Green pond

barbiegirls, Jan 2, 12:46am
Does anyone have any quick fix ideas on keeping my pond abit less green!
thank you
maclad, Jan 2, 3:39am
No expert but I understand sunlight can do this. Perhaps some surface growing water plants may help.
writy, Jan 2, 3:46am
you can get a product called pond treat but it is unbelievably expesive.aglime is a longer term fix but as far as short term goes you either need to get flow through the pond or stir it up to get oxygen into it.
samanya, Jan 2, 4:04am
There are no 'quick fix' ideas for a natural pond with fish & plants, etc.
maclad & writy are right, the warmer/sunnier the water the more it creates conditions in which algae thrives & the warmer the water,the more oxygen levels go down & that is not desirable.
You need heaps of plants, oxygenators as well as shade providers & a pump will help a lot if you have/get the right sized one to get the water turned over.
You should be aiming for an ecological balance in your pond & there's plenty of sites you can look up for info& then work out what is best for yours .as all pond situations are different.
*hint* don't bother with an American or English site .as the info does not apply to NZ conditions.
There are some harmless algaecide products you can use in the mean time & the best one I have found is "Pond Balance' .it's not cheap but it's saves faffing around with the cheap ones & being disappointed & if used correctly, it works well but takes a week or two (or more) before any difference is noticed & it is good for the stringy blanket weed type algae, which is a real bu**er to control & as the name implies, it helps towards the balance that you should be aiming for.
It takes a while to get that eco balance though, but once you have it will be much easier to maintain.
If all else fails & you can't handle the look of a green pond .chlorinate it (removing any fish & plants first of course) that it a real 'quick fix'.**jokes**
samanya, Jan 2, 4:06am
writy .aglime!
I'd like to know more about that product .are you meaning agricultural lime!
If so, I'd be very wary about using that due to upsetting the PH balance.
barbiegirls, Jan 2, 6:03am
I have just installed a shade sail over the pond.I do have a pump and have made a skippy filter,found on the net.I will see how that goes.I stripped my pond and pulled a lot of plant last year and hasn't been the same since so am hoping when the plants come back it will help, thanks everyone
barbiegirls, Jan 2, 6:04am
Maybe a little to quick, thanks for your help
omamari, Jan 2, 6:12am
If you haven't got frogs and fish copper will kill your algae
samanya, Jan 2, 6:33am
Cheers . I do know what I'm talking about .I'm qualified in this particular subject & you got it .chlorine was a joke solution!.
barbiegirls, Jan 2, 7:13am
Have you had any experience with barley straw pellets! and yes I do have fish omamari
pandaeye, Jan 2, 9:31am
what do you do samanya!
e_babe, Jan 2, 9:43am
UV Filter works wonders. Our fish pond was green and we could not see our fish we treated with the alge stuff and other stuff would semi clear and then couldn't see again. Was recommended a UV light and what a difference, even though pond has alage nround edges water is clear and we can see all the fish
sailor13, Jan 2, 10:14am
Just do water changes
barbiegirls, Jan 2, 6:45pm
Do you have a pond Samanya!
barbiegirls, Jan 2, 9:53pm
How do you keep it clear!
samanya, Jan 2, 9:54pm
I haven't personally & have heard varying reports on how effective they are.
It's not known for sure how barley straw works, one theory is that it sets up a bacterial action something akin to hydrogen peroxide & releases very slowly into the water .like one drop per minute 24/7 .but I' don't know for sure.
This is one of the better articles
http://www.bradshawsponds.co.uk/bradalgae/algaestraw.htm
Yes I have a pond & like a lot, I have the odd problem at times, but it is well established which helps.
samanya, Jan 2, 9:57pm
I have 60 -70% surface cover with plants & lillies, plenty of oxygenators & if I have a problem I use the Pond Balance product I mentioned ^^^ there. I don't expect it to be pristine 'swimming pool' clear .just like to see the fish.
I do have a lot of aquatic snails as well.
barbiegirls, Jan 2, 10:10pm
My pond was established but had to be emptied for repair, I must have taken to much plant out.Since it has been fixed and not so many plants it is green/brown.Maybe I need to get heaps more plant. Thanks for the link to barley straw
samanya, Jan 2, 10:24pm
D'uh .I forgot to say that I have a UV filter as well & that's the most useful thing, they guarantee clear water but they don't eradicate blanket weed.
Green/brown water sounds more like suspended algae to me.
Cheers .better go & get some work done.
pandaeye, Jan 2, 11:15pm
does your pond have any constant water flow (live fed)! What sort of plants do you have on the sides!
barbiegirls, Jan 11, 3:51pm
I have oxegin plant and have just got a mixture of baby plants and 2 lillies 10 fish and a pump.