Keeping Koi In A Koi Pond Requirements

To grow large Koi and to adhere to good koi keeping practice you will need specialist Koi pond keeping equipment.

Keeping koi pond water clear and healthy is far more difficult a task than is required to maintain a small garden fish pond.

There are also specialist feeding regimes that will need to be adhered to. Here is a list of the basics needed if you intend keeping koi in a pond...

• Correctly fitted bottom drains to remove debris from the pond floor.
• Correct shape pond in order to prevent dead spots.
• A Pond skimmer to remove organic matter such as leaves and other debris that falls into the pond.
• A pond that is at least 5ft deep. The deeper the pond the better the chances of the Koi surviving the ice cold winter weather.
• An external pond pump that is capable of producing high flow rates so that the rate at which water is pumped to the bead filter or vortex filter is high.
• A pond heater for maintaining an ambient temperature during the colder winter months.

The full article can be read at http://www.garden-pond-filters.com/garden-pond-koipondequipment.htm

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Pond Liner Repair Kits & Concrete Pond Sealant Review

During the summer months you may find that you will need to top up your pond with water, due to evaporation. If however you find that you seem to have to continually fill up then you have more than likely got a leak of some kind.

Fish ponds typically leak as a result of one of one of three things:

• Leaks
• Punctured or sagging pond liners
• Water wicking i.e. when surrounding plant life absorbs water from your garden pond.

Pond liner leaks are easily patched with a fish pond liner repair kit, unless the damage is extensive in which case you will more than likely need a new pond liner. These fish pond liner repair kits are usually universal and will fix EPDM, Butyl or PVC liners.

For this reason I would always advise you to use some kind of pond underlay. Most quality liners come with a 25 or 35 year warranty and you may find that you are covered against the cost of the replacement pond liner by the warranty.

Concrete fish pond repair, providing the leak isn't too extensive can be fixed quite simply by G4 Pond Repair Sealant.

Firestone EPDM Fish Pond Liner Repair Kit

Firestone’s QuickSeam® pond liner repair kit has been specifically designed to work with EPDM liner. At the heart of the system is EPDM laminated tape. It’s quick and easy to apply.

These fish pond repair kits contain enough material to seam 25 linear feet and includes: seam preparation treatment, splice tape, scrubbing handle and pads, roller and wipes. Not for indoor use.


The full article can be read at http://www.garden-pond-filters.com/usalinerrepair.htm

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Oase Pond Lighting Review

Pond or lawn and garden lighting enables you to appreciate your pond or garden at night. Lights are available in a variety of styles and colors to help illuminate areas both in and out of the pond.

Under water and floating lights are used to highlight and enhance the features of your water garden or fountains at night. This allows you to extend the enjoyment of your pond past sunset.

Oase PondJet 3 Floating Pond Lighting

The Oase Pond Jet 3 Floating Pond Fountain Light can be used anywhere, even where muddy or deep pond floors do not allow for easy installation of a water feature pump. Water pattern is approximately 10' high and 10' diameter.

A Minimum water depth of 3ft to 4.5ft is needed for these Oase pond lights. Unit consists of Pump - Float - Nozzle assembly.

The Pond Jet Water Fountain Light Kit guarantees proper illumination ... 2400 GPH ... 260 Watts ... 75' cord ... 3 year limited warranty.


The full article can be read at http://www.garden-pond-filters.com/pondlightingoase.htm
 
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Best Koi Goldfish Food Reviews

Your koi, goldfish and other pond fish living in your garden pond will benefit significantly from a nutritionally balanced diet that provides them with the correct amount of proteins, vitamins and carbohydrates, needed for them to achieve their maximum potential in terms of size, health and coloration.

There are many fish food manufacturing companies who all claim that their koi goldfish food range is the best. Alas this is not true.

Always buy industry recognized brands as this will save you money in the long run.

I would always advise you to purchase floating fish food. Floating fish food pellets or floating fish food sticks as excess food can be easily removed from the pond, after about 5 minutes, before it sinks to the pond floor, polluting the water.

Pondmaster Integra Floating Pond Fish Food Pellets

Pondmaster Floating Fish Food Pellets have been specifically formulated to ensure the health of koi, goldfish and all other types of pond fish.

These floating pellets for koi & pond fish are a properly balanced fish food that encourages metabolic growth and repair to damaged worn out tissue. It also provides for energy storage during hibernation in the form of layers of fat.


The full article can be read at http://www.garden-pond-filters.com/pondmaster_fishfood.htm

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Submersible Pond UV Filter Reviews

Emperor Aquatics Tadpole 25 Watt Submersible Filters

The Emperor Aquatics Tadpole Fish Pond UV Filter is a complete, submersible biofilter system, suitable for smaller fish ponds up to 1,500 gallons.

Place your Tadpole UV directly in the pond to trap solid waste and eliminate algae and green water. The Tadpole UV’s 500 GPH draws in dirty water through the filter pad, then through its internal 25 watt Ultraviolet sterilizer, trapping and holding solid waste while eliminating nuisance waterborne algae.

The pond pump, internal Prefilter and UV sterilizer are precisely matched for maximum performance! The Emperor Aquatics Tadpole Fish Pond UV Filter is easy to install, operate and service!

Sicce Ninpheo Pressurized 36 Watt UV Filter

The reliable and sturdy Ninpheo pond filter tops the pond filter line for durability and efficiency, and stands up to the rigorous demands of outdoor water gardening.

This new pressurized 36W UV light pond filter is available in the 50L canister with a great filtration capacity for small as well as very large ponds.

This Sicce Pressurized UV Pond Filter offers mechanical filtration (3 sponges of different densities together with an efficient UV sterilizer for crystal clear pond water.)


The full article can be read at http://www.garden-pond-filters.com/Emperor-Aquatics-TadpoleUVfilter.html

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Fluidbead Ultimate Bead Filter Review

The Fluidbead Ultimate System incorporates the class leading Fluidbead Stainless Steel Filter, Turbo Vortex, 1 HP 2 Speed Pump and the Elektra Pro UV10 (UV Sterilizer).

The Variable hydraulic backwash ensures a thorough cleaning, preventing any dirty debris from entering back into the pond system. This space saving bead filter is a compact unit measuring 18" footprint by 56" tall. It comes with a whopping 4.0 CU. FT. of biological bead filter media that beats the benchmark industry standard for bead filtration systems by 450%

A multi port valve allows medical bypass and rinsing after the back wash cycle. This makes cleaning the filter an effortless task with just an easy movement of the handle to the backwash position.

The lower portion of the Fluidbead Ultimate System houses the fluidized bed filtration. The water is in constant motion, providing high levels of oxygenated water and ammonia to the beneficial bacteria, living on the bio bead filter media.

Channelling or clogging is a thing of the past with these bead pond filters. The upper portion of the Fluidbead ultimate System holds the floating plastic bead filter media, that form bead packs to trap waste solids and particles. Water then flows back into the pond system.

By bringing these two proven filtration technologies together (biological bead filtration and fluidized bed filtration) in a single unit the range of Fluidbead Ultimate stainless steel koi pond bead filters provide the discerning pond keeper with a powerful tool for biological and mechanical filtration.

The full article can be read at http://www.garden-pond-filters.com/Fluidbead_ultimate.html

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Best Dirty Water Pump Reviews

Whenever choosing a pump, whether that be a pond pump, solids handling pond pump (solid waste pump) or a dirty water pump (irrigation pump) an important yet often overlooked factor is the running cost (power consumption).

Many cheap to buy pond pumps end up costing you more in the long run to operate because they use more electricity and don't usually come with the level of reliability that you would expect.

The models shown on this page are energy efficient solids handling pumps and dirty water pond pumps designed for removing large solids and handling large waste, found in ponds, wells and pits.

Solids handling pond pumps have been designed to pump high volumes of water on a continuous 24/7 basis.

They are perfect for drainage applications and pumping water between containers and for small irrigation purposes.

Whilst they can be used as a submersible They are not the ideal for use in backyard ponds.

For backyard garden ponds I would recommend a submersible pond pump such as OASE Pond Pumps for smaller ponds or an external pond pump such as the Sequence Energy Saving Pump for large ponds, which use a high pressure bead filtration system.


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Matala Waterfall Pond Pump Reviews

It doesn't matter whether you have a large concrete pond or a pvc liner pond you will need a pond pump of some description. A pond pump is the heart and soul of any outdoor fish pond or indoor fish pond for that matter.

In general pond pumps for small to medium sized ponds tend to be submersible pond pumps i.e. they can be placed in the pond and are fully waterproof. In fact they are water cooled in many instances by the pond water itself. They require very little installation effort. Usually all you need to do is place the unit on a brick or two on the pond floor. This helps to prevent the pump from sucking up pond debris off the pond floor.

Submersible pumps are often hidden out of sight within a pond skimmer filter. In this application they usually supply a waterfall type filter as it flows back to the pond providing aeration and water circulation.

The submersible pump may be pulled from the water occasionally to clean its pre-filter or screen.

Submersible pond pumps are quieter running than the bigger and more powerful external pond pumps. And because they are below water level or hidden within a skimmer filter box they do not ruin the look or feel of the pond aesthetics.

The full article can be read at http://www.garden-pond-filters.com/matala_hiflowpump.html

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Sicce Fountain Pumps Review

Why Fountain Pumps Are So Popular?

Pond fish as well as us humans love pond fountains. We love them because they add beauty and sound to what might otherwise be quite a plain old boring fish pond.

The fish love them because the splashing water helps atmospheric oxygen to enter the pond. This makes for a healthier environment for pond fish to live in.

Types of Fountain Display

The patterns of water formed are created by a fountain pump pushing water through a water fountain nozzle. There are many different pattern formations available including: Cascading, tier, bubble, Tulip etc.

How To Choose The Best Submersible Fountain Pumps...

There isn't a definitive answer to "How to choose the best fountain pumps" unfortunately. However you can't really go wrong if you stick to the following:

1. Avoid fountain pumps with sponges in the suction because they soon become blocked and reduce the flow of water through the nozzle.
2. Choose a branded product from an industry recognized supplier, who is willing to back up the product with a decent guarantee (2 YEARS OR MORE).
3. Make sure the fountain pump model comes with a variety of different fountain nozzle heads (spray nozzles) for different effects because variety is the spice of life so they say.

The full article can be read at http://garden-pond-filters.com/sicce_fountain_pump.htm

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Birds Infect Ponds With Parasites

Have you ever witnessed your koi and gold fish rubbing themselves against the sides of the pond or rocks and other surfaces within the pond?

If the answer is yes then chances are your fish have been infected by some kind of parasitic infestation (parasite).

The problem is that many parasites can not be seen with the naked eye and to the uninitiated it would appear that perhaps this is normal behaviour for pond fish.

The flashing, flicking and jumping is common practice for the poor fish suffering from parasite infection and is their way of trying to remove the cause.

As is the case with most pond related problems heavily stocked ponds with poor water quality are much more likely to fall victim to severe outbreaks of fish pond parasites.

Fish pond parasites often find their way into your fish pond via bird droppings which fall into the water and subsequently infect fish.

The parasite will in the first instance infect a snail which in turn is eaten by your koi or other fish species.

The eye fluke is an example of one such parasite which may lead to blindness, depending on the extent of the infection.

Black spot disease is caused yet again by fish eating birds such as King fishers and herons who having eaten an infected fish continue the parasites life cycle by releasing eggs into the pond through their droppings.


The full article can be read at http://garden-pond-filters.com/garden-pond-birds.htm

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Little Giant Biological Percolate Filter

These Little Giant Pond Filters have a corrugated design for extra strength anchoring, and anti-flotation.

The BioVort vortex separator plate creates a cyclone type up flow to help uniformly separate and evenly disperse debris across pond filter media and settle debris for less maintenance and better filtration.

The biological filter media consists of Matala media pads that provide mechanical filtration plus the ideal surface environment for beneficial bacteria growth.

This easy to mount, professional grade pond biological filter is not only an efficient biological filter but a decorative waterfall water feature as well.

Locating the Waterfall The Waterfall can be positioned adjacent to the pond fringe in a easy configuration.

Benefits...

1. Primary biological media bag and mesh bag included.
2. All pipe work and plumbing is hidden from view.
3. The design allows you to place plant baskets on the lid so as to make a natural disguise.
4. These Little Giant Pond Filters incorporate Biovort technology to ensure an even spread of pond water across the Matala filter pad biomedia.

The full article can be read at http://garden-pond-filters.com/littlegiant_biowaterfall.htm

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Best Way To Keep Algae At Bay

The sure fire way to achieve clean pond water that is crystal clear and free from suspended green algae and the best way to clean algae from a pond is to use a UV pond filter or either an ultraviolet clarifier or Ultraviolet sterilizer.

Although UV clarifiers, UV sterilizers and biological pond filters are available as separate units, it makes far more sense to combine the two pieces of pond keeping equipment into a single unit.

The combination of the two units will often save you money and because the units have been designed to work together you will no longer need to worry about incompatibility issues, guaranteed!

Difference Between A UV Sterilizer & UV Clarifier...

A UV sterilizer sanitizes the pond water, killing pathogens and other water borne bacteria as well as using UVC light to destroy green pond algae, whereas a UV clarifier does not sterilize the water but has been designed solely to kill green algae using UV light.

UV pond sterilizers are normally used in large Koi ponds and tend to be much more expensive.

Common Types of Pond Algae...

There are several algae types commonly found in fish ponds. Some are much more easily controlled than others, whilst others are actually beneficial to your Koi and goldfish ...

1) The Good Algae ... The good algae are the small algae that you commonly see attached to nearly every available surface in the fish pond, including pumps, piping and the pond side walls. This algae type is fairly small and grows to about half an inch long and acts as a tasty snack for pond fish.

2) The Bad Algae - The filamentous string algae varieties, such as blanket weed, which can grow rapidly and reach several feet in length.

3) The Ugly Algae - The planktonic algae or single celled algae only measures 4 microns in size but in vast numbers your pond water becomes cloudy and often becomes quite smelly.

Learn how to control the various algae types by reading the full article here ...

http://www.garden-pond-filters.com/garden-pond-cleanfishponds.htm

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How To Maintain Algae Free Ponds

If you own a garden pond then I am willing to bet that you have struggled with pond algae from time to time!

Pond algae is the scourge of pond keepers throughout the world. There are several treatments available to pond keepers, but the best way to control pond algae is to use a UV sterilizer or UV Clarifier...

There are several types of algae, found in a garden pond, including suspended algae and string algae, of which blanket weed is a common variety. This article is concerned with suspended algae and its effect on pond water.

In warm weather and in particularly heavily populated ponds you will often see algae blooms, that turn the once clear pond water into what resembles a bowl of pea green soup, hence the name pea soup algae.

What Is An Algae Bloom?

An algae bloom is caused by the rapid reproduction of plank tonic algae when there is a lot of sunshine and nutrients in the pond water.

The disadvantage of an algae bloom is that the algae die off and start to decompose on the pond floor. This significant increase in the level of rotting organic matter is bad for your pond as it increases the level of ammonia and reduces the level of oxygen.

Oxygen is used up as part of the decaying process. The end result is an increase in carbon dioxide. The decrease of oxygen levels and the increase in carbon dioxide is detrimental to the health of your pond in the following ways ...

Remember that oxygen is critical for the nitrifying bacteria that breakdown ammonia. It is also essential for pond fish and other aquatic life.

How Does A UV Sterilizer Prevent Algae?

The most effective way to control pond algae is to use a UV sterilizer or UV clarifier. The power of blue ultraviolet light that is generated at a particular wavelength is a miracle for pond keepers. UV light occurs naturally in nature and is one of the reasons we get sunburned on holiday.

The effectiveness of a UV sterilizer is affected by temperature to a large extent. At 40 C (104 F) it works at maximum efficiency. A drop in temperature to 20 C (68 F) results in a drop in efficiency to only 50%.

Manufacturers of UV sterilizers get around this rapid drop in efficiency by insulating the UV lamp with a quartz sleeve. UV light transmits through the quartz, so the maximum efficiency is maintained.

How Does A Pond UV Work In A Fish Pond?

As pond water containing the floating algae passes through the quartz tube it is bombarded with ultra violet rays, either directly or via highly reflective metal surfaces. The UV rays destroy the cell walls of the algae, causing what is known as flocculation to occur (the dead algae clump together forming a much large mass).

This makes removal by a pond filter or pond skimmer possible. Prior to clumping a single suspended algae cell measures about 4 microns across (4 millionths of a meter).

Other Methods Used To Control Floating Pond Algae

1) Pond Algaecides are not in my opinion a good idea for the following reasons: they need to be administered in precise doses; too much can harm nitrifying bacteria colonies and the health of pond fish. They only work for a short period of time.

2) A Veggie Filter, also known as a bog filter consists of pond plants that are deliberately starved of nutrients. The aquatic plants get their food source from the nitrates in the pond water. They compete with algae for these nutrients and as a result help to keep the pond algae under control. They do not guarantee algae free ponds however.


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How To Keep A Healthy Clean Pond

It is important to understand that I don't just mean clean, crystal clear water. I actually mean a healthy, stable environment where the pond water chemistry is in equilibrium and the pond inhabitants are healthy, stress free and free from illness and disease.

What is the perfect environment for pond fish to live in?

To be honest I am not sure what the perfect environment is and I don't speak fish.

I can only assume that a perfect environment is one in which your Koi, goldfish and other pond fish varieties can grow, develop and live what appears to be a happy life! It is far easier to point out what will definitely make their life pretty miserable.

High ammonia levels in ponds combined with high nitrite levels and pathogenic bacteria will definitely make them want to relocate to somewhere else.

Unfortunately if this is the state of play within your pond then they will get their wish; unfortunately the place they will be relocating to is that great big fish pond in the sky, with halos and angels.

So how do you ensure that your fish live in a safe, clean, healthy pond?

The secret is to ensure that first and foremost the levels of ammonia and nitrite in your pond are kept under control. By reducing ammonia in ponds you are at least going to stop your pond inhabitants: Koi, goldfish, Rudd, frogs snails etc from falling victim to ammonia poisoning.

Controlling Ammonia In Fish Ponds...

Reducing ammonia in ponds is critically important. The secret to controlling ammonia in fish ponds is to use a biological pond filter, also known as a biofilter. A fish pond biofilter carries out the nitrogen cycle in your pond and removes these harmful chemicals by converting them into nitrate, which can be used by your aquatic plants as a food source.

It is important to regularly check your pond water using a pond test kit; check for ammonia, nitrite and pH at a minimum. The way a pond looks can be deceiving and does not necessarily mean that all is well below the surface.

Your pond may have crystal clear water and be free from algae blooms but that doesn't always mean it is a healthy environment for your fish to live in. On the other hand a fish pond with small algae blooms might look dirty but because ammonia and nitrite levels are under control, it is in fact as near to a perfect environment as possible.

How To Keep A Fish Pond Clean & Keep Pond Fish Healthy...

1) Use a correctly specified pond bio filter ... As stated above ensure that you use a garden pond filter that is suitable for the size of your pond.

2) Avoid Sand Filters ... When selecting the choice of pond filter make sure that you use a biological pond filter and not a mechanical sand filter, commonly used as a swimming pool filter.

The full article can be read at http://www.garden-pond-filters.com/garden-pond-cleanpond.htm

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The Importance of Pond Filter Media

A garden pond filter is only as good as the pond filter bio media used. Many models of biological pond filter can be significantly improved by using a pond bio filter media with a much higher Specific Surface Area (SSA).

Choosing the right pond filter media will not only save you lots of money but will improve your filter performance.

A biological pond filter is responsible for converting ammonia, found in garden ponds into much less toxic nitrates, in a series of chemical processes known as the nitrogen cycle or nitrification process.

The processes are carried out by Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter nitrifying bacteria that live on the pond filter media, housed in the pond filter unit. The higher the Specific Surface Area (SSA) of the filter media the larger the colony of beneficial nitrifying bacteria it can house. The larger the colony of bacteria to convert ammonia the better your pond water quality will be.

When choosing a garden pond filter look at the pond filter media included and choose a pond filter model with as high a SSA as possible.

A smaller filter model with a superior pond filter media will perform as well as a large filter model using an inferior pond filter bio media, such as thin plastic coils.

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