small pond algae control

[RobertN]

My wife and I put in a 4'x5' pond in the front yard. It is 1-2' deep, with a plastic liner. It has a little pump with a hose that goes to a big frog, that squirts back in the pond.

We put a few water plants, and a few goldfish in there.

All is generally good, except with the warmer weather we have got algae, and it smells(not terribly bad, but smells). The algae growth is clogging the little pump too.

What can we do to keep the fish, but cut down on the algae growth?

 

[TWINKLE_TOES]

Robert,

As usual , I don't have a clue /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif but fishman posted a response to my post on <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.tractorbynet.com/cgi-bin/compact/showthreaded.pl?Cat=&Board=rural&Number=35762&Search=true&Forum=All_Forums&Words=algea&Match=Entire%20Phrase&Searchpage=0&Limit=50&Old=allposts&Main=35660>Pond Scum</A> that may help.
Al

 

[dummy]

Best option is to install a UV light kit. Does the pond have a bio filter also? Bio filters help remove solids and UV filters destroy algae growth.

 

[dsulli]

I have seen recommendations for algae control in larger ponds where you put a mesh bag, filled with barley straw, into the pond. There is some reaction with the straw that controls algae growth. If you pick up a water garden or pond magazine, you'll see advertisers for it. I assume it would work fine for a small pond, but you obviously wouldn't use as much.

 

[rf33]

I have seen some algae control products which are nothing more than blue dye, which absorbs some of the light that algae needs to grow. I think that this stuff was not harmful to fish, but I do not know for sure. Perhaps your local Soil and Water conservation officer might have some more info on products in your area which control algae, but do not kill your fish? Or you might just try a larger pet store, as some of these have and sell pond equipment.

 

[fishman]

RobertN,

For larger ponds most recommend Cutrine Plus for algae control. Suggested treatment rates range from 1-2 gallons/surface acre, and I have found that 1 gallon/acre usually works great when the sun is out. This chemical is preferred over copper sulfate because the amount of elemental copper is greatly reduced. Price generally ranges from $30-$50/gallon retail.

Dilute the chemical 10 to 1 with water and don't kill the whole lake at once if the infestation is severe and/or it's mid-late summer. Treat a max of 50% of the pond's surface.

Because you pond is so small (0.00046 acres!) I wouldn't have a clue how much to use. The best advice might be to try one of the many websites that specialize in outdoor ornamental pools

 

[TonyC]

Hold the phone...don't kill your fish!!!!/w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

I've been around the horn on that with a pond your size. Fish and plants help so you should have a balance of those. You should have 50-70% of the ponds surface shaded by plant life by summer. I found a product called "Back-up". It is a naturally occuring bacteria you buy in powdered form that you mix into the pond (1 tsps per 60 gallons), every week for the first month then monthly or so after that. It will keep you pond's water from turning green.

There is another form of algae known as string algae. It is easy to tell as it is stringy and adheres to the pond sides and plant life. This type of algae is controlled well by barley straw. A small amount in a net bag suspended under water will keep you clean. Take note: the barley straw works during the process of it's decomposition. So don't keep putting "fresh" stuff in!/w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif Leave the straw in all winter. String algae is worse then than in the summer. You can stop the back-up treatments when it gets cold. This method works. There is pletny of stuff you can buy such as UV filters which do work great but they are expensive and overkill for your size pond.

You may also want to add some filtration on your frog pump to help clean up suspended particles. Good luck!

 

[fcpnorman]

I live in Grass Valley, and have two ponds, one large and one small. They are both natural, fed by a stream and a spring. What I have found in the smaller pond is that shade keeps the water cool, and eliminates algae bloom. Also, keeping the water moving helps keep the algae from forming. I don't have much experience with the liners, so none of this may apply. In the spring on my large pond I get surface blooms of algae, from all the pollen landing on the surface and the sunlight. I keep a sprinkler going on it, and it chops it up , and it moves out from the cove and down to the release point, where I release it all down the creek. Once June rolls around the problem is over.
Just my two cents.

 

[Alan L.]

I just ordered 2 gallons of the Cutrine Plus from Barnyardhealth.com for about $24 a gallon for my 1.5 acre tank (pond). This was the lowest price I found - I'm presuming its the same dilution as the others I looked at. This will be my first time to use it on my algae.

 

[RobertN]

My wife will like this; she likes planting things/w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif The pond receives a lot of sun, so that probably explains a lot. There is very little shade there. I will look in to the "back-up" this weekend.

Thanks!

 

[RobertN]

I'll try Lee's Feed this weekend.. They are a pretty good shop here in "downtown" Shingle Springs.

 

[TonyC]

Yep if it's getting a lot of sun and no beneficial bacteria you will get algae. Let me know if you need anything else or if you have trouble finding the back-up!

 

[dummy]

Do you know who makes Back-up? The water feature I'm building now may not need it, but .....nice to know info. if it will work and lessen costs. You're right about UV kits being expensive, but that's all we've found to work worth a darn.

 

[TonyC]

I don't know who makes it but one place you can get by mail is <A target="_blank" HREF=http://64.224.96.217/ShopSite/treatment.html#506>here</A>

I don't have any experience with very large ponds but with smaller ponds you don't have to spend a lot of time or money to have crystal clear water without chemicals. You just need the right balance of plants and fish with a little help from natural bacteria. My pond doesn't even have a real filter.

 

[dummy]

In waterponds.com, I found a good article for a decent inexpensive (cheap) bio/mechanical filter. For my new water feature, clay lined 36 x 60 x 4 getting the balancing act together, fish/plants/filter is going to take a while. Thanks for the link.

 

[rmorgan]

Robert--

Nobody has said much about holistic pond-management techniques yet. Algae exists because there is enough nutrient in the pond for it to grow. When it dies, it decomposes, and provides--more nutrient. Cutrine is an excellent product which I use occasionally in our 3/4-ac. pond, but its benefit is also its detriment: It promptly kills the algae, providing more nutrient plus the dead algae collects on the bottom as muck.

One of the most effective means of controlling algae, especially in a pond your size, is simply taking it out. I spent a couple of hours last night making "algae rolls" of the filamentous algae which forms around the shoreline, and got nearly all of it out. Algae is extremely high in nitrogen, and makes excellent compost, which is better in a compost pile than decaying on the bottom of your pool.

Also, your pond store probably sells beneficial microbes, which can do a lot for water clarity and algae control; they provide a new bottom-of-the-food-chain by chomping up decaying algae, muck from leaves, and other nutrients; the microbes multiply quickly and exponentially (I've read that two can become 16 million in eight hours), then are gobbled up by zooplankton, bugs, etc., which are then eaten by the fish. An Ohio company, Inspired by Nature, will ship their own high-density blend of microbes, which are freeze-dried and in water-soluble baggies--just toss 'em in.

A couple of good websites: My neighborhood fish hatchery is online at www.jonesfish.com, good pond information is at www.ibnature.com, and information about holistic management and a holistic habitat-improvement product is at www.aquamats.com.

 

[TonyC]

Yeah getting the balance going can take a little time. An inexpensive filter system isn't a bad way to start. I have a small waterfall and all I did was put the submerged pump into a black plastic 10" flower pot. I cut a circle out of 1 1/2" filter media and to fit into the pot's opening and cut a small hole in the middle for the hose to come out. By doing that all the water is pulled through the filter down to the pump. Total cost: $4.00!

 

[JonLeonard]

I built a small filter for my pond a few years ago. It was a 2 1/2 gallon bucket, with a plastic planter base (you know those saucers that you get to set under a house plant to catch excess water) upside down in it. I drilled holes in the planter base and put the hose from the pump into one of them. Then I filled the bucket with small lava rock. Last, I drilled a hole near the top of the bucket and sealed a hose barb in it with non-toxic caulk and attached a hose back going into the pond.

Just put a valve on the pump and adjust the flow so that the pump doesnt send so much water that the bucket overflows.

Doesnt take long till lots of hungry beneficial bacteria grow in the lava rock that eat all kinds of nastly stuff in the water.

Jon

 

[Woody1]

question......why not just try to do it without chemicals? find out what type of fish / critter eats algea, then put it in the pond. of course that way might be opening a whole new can of worms.....when that critter gets numerous, what eats it? then what eats that too? etc..etc.... on 2nd thought...chemicals might do better! lol