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Pond Water Quality If your koi or pond fish are unhealthy, diseased or gasping, your pond is cloudy or you are having filter problems then here are the solutions to bring you pond keeping success.
Controlling Ammonia in a Fish Aquarium Keep garden pond and aquarium ammonia under control and understand the nitrate cycle for tank health. Ammonia is sometimes referred to as one of the “invisible assassins” in aquaria (along with nitrite). The only acceptable ammonia level in an aquarium is zero. . . . → Read More: Ammonia in a fish pond and aquarium
Ammonia is a wonderful thing when you’re washing your windows. It’s not so wonderful when you’ve got a pond, especially one with fish. Ammonia can be very harmful, even deadly, to koi and goldfish, smells bad and can promote soupy green algae. Luckily, it’s easy to . . . → Read More: Ammonia in a koi pond
Bead filters represent a departure from ‘traditional’ pond filtration. How are they different, what do they offer and could you or your fish benefit from bead filtration? Pond keeping, especially if it involves koi can be an expensive business. As more of us focus our creativity to . . . → Read More: Bead Pond Filters. To bead or not to bead?
How it works. Biological Filtration Our ponds are home to far more living organisms than the fish we have stocked and see swimming around ever day. A pond is quite literally alive with micro organisms that have colonised to exploit the food and favourable conditions for their . . . → Read More: Biological Pond Filtration
Dissolved Oxygen Concentration (DOC) is the term given to describe the amount of oxygen that is dissolved in pond water. Dissolved oxygen is measured in terms of how much oxygen (by weight – mg) is dissolved in every litre of water. There are many factors that will . . . → Read More: Dissolved oxygen and pond fish
It is the role of the aquarium filter to maintain a stable and safe water quality within an aquarium.
Water quality is the keystone to successful koi keeping. Remove it and koi health problems are likely to follow. There are many different water quality parameters that require constant monitoring with the results and interpretation of water tests essential to maintain a healthy pond. he most regularly . . . → Read More: Foaming pond surface problems
Q: I understand that good water quality is perhaps the most important way of ensuring healthy Koi, and as such, parameters like ammonia, nitrate and pH should be kept within their recommended levels. But what about other measures of water quality, such as how foamy your . . . → Read More: Foamy pond surface. Why?
Oxygen, why is it important in the garden pond? Most fish keeper’s are well aware that the pond or aquarium water should be routinely tested for the presence of pollutants such as ammonia and nitrite but very often the oxygen content is overlooked. Oxygen is an essential . . . → Read More: Garden pond dissolved oxygen
It is a long time since I last watched The Wizard of Oz (I didn’t catch it this Christmas) and I can’t recall the finer details of the ending. But what I do remember is towards its conclusion, experiencing a real anti-climax when we were shown . . . → Read More: Garden pond filtration
The role of beneficial bacteria in maintaining a healthy pond. Bacteria fulfil so many vital roles in shaping life on earth that we are still discovering new ways in which they affect the world we live in. They are so adaptable that they are found in every ecosystem . . . → Read More: Good Pond Filtration Bacteria
Time and time again we read and are told that water quality is of paramount importance when keeping fish, especially koi. It should lie at the centre of every serious koi keeper’s plans, from the moment we start to consider the plan and design of our koi . . . → Read More: How to test garden pond water
You can’t smell it, taste it, see it or hear it, in fact you can’t even bottle it – So what is it? – pH Being aware of the many water parameters which we should test for, such as ammonia, nitrite and nitrate, these are measurements of . . . → Read More: Is a pond’s pH important for fish and plants?
Every environment shares problems if the inputs into the system are out of balance with the rate at which they are removed or broken down. Currently, on a global basis, this is the case with CO2 and the earth’s atmosphere and it is also true for . . . → Read More: Koi food affects pond water quality
As koi keepers we are more water keepers than biologists, and as water consist of H2O (as well as everything else dissolved within it) we owe it to our koi to understand a little chemistry. This will then increase our success and fulfilment, ultimately benefiting our . . . → Read More: Koi Pond Chemistry
The most appealing part of koi keeping is marvelling at a pond full of ornamental beauty. The challenge in achieving that ultimate goal is to be able to understand and master the many practical demands put on a koi keeper. Some of these practical challenges, on . . . → Read More: Koi pond filtration
Installing a bio filter is the price we have to pay for wanting to keep koi in an artificial pond. It performs the functions that occur naturally in a lake or river within a compact unit and is arguably the single most important factor that makes . . . → Read More: Koi pond filtration
Koi breathe by pumping water over their gills to extract essential oxygen, which is invisibly dissolved in the pond water. Fortunately, compared to other fish species, koi do not require an especially high level of dissolved oxygen (DO) which makes them relatively undemanding in this area. Even . . . → Read More: Koi pond oxygen
Keeping fish is not like keeping any other pet, such as a cat, dog, rabbit or guinea pig as they are unable to escape from their pond. If four-legged pets take a disliking to their surroundings or become stressed in their environment in which their owner . . . → Read More: Managing pond water quality – Regular testing
Whenever koi pond filtration is discussed, attention tends to be focused on the biological aspects, with the emphasis being placed on maturation rates, testing for ammonia and nitrite and avoiding new pond syndrome at all costs. But effective pond filtration results from the combination of a . . . → Read More: Mechanical pond filtration
At some time we are likely to have asked questions such as ‘ How do they keep their water so crystal clear?’ or, ‘what are they doing that I am not?’ when we have seen truly clear water. Some of the most impressive koi collections I have . . . → Read More: My pond water murky cloudy
I became a koi keeper by accident two years ago when I bought a house, complete with koi pond. It is approximately 15 ft long by 8 ft wide and by my reckoning holds about 2500 gallons. It seems quite easy to maintain, especially as it tops . . . → Read More: My pond’s pH is too low and unstable.
Dear Ben, Could you please tell me what ‘new pond syndrome’ is all about? I have heard this term before but never really understood it, and I think it’s about time I did, since I am moving my koi to a new pond very soon. Does this . . . → Read More: New Pond Syndrome can cause problems in a new garden pond
Aeration Oxygen is the essence of life and is required in abundance in a well stocked koi pond. Oxygen quite readily dissolves passively diffusing from the atmosphere, but this limited amount is insufficient to satisfy the demands of koi and other oxygen-loving pond organisms such as beneficial . . . → Read More: Pond aeration
Our gardens, and everything in them cannot avoid the seasonal variations in temperature – responding accordingly with periods of inactivity and growth in winter and summer respectively. As spring approaches, life within our garden and koi pond is not be able to resist nature’s call to . . . → Read More: Pond filter in spring
When I was discussing this article I suggested a ‘How it works’ series, covering anything from food right through to filters. My offer was misunderstood and I was taken quite literally at my word (and was asked to write ‘How it works – from food to . . . → Read More: Pond fish food to filters
Dissolved oxygen concentration Q: At various times this summer I have seen my Koi gasping at the pond surface and around my waterfall. Does this mean that there is not enough oxygen in the pond? Is this because of exceptionally high temperatures or for some other reason? . . . → Read More: Pond fish koi are gasping?
Koi benefit significantly from stable water conditions, where water quality parameters such as temperature, dissolved oxygen, ammonia and nitrite should be maintained within desirable levels. This is especially true for pH which must be remain consistently between pH7 and pH9 pH is one of the most widely . . . → Read More: Pond pH keeps changing
As koi keepers we are experts in keeping fish in an enclosed artificial environment that is stocked with an unnaturally high stocking level and fed a relatively large quantity of food. Consequently, there will come a time when the pond’s ecosystem becomes unbalanced, requiring our input and . . . → Read More: Pond water changes
I am relatively new to koi keeping, having installed a new koi pond in March this year. Taking the advice I have read in your magazine, I have been very careful to find a koi dealer who I believe I can trust. Under their guidance, by choosing . . . → Read More: Pond water is tinted coloured
What is pH? What causes fluctuations? What effect will these have on a Koi pond? Being aware of the many water parameters which we should test for, such as ammonia, nitrite and nitrate, these are measurements of a tangible chemical substance (ie you could buy a bottle . . . → Read More: Pond water quality. Will pH affect my fish and pond?
As koi keepers we are experts in keeping fish in an enclosed artificial environment that is stocked with an unnaturally high stocking level and fed a relatively large quantity of food. Consequently, there will come a time when the pond’s ecosystem becomes unbalanced, requiring our input . . . → Read More: Ponds do need a regular partial water change
Pressure filters for garden ponds first appeared on retailers’ shelves just over 10 years ago. Most of us were then more familiar with the aquarium pressurised canister filters. These top-end pieces of aquarium hardware worked perfectly, undisturbed for months hidden inside the aquarium cabinet . Many . . . → Read More: Pressurised pond filters.
As pond keepers, we spend a great deal of our pond budget on buying a pump and filter so that we can provide our fish with a good healthy environment. Water quality has a very direct and predictable influence on the health and well being of . . . → Read More: Testing Pond Water Quality
Keeping fish is not like keeping any other pet, such as a cat, dog, rabbit or guinea pig as they are unable to escape from their pond. If four-legged pets take a disliking to their surroundings or become stressed in their environment in which their owner wishes to keep . . . → Read More: Testing water. How and why?
I suspect that the koi hobby is just like any other in that it benefits from a thriving grapevine. Fuelled by speculation, conversation and innovation, word soon seems to travel through the industry, especially when a rare nugget of information is unearthed. This was certainly the . . . → Read More: The Skimmer Filter – Savio
Anybody contemplating whether to take the plunge or merely dip their toe into the world of koi would be well advised to carry out as much research on the many aspects of the hobby as possible before getting wet. Koi keeping is an alluring hobby and quite . . . → Read More: Using test kits in koi and garden ponds
Q. What principal water parameters should I check on a day-to-day basis? And what are the recommended levels for a koi pond? Are there any other parameters I should check too? Why is it so important to keep on top of this? A. There can be so . . . → Read More: What and how do I test in my pond water? Kill blanketweed and string algae. |
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