Saskia Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Hi, I'm relatively new to successful fish owning (my last attempts in a aquarium was disastrous with my causalities and lots of tears). But this is all behind me as we have moved into a new place which came with a pond. So far the fish are doing great - three years and counting. The only trouble is that we have tried to clean the pond on two separate occasions and both times green gunge returns to the pond quickly. I have looked online to see who can offer assistance into pond cleaning, but no one my way (Auckland North Shore region). I would love to have a nice pond for the fish (although they don't seem to mind the colour), but I'm not sure if it lies on the filter or the rocks. There is nothing else in the pond. If any of you know about a place out my way, it would be gratefully appreciated, Saskia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshlikesfish Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 I clean a family friends pond for a small fee, but i'm out howick/botany way :lol: Cleaning is really easy. I take water out, scrub the sides, bucket out some gunk, fill it up, and in a few days its crystal clear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saskia Posted January 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 I've tried that but within a few days instead of the crystal clearness I get green gunge and the water ends up changing to a dark forest green. I have no plant life in there, except I did find a frog under the rock when I cleaned it last. However, I don't think he is turning the water green. When I cleaned it, I just used clean water and scrubbed the surface (tarpaulin I assume) until it was clean but alas it didn't stay clean for long. I have heard from people adding oxygen weed or snails ..... I've looked online and there seems to be a range of ideas about oxygen weed being bad for the fish at night due to the CO2, but then again surely this green stuff can't be too pleasant for them either? Or maybe they don't mind and that is how they have survived all these years with my track record? Not sure what the snails did, perhaps they eat the green stuff - maybe I should invest in hundreds? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 You will find lots of pics of my pond in the coldwater section. Have a look at the entire Photobucket pictorial of the build from scratch here I have had my pond 5 years and have yet to clean it at all. A lack of plants will not be helping. The green gunge build-up on the bottom is natural. I happily leave mine there although I am aware it will need to be thinned out eventually :-? If you have a lot of overhanging plants or trees these will be dropping leaves into the pond, adding to the gunge. Trim them back or cover the pond. If you plant a lot of plants to cover no more than 3/4 of the surface, it should help keep the water clear. Too much direct sunlight will make the water go green. Unsightly but good for the fish. The white ones especially sa it protects them from cancer. If the pond is not too big, or an awkward shape, you could put shade cloth over it. Either up high like a shade sail, or shade netting down low just above the water line. My pond is full of oxygen weed which I pulled from the river that runs through the middle of town - free. I also have a number of lilies. I will go and take more pics of the pond as it is now. At some times it goes green then it goes crystal clear again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saskia Posted January 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Thanks for the reply Caryl. Our pond is in the corner of the section which has a lot of banana trees etc that hang over parts of it, but I have cut these back. I figured without these trees there would be no shade as it is in direct sunlight. You mention that the gunge is natural so obviously if it stops the fish from getting cancer, then it's a good thing. What a good fish person I am - I didn't even know this could happen. It makes sense, but I had just never thought about cancer in fish. Thank you I will definitely not stress too much about having the green in the water, but I will look at getting oxygen weed and lilies and if the greeness continues, then at least it will look prettier with all the plant life Thanks again, Saskia P.S You have a great looking pond! I'm a little envious but that is because I can see your fish in the clear water! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 See how much shade it has and how much plant is in there? The silk tree overhangs and makes a mess (so I have a LOT of gunge on the bottom) but the water is clear. It is not always though. White or pale fish can get melanomas if they have no place to hide (decks, lily leaves etc) from direct sun. This pond has overhanging decks at either end (about a metre) so there is a lot of water under there as well. These stop the water from freezing over totally in winter as well, so does the waterfall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Do you feed the fish, over feeding could be adding too many nutrients to the water ending in an algae bloom. Some shade will help slow down the algae, as said above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Saskia, can you clarify what you mean by the green gunge? Do you mean stuff that settles out on the bottom or stuff that is suspended in the water? I think there is a little bit of talking at cross-purposes here and different 'gunges' have different causes and solutions. Bottom gunge: all ponds get it, leafy detritus will add to it Suspended gunge: single-celled algae, often exacerbated by too much direct sun (BTW Caryl, I hadn't seen a pic of the deck at the opposite end of the pond before, very nice design! Looks very practical.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saskia Posted January 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Hi Stella, The gunge appears to be floating on the top. Water has a definite green colour to it. I taken a couple of photos and attached them (hopefully) to show what I mean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Ah I thought you meant gunge on the bottom and the water was green. I have seen that type of algae floating in ponds but don't know what causes it :-? Does the pond actually have a filter or just a fountain? Some fountains have very small filters attached. I can see something poking up which I assume is a fountain you turned off to take the pic. I wonder if some water movement would help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saskia Posted January 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Hi Carly, I am very embarrassed to say, but the thing in the middle is the filter and I didn't turn it off - it is on but with all the green stuff I need to clean it often for the water to flow through. (I have to come clean ... I haven't cleaned it for a few months though!) But when I do clean it, it stops flowing after a couple of days to nothing more than a dribble (if that). I really am a terrible fish owner!!!! I have gone through all the documentation we got when we bought the house and the pump from Waterwerks Australia. Maybe if I looked at investing in a larger pump the gunge wouldn't clog it up and maybe the water would be less likely to look so green??? I've tried Animates here (not knowing where to go for help), and they didn't really know what I should do. To be fair to them, I was describing the problem without pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 What sort of inlet does the filter have? Is there some way to put a larger wire cage around it to catch the majority of the gunge before it blocks the filter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saskia Posted January 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 I don't know what an inlet is. I will look at the wire cage option you discussed this weekend. It would be a great weekend project - especially in this weather! Thanks for all your help Caryl - I do appreciate it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 also what sort of media is in the filter? is it too fine? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsarmina Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 i have read that Barley Straw is good for eliminating that sort of algae. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 It is supposed to be good for clearing green water. You can buy it as an extract too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonnaM Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 I've put these blue sponges on all my pond filters. Best thing I ever did :happy2: You remove the half of the existing pump that contains the sponge which gets all gunged up so quick. Remove the cage looking bit protecting the impellar and screw the black cylinder in its place. Then slide the blue sponge over the cylander. All you need to do to clean is slide the sponge off the cylinder, rinse well and slide it back on. Simple and as its so much bigger and coarser then the black sponges, its much more effective at stopping stuff getting into the pump etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonnaM Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Here it is on the pump. The blue does change colour...so its not as noticable once in the pond. They come in different sizes...not the cheapest, but well worth it for me. I tend to get the large size and I "think" they were around $50 each... I think.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Thanks for that Donna, I might go look for one for our pump inlet. It blocks very quickly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stretchhh Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Saskia. I would clean it out once more, refilling with tap water from a hose is ok. Then place a large water lily in your pond...in the middle would look nice...or in a corner. A tropical water lily for this time of year would be best. Then an oxygenating bunch of plants in another corner and a marginal plant such as Pontedera or dwarf papyrus, Jap. iris or similar in another part. Note. Don't scrub the sides of the pond if it's just a bit of algae. Algae is beneficial in certain forms and on things such as plants and pond sides it's good. The green, suspended algae will almost definitely return within a few days but don't worry,don't do anything, just leave it. The algae will out-compete itself feeding on the limited supply of nutrients in your tap water and the waterlily and other plants will help too and one day 'voila' you'll have achieved a balanced, clear, but not crystal clear, clear water pond. Good things take time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonnaM Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Thanks for that Donna, I might go look for one for our pump inlet. It blocks very quickly! Yes it works well, and no more STRUGGLING to try and pull the slimey end off the pump that contained the sponge.... :happy2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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