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There are only a few simple rules to follow for you to set up and care for a healthy low maintenance pond.
SETUP
1. Cover the bottom of your pond with well washed gravel, or add a few wheel barrows of gravel over the main drain. Lava rock is a good choice because it has a very irregular surface and the nooks and crannies in the lava rock with act as a home for the beneficial bacteria to colonize. Fill pond with tap water and add De-Chlor (or an equivalent product) to neutralize the chloramines in our tap water (follow instructions on bottle for rate of application). Add Water Lilies or other broad leaf plants to eventually shade 40%-60% of the pond surface area. Add oxygenating plants such as fresh water seaweed, and floating plants such as Water Hyacinths or Water Lettuce. Fish are needed to control the mosquito population. Mosquito fish may be obtained for free from the Dept. of Fish and Game but if you want your Gold Fish or Koi to reproduce, do not use Mosquito fish because they will eat the babies of the other fish. Note: It is normal for a percentage of your fish to die in the first three days. Also add fresh water snails (they eat algae) and if you can find them, Crawdads (they are bottom feeders and eat the junk on the bottom of your pond). You may consider investing in a bacteria culture (available at pet stores which sell fish and water plants or we can order it for you) to jump start the natural process, the bacteria neutralizes the ammonia in the fish urine and eats algae as well. The packaging on the bacteria will recommend continued periodic applications of bacteria however it is generally only required during the startup of the pond ecosystem.
2. Once you have followed the steps outlined above, it is necessary to circulate your water for a minimum of six hours per day as your pond goes through a natural process of finding a balance and becoming a healthy ecosystem. The key to success through this period is to not over manage your system. It is best not to feed your fish, but rather to allow them to feed on the food sources naturally available in your pond. Uneaten fish food will decompose and act as a fertilizer and source of nutrients for the algae in your pond. The pond will have to go through a process called “popping your tank”. In the first few weeks the water will become progressively murkier, and the algae will turn the water an unattractive shade of green. DO NOT PANIC! Do not drain and replace this green water, do not add any algaecides which may harm your plants or fish, just be patient. The only recommended maintenance through this period is to circulate your pump six hours a day and skim off any excess floating algae and leaves with a skimmer net.
Anywhere from four to eight weeks after you first set up your pond, you may see as many as 20% of your fish die over a period of a few days. Again do not panic! This is a natural part of the process. Remove the dead fish immediately. The ammonia levels from the fish urine have reached a toxic level and at this point it will act as a catalyst for the bacteria to start growing. Over the next few weeks you should see your water begin to clarify.
Maintenance
Congratulations! You now have a healthy ecosystem and your pond looks good. You may now look forward to years of enjoyment from your pond with virtually no maintenance required. There are however a few things that are recommended to keep your pond at it’s optimum level. It is no longer necessary to circulate your pond on a regular basis unless you have a Biofalls or a sand or gravel filter. If you have one of these filters, two hours a day is all that is needed. Circulate the pond when you are around to enjoy it. Once the pond has become healthy, it will not matter if you never turn on the pump again. The system will stay healthy all on it’s own. I have ponds on my property with no circulation whatsoever and they have remained clear to the bottom for over ten years.
1. The floating plants such as Water Hyacinths now have a large root system under them. It is advisable to periodically (once every six to eight weeks) pull them out of your pond and cut back the root system to only 1.5” long and clean out any dead parts of the plants. After cleaning, throw them back in, they will fall over and lay on their sides for a few days until their roots begin to grow back. The reason for pruning back the roots is because these plants act as a natural filtering system, they absorb toxins in the root system and help clean the water. At a certain point the roots become saturated and if not pruned off, will begin to discharge the toxins back into the water.
2. Continue to skim off any leaves which fall into your pond and if there is some floating algae, this too may be skimmed off. Algae is not unhealthy, it is only unattractive to you. It may not be possible to completely eliminate all string and floating algae from your pond but you will find that it is a seasonal occurrence and will be more prevalent at certain times of the year.
3. Occasionally it will be necessary to prune off dead leaves from your Water Lilies and other plants. Some of these dead leaves will have fallen off on their own and settled on the bottom of the pond decomposing into a layer of sludge. There is nothing wrong with this, however you may wish to use your leaf skimmer once or twice a year to remove as much of this material as is practical so that the buildup of sludge does not eventually fill up your pond. You will end up stirring up a lot of silt and it will take a few days for your pond to clarify after this exercise is complete.
4. If you have a sand or gravel filter, back-flush the filter once a month to keep it from becoming filled with silt. If you have a Biofalls filter, once the system is healthy, it should be only necessary to clean this unit once a year. The primary purpose of these filters are to act as a colony for your beneficial bacteria which also resides in the gravel at the bottom of your pond. For systems utilizing Biofalls, once a year it is recommended that the filter be cleaned thoroughly. Spring is probably the best time for this because your pond is coming out of it’s winter hibernation period and your plants are beginning to grow again. Remove the gravel and wash it off. Replace the gravel back in the filter as soon as practical. You do not want it to dry out because it will kill the bacteria colony in the gravel and a new colony will have to grow. If you have a cartridge filter, clean it periodically as needed.
5. The most important rule I can give you is: DO NOT COMPLETELY DRAIN YOUR POND AND REPLACE THE WATER! If you do this, you will have to go through all of the steps outlined in the Setup part of these instructions. I never install an easy way for my clients to drain their ponds because a complete replacement of the water kills off all the beneficial bacteria and the whole process has to begin anew. At times, possibly after the first year, it may be desirable to do a partial water change. I recommend replacing no more than 30% of the water at a time. Always remember to add De-Chlor when you do a partial water change. If you put Koi in your pond, add De-Chlor when adding water to replace evaporation as well. Koi are very sensitive to the chloramines in our water and die easily.
6. Fish Population: I urge you to stock your pond with Gold Fish instead of Koi. Do not introduce too large a colony of fish to your pond or the ecosystem will not be able to handle it. If you do not feed your fish, the colony will grow only to the size that the available food supply will support and if you go away on vacation, you need not worry about who will feed the fish. Many people want Koi in their ponds because they are so showy, the problem with Koi is that they feed on and damage the root system of your Water Lilies and other water plants. If you have your heart set on Koi, I recommend that you start out with feeder Gold Fish (10 for a dollar at the pet store) and add a few Koi at a time once your pond is well established. If you purchase small Koi and don’t feed them, they will live off the food in your pond. Once you start to feed them, they become dependent on the packaged food and any uneaten food will act as a nutrient for the algae in your pond.
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