs of material hanging on them. Here are a couple google links to our grounds.
http://maps.google.com/maps?ie=UTF8&ll=46.874781,-96.624729&spn=0.002853,0.004823&t=h&z=18
http://maps.google.com/maps?ie=UTF8&ll=46.896159,-96.581588&spn=0.002852,0.004823&t=h&z=18
Much discussion has been made about controlling that weed growth next season in the spring and would like a recommendation as to what application you would recommend. Not the entire area would need to be treated as there are some very large areas of water in our ponds that are very deep while other areas are only 5-6 feet deep.
One consideration that was given to us was the use of Karmex (Carmax)? However recent reading has identified that product as possibly harmful to humans and animals coming in contact with it. Also, any application that has a faster recovery time of being harmful to being safe would be great.
Thanks for your help.
Troy
tfeeken at gmail dot com
Troy,
You are correct to be concerned about the toxic effects of Karmex ( Diuron) in a pond. Karmex is not an aquatic safe chemical.
The pesticide, Karmex, which contains, Diuron, is not registered for aquatic applications.
Here is an excerpt from our Pond Guy Blog and a comment from one of our treatment staff:
http://blog.thepondguy.com/2009/03/19/controlling-emergent-weeds-pond-amp-lake-q-amp-a-week-ending-march-21st/
justinmcleod, on March 27, 2009 at 9:40 am Said:
Yes there are long term problems with this! Karmex (Active ingredient: Diuron) is an extremely bad chemical to use in your pond. Not only is very illegal to use in and around your pond, it is hazardous to your health as well! Karmex has been shown to cause cancer, and is very capable of entering the groundwater that runs underneath the pond causing problems with the neighbors as well.
The biological effect is substantial. Karmex will kill almost every plant touching the pond. While this seems like a great idea, the problem lies in the few things that survive. These survivors are extremely hardy, and honestly if Karmex wouldn’t kill them, nothing will. Eventually these plants will take over the pond, and there is not much you can do to stop it.
Karmex is a soil sterilant that was designed to kill farm fields where no chance of runoff will occur. Sadly, many small stores and elevators sell it as a pond product, not knowing how extremely bad this chemical is for humans and the environment.
Use Algae Defense for Filamentous Algae, provided that you do not have Koi or Goldfish in your pond and Cutrine Plus Granular to treat a form of algae called Chara. I have provided a link to our web site for these items. http://www.thepondguy.com/category/algae-control-pond-and-lake-aquatic-weed-algae-control
There are no water use restrictions and these chemicals would be safe for your dogs. Treating for Chara in the spring is more advantageous, as Chara develops a calcification as the season progresses. Treatment is more effective when the Chara is supple and first emerges in the spring. Water temperatures should be 55 degrees to treat. Always treat first and rake to remove dead plant material second. Caution must be taken when treating ponds with fish and no aeration. Decaying plant matter depletes the oxygen in the water when the algae is dying. In this case, treat only a fourth to a third of the pond, allowing 10-14 days in between treatments. I have provided a link to our Pond Guy Blog with information on algae treatment.
http://blog.thepondguy.com/2009/09/03/how-do-i-control-floating-and-bottom-growing-algae-in-my-lake-pond-lake-q-a-%E2%80%93-week-ending-september-5th/
Coontail, or sometimes called hornwort, is a dark olive-green, rootless submerged perennial plant that often forms dense colonies. Leaves are relatively stiff, whorled with many forks and small teeth along one edge. The tips of branches are crowded with leaves giving it a “Coontail” resemblance. Coontail reproduces by seeds and fragmentation.
Submerged portions of all aquatic plants provide habitats for many micro and macro invertebrates. These invertebrates in turn are used as food by fish and other wildlife species (e.g. amphibians, reptiles, ducks, etc.). After aquatic plants die, their decomposition by bacteria and fungi provides food (called “detritus”) for many aquatic invertebrates. The fruits of Coontail are consumed by ducks and it is considered a good wildlife food.
I have provided a link to our web site with a description of Coontail and chemical choices for control. http://www.thepondguy.com/category/109
Please call us if you have additional questions, so we may further discuss the options with you. You may also send us photos of the weed and/or algae that you are dealing with at: mrwig@thepondguy.com
i have a pond with a filter after a rain it turned dark brown and i was wondering if there is a chemical that will clean it up without hurting the fish or plants ? any ideas .
Can we use a pool filter on a koi pond with a bottom drain to circulate the water and clean botton waste?
I have had a pond for a long time when we moved I put in a 40 x 50 pond with one water fall and filter, I’m adding another water fall and would like to use the pool filter system. Also on a bottom drain would it pull in the river rock that I have on the bottom of the pond?
Hi Sandy,
Pool filters work a little differently then pond filters. Pool filters are usually sand filters and are designed to polish water that is already clean. With a pond you need a filtration system that contains lots of surface area that natural bacteria can cling to. The bacteria that live in the filter are what actually maintains your pond. You can still use a bottom drain though if you would like.
CAN I USE MUCK AWAY IN MY KOI POND. IT IS 20X19 AND 4 FOOT DEEP. I BUILT THE POND 3 YEARS AGO AND JUST FILTER THE WATER, AND RUN IT THROUGH A UV STICK. I HAVE NEVER DONE A PARTICAL WATER CHANGE OR ATTEMPTED TO ” CLEAN-UP” THE MUCK
THANKS FOR YOUR TIME
Hi Jean,
Treating muck will greatly help the health of the pond. We have a product is the same as Muck Away but the dosage is geared for a pond your size. The product is called Muck Defense.
Your email address has been changed in our database. Thanks!
Thank you for having a blog where I can get great information. I have learned more today then I have learned in the 5 years we have had our pond.
I am anxious for my order so I can get our pond clean and clear like it was when it was new. Thanks again.
You are welcome,
I’m very happy to hear that you enjoy the blog Debbie!
I’ve been “feeding” the bass, bluegill and catfish in my pond with minnows from a nearby creek. Once a day from April – June, I’ll drop 2-3 dozen minnows into my 1 acre pond. Are there any concerns in doing this?
Bob Razem,
There is no problem at all with feeding your bass, bluegill and catfish with minnows. Actually when we hold our Semi-Annual Fish Day at our retail store, we recommend getting minnows when stocking your pond. They reproduce quickly and keep the fish feed well. The only thing I don’t know, is the source of where your minnows come from. As long as your source (creek) has no issues than you should be fine. Ours come from a fish hatchery, so we have minimal concerns. Hope that helps answer your question. Thanks for commenting!
there may be a problem with collecting minnows from a local creek besides the obvious one of pollution; many counties have laws protecting aquatic life and special permits maybe required to capture fish.
Bland,
Here’s a question for you, how much Crystal Blue are you using and how big if your pond?
The Pond Guy
I have a pond and I put Crystal Blue in it to have the water a nice shad eof blue and it becomes green-very green..What should I use to have the clear blue?