Fall Pond Cleaning
Some Summers Are Worse Than Others
I'm sure we can all say we don't ever remember a summer like the summer of 2012! So if you have struggled with your pond this year, you can thank our weather more this year than ever before. Fall pond cleanings aren't usually necessary if you have taken good care of your pond all year. This year however is a different story....
Not only was heat a factor this year, mostly it was a lack of rain. Rain flushes our ponds with fresh, clean water. Not only are wastes removed but so is the fine debris. Check out the photos below:
If you have a debris issue like the first photo, you may want to seriously consider a complete cleaning this fall. By a complete cleaning, I mean draining it all, removing fish, and seriously washing out that junk at the bottom and behind rocks. A partial water change won't do it. And you can throw every treatment at it... you'll just be throwing money away. Nothing is going to get rid of suspended debris like a cleaning will.
What if you don't remove the debris? It will mostly settle to the bottom. But, if you have fish like ours, they stir it up every day. You'll clean your filters like crazy. Basically you'll spend more time taking care of the debris than if you just cleaned it.
What can you do to prevent it? Feeding your fish less, using beneficial bacteria with a sludge remover weekly, and increasing filtration will help. The top photo is the pond in my backyard. The bottom photo is the pond in my front yard. Steve treats them both diligently. The font pond with the clear water gets less fish food and has more filtration, however. Sometimes, it's just one of those summers where we have to do a little extra work, like a fall cleaning!
Please let us know if we can answer any questions about cleaning. We are here to help!
Written by Cool Ponds Co-Owner Staci
I'm sure we can all say we don't ever remember a summer like the summer of 2012! So if you have struggled with your pond this year, you can thank our weather more this year than ever before. Fall pond cleanings aren't usually necessary if you have taken good care of your pond all year. This year however is a different story....
Not only was heat a factor this year, mostly it was a lack of rain. Rain flushes our ponds with fresh, clean water. Not only are wastes removed but so is the fine debris. Check out the photos below:
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| This is a pond with debris filled water. |
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| This is a pond with suspended algae. Can you see the difference between this pond and the one above? |
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| This is what pond water should look like! |
What if you don't remove the debris? It will mostly settle to the bottom. But, if you have fish like ours, they stir it up every day. You'll clean your filters like crazy. Basically you'll spend more time taking care of the debris than if you just cleaned it.
What can you do to prevent it? Feeding your fish less, using beneficial bacteria with a sludge remover weekly, and increasing filtration will help. The top photo is the pond in my backyard. The bottom photo is the pond in my front yard. Steve treats them both diligently. The font pond with the clear water gets less fish food and has more filtration, however. Sometimes, it's just one of those summers where we have to do a little extra work, like a fall cleaning!
Please let us know if we can answer any questions about cleaning. We are here to help!
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