Trying to clean up a pond

[hungryhound]

I need help trying to fix my parents pond.

Since I have come on this site I have learned a lot about aquariums and can see many of the mistakes that went into my parents pond.

First I will tell you the ponds current condition. The pond is one of those 125 gallon plastic do it yourself water features that my parents bought two years ago. There are a couple of plants in the pond, but the most dominate life form is blue green algae and hair grass.

It is about5 feet by 2 to 3 feet deep

Filtration is non-existent and one of my big questions on what to get.
There is no substrate on the bottom.
There is no aeration (as three pumps have died due to being clogged by hair algae.)

Believe it or not there are 9 one year old gold fish that have managed to live in this much. (I know, I feel bad already, I am trying to fix the problem so I do not need the how could you let them live like that).

The tank does get cleaned out monthly and all of the algae removed but it doesn’t last as there is not enough filtration.

Here are my thoughts on how to fix this problem.

1. Add at least 125 pounds of a rock substrate.
- How small of pieces do I need to get or can I just use river rock?
- Do you need to vacuum pond gravel?:confused:

2.. Find a small submersible canister filter to hide in the bottom. There is no room to store one outside of the pond and I would like to have it hidden on the bottom.
-Does anyone have any suggestions here?

3. Add more plants to out compete the algae.

4. Add barley straw to help keep the water clean

My parents do not really want a fountain as they do not particularly care for the sound of running water, and I figure if the fish have lived this long without one they probably do not need one to survive.

Can anyone else think of anything else that I need to do.

[genitor]

Sounds like everything. I don't think you need to vacuum the gravel, you could put in a power head at the bottom to help keep wastes from settling on the bottom so they can be removed by the filter. How can barley straw help keep the water clean? I'm just curious, how large are the goldfish?

[Chrona]

[Only Registered Users Can See Links.]

Found an article :)

[hungryhound]

First off let me say that I totally missed the ponds forum when I posted this earlier. I am sorry mods, PLease feel free to move this post there is you want to.

Sounds like everything. I don't think you need to vacuum the gravel, you could put in a power head at the bottom to help keep wastes from settling on the bottom so they can be removed by the filter. How can barley straw help keep the water clean? I'm just curious, how large are the goldfish?

I agree with the powerhead comment. I was thinking about doing something similar already. I know that they make submersible filters that you hook up to a pump at the intake so it sucks all of the debris into it. I was thinking of pointing this pump at the bottom of the tank to stir up any waste.

As to why barley straw works I do not know for sure. Most sites that i come to say that they do not know. here is the leading theory

The technique of using barley for algae control was
developed in the early 1990s in England, where it is widely used in
many bodies of water, including large reservoirs and canals. In
general, it is thought that fungi decompose the barley in water,
which causes a chemical to be released that prevents the growth of
the algae. The specific chemical(s) has not been identified (oxidized
polyphenolics and hydrogen peroxide are two decomposition
products that have been suggested), and it is not clear whether the
chemical is exuded from the barley itself or if it is a metabolic
product produced by the fungi. The activity of barley straw is
usually described as being algistatic (prevents new growth of algae)
rather than algicidal (kills already existing algae).

barley straw PDF ([Only Registered Users Can See Links.])


Found an article :)

Thanks for the link

[Willyleigh]

When working out which filter to get, if it is an 'empty' pond you need to turn the water over twice in a hour, if you have goldfish 4 times an hour, if you have Koi 6 times an hour.

So in your case of 125 gallon with goldfish a 500 gallon per hour pump is needed at least, bigger would be better.

[hungryhound]

When working out which filter to get, if it is an 'empty' pond you need to turn the water over twice in a hour, if you have goldfish 4 times an hour, if you have Koi 6 times an hour.

So in your case of 125 gallon with goldfish a 500 gallon per hour pump is needed at least, bigger would be better.

thanks:22:

[Lady Hobbs]

Buy a duck and stick him in the middle of it. LOL I had ducks and geese and they kept my pond spotless but obviously your pond is too small for that!

A pond vac would do the trick and something they would use in the future, as well. My son also had some company that cleaned his with some blue stuff. Man, it killed the weeds and sludge like anything and didn't hurt his fish.

[Only Registered Users Can See Links.](Small)&ref=3665&subref=AA

This may be a cheap and certainly easy solution.

[hungryhound]

Buy a duck and stick him in the middle of it. LOL I had ducks and geese and they kept my pond spotless but obviously your pond is too small for that!

A pond vac would do the trick and something they would use in the future, as well. My son also had some company that cleaned his with some blue stuff. Man, it killed the weeds and sludge like anything and didn't hurt his fish.

[Only Registered Users Can See Links.](Small)&ref=3665&subref=AA

This may be a cheap and certainly easy solution.

I know what you are talking about with the blue water. I think it is copper sulfate, but i could be mistaken (tastes bitter, Bad chemistry lab:) ). I am not sure that my parents would want to use that yet. Maybe save that for a last ditch effort.

The Product you showcased in your link looks vaguely familiar. For some reason i think we tried that a couple years ago to no avail.

Thanks for the help though. I will keep the copper sulfate in mind if all else fails.

[jeffs99dime]

i moved this thread to the proper section. it is now located in "ponds"

[Fishguy2727]

Tetra has a cheap and very effective filter, the ClearChoice pond filter. They do have a submersible version. You just need to add the powerhead. It is bigger than many others, but it is dark so it will blend in with the bottom.

[hungryhound]

Tetra has a cheap and very effective filter, the ClearChoice pond filter. They do have a submersible version. You just need to add the powerhead. It is bigger than many others, but it is dark so it will blend in with the bottom.

Thanks for the suggestion reptile guy. It is always good to learn about a product that works.

The biggest problem that i have with trying to figure out which filter my parents can get is that the ponds location. I do not have any room on the two long sides of the pond. As on one side is a flagstone patio and on the other is a giant rock retaining wall. That only leaves me about three feet on each end to work with, but my mom has that completely filled with flowers. So finding a spot to put an outside filter is a bit of a problem.

Not to mention that this is my parents pond in Ohio and I am in Iowa.