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That is a great looking pond, Boondoggle!

Did you add some rock on the far (in the pic) shore, or is that snow?

I also like you big hump with rocks and artificial cover. Will that just barely be reachable by a kid that makes a long cast from the shore? If it holds a lot of fish, then that should certainly incentivize kids to improve their casting skills!

However, it does look like it might be a tad bit windy throughout the spring. Maybe ask your seed guy if they have come out with a new wheat type that grows 60' tall?

Welcome to Pond Boss, Funky!

If it's just a single fish swimming sideways, I would not worry about it, as it may just be old age/end of life.

Is it a larger bluegill (meaning old age/end of life) or smaller?

it is finally spring here in mid-michigan, I have a BG that is swimming sideways, is there
something I should do? what is the problem? Never had this happen, pond is 10 years
old and is half acre. Thanks for any info!!

We've sold many different brands of feeders, but only sell Texas Hunter now. The robustness and reliability of them is second to none. Sure, they may have a problem or two, but nothing like all the other feeders we've sold, PLUS if you do have to work on it it is very easy to do so. The AquaPro feeders that I've had to work on are held together inside with duct tape. I've even put a TH timer in an AquaPro feeder.

For us Lake Managers, Texas Hunter makes a model that holds 100# of fish food.

For my pond, it's solely the amount of light. When there was a big maple tree there shading the pond, they'd eat in the shade in the daytime. Now that it's gone there will be some feeding response during the day, but very minimal. Dawn/dusk is best.

Thanks Esshup. We are feeding in the 2-4' area as well. There is some deeper water close that might get hit with a sprinkling of food via no wind or wind drifting it out there. Do you think it's a light issue with middle of the day feeding or a water temp / activity issue on feeding mid day for your pond?

First I've heard of these guys. I saw an MSRP of 1,000 on their website but no actual pricing making me think you have to buy from a dealer.

Reportedly has a tilt base which might make it interesting for bank mount applications.

Also on the website it looks like there are two larger models which are not available yet. This is a new start up company just getting products out?

No throw pattern listed. Any idea how far and wide these units throw food?

I have a TH bank mount. Shipped same day I ordered. Changed my mounting legs after I ordered which were shipped same day I ordered again. TH is very good on the customer service side and stands behind their products well from my experience.

How did you hear about them?

Welcome to Pond Boss.

Hey Folks. I am brand new to Pond Boss. I have been researching fish feeders to replace my old AquaPro which is rusting out. I came across this American Feeder H125. It is made of aluminum and has a lot of features included in the price (battery, solar charger, etc.). However, there are no reviews as of yet. Does anybody out there know anything about these? I would purchase another AquaPro but I am not sure if they are still being manufactured. Right now, my choice to replace my old feeder would be a Texas Hunter. Any thoughts. Thanks in advance. Ken

If feeding smaller fish, feed in shallow water - 2'-4' deep. My fish don't want to eat at noon, but really turn on 1/2 hr-45 minutes before sunset. I have the feeder set for 1 hr after sunrise and about 45 min before sunset. The way my pond is laid out I have a shelf that is about 3' deep that drops off quick to 10' water. I throw feed over both areas. Small fish feed in shallower water, the HSB blow up on the feed in deeper water.

We're basically feeding from the middle of the pic on the far bank. Haven't tried a ring but it's a good suggestion. You are thinking it's more of a security thing than a time of day application? The pond is out in open range and seem to rarely get calm water on the pond.

We do have a cedar and a hedge in the water currently on opposing sides of the flat. At the drop off from the flat there's more habitat in the way of the DIY blocks/PVC and PVC trees in the deeper pool.

I was thinking that our 11am feeding time was just to bright and shifting to an earlier time would be better for the fish? Seems as though we are having some success with the late feeding and they get to go to sleep with a full belly.

Pic attached was when we were still on initial stages of filling. The blocks ended up getting grouped in packs of 3-4 each. The deeper water has 8-10 complex pvc trees in water currently 7' that will end up closer to 9-10' at full pool.

Do you have a water source to easily re-fill your pond? Is it already full of fish?

How steep are your maximum slopes?. In moist clay you can work in the bentonite and re-shape the slope at pretty steep angles.

If you have the option of draining the pond and letting it mostly dry, then you can apply your bentonite on the pond slopes and the bottom and then roto-till about 8-10 cm deep to get uniform mixing. Tamp or lightly compact the entire pond area after tilling.

Bentonite is a type of clay mineral that actually incorporates water into the crystalline structure. It therefore swells substantially after it is hydrated. However, it is a little fragile as regards staying in place until it has swelled. Therefore you need to gently re-fill the pond from the bottom up such that you do NOT create any erosion channels that cut through your 10 cm blanket.

The treatment above should create a pretty good seal for a pond that is only 2m deep.

Bentonite may not be a good solution if the water levels in your pond vary over extended periods of time. If your bentonite blanket dries out, then it may suffer from large cracks as it dehydrates. Re-filling the pond may not perfectly heal these cracks.

If you can't drain and treat your pond, then bentonite can be added into a full pond. However, TJ has a good product that may be a better solution for that type of application or for the situation where your pond goes through wet/dry cycles.

I have no idea about the regulations or cost to get that product to Sweden. However, TJ is a "sealing expert" and can also just give you solid advice if you can contact him, or if he shows up in your thread.

Good luck on your new pond project!

Have you tried a big feeding ring?

Keeping the food in a known, stable location might train the fish a little better.

Need to prune some hedge apple trees or clear some cedars this spring? Throwing in some more cover beyond or between the spawning beds might make the BG feel a little more secure.

If the pond does not have bottom aeration, then all regular specialized pond bacteria will not work very well because most of the best, fasting working decomposing bacteria thrive in well oxygenated warm environments. Ponds without bottom aeration develop during the warm season cool anoxic (no oxygen) sediments that kill all the good aerobic bacteria leaving behind anaerobic bacteria that work very very slowly - 20-30 times slower. Mixing the sediments in all areas of the pond bottom when aerobic bacteria are added will result in the fastest decomp of the leaves and organic sediments.

A clear water swimming pond goal that receives lots annual tree leaf input is a problematic mess. Even swimming pools under trees receive lots of leaves that causes lots of extra work and extra filtration effort Both IMO, are bad situations.

This PBoss pond sealer expert should be able to help reduce your pond seepage problem. If he does not see this thread in a few days contact him directly.
tj@hudlandmgmt.com
402.730.4897

Hello everyone,

I’m currently working on a pond project and I’m facing a challenge. My pond is approximately 8x4 meters (26 X 13 feet) in size and almost 2 meters (79 inches) deep at the deepest end, average depth of about 80 centimeters (32 inches). I was planning to use sodium bentonite as a sealant but due to space constraints, the slopes of my pond are steeper than the max recommended 1:3 ratio (V:H) for using sodium bentonite as a sealant.

From what I’ve read, sodium bentonite is not a good option for me as it tends to creep downwards on steeper slopes. If I were to follow the recommended slope for bentonite, I would have to reduce the depth of my pond to just 67 centimeters (26 inches), which is not good since I live in a region where freezing temperatures are common, thus maintaining a deeper pond is crucial.

I came across a comment on YouTube suggesting to use 10-20% Portland cement mixed with clay or soil as an alternative method to seal ponds with steeper slopes. Has anyone here tried this method?

Please note that I’m not interested in using pond liners, ducks, or pigs for this project. Any other advice or suggestions regarding using natural materials to seal a pond with steep slopes are greatly appreciated!

Curious what others do on selecting times for the auto feeders.

We are currently seeing some activity at the feeder in the evening 7PM CST on a 1 sec feed. Water is still a little cool and we tried feeding at 11AM allowing the water to get warmed up a little in the AM hours. Would love to get a 2nd feeding going.

Bit of info on the pond. We feed from the West bank so North or South winds really but blow the feed from middle of the pond to the North or South bank lines. West bank is also our shallowish flat area that we have (4) BG spawing beds. We are a little short on pond weeds in the feeding area but do have some holding habitat for the fish 10-12' from the BG spawn beds.

Curious what times you guys are seeing some success at.

Especially when you are on the road, away from any place, maybe after hours and have live critters on board that depend on you to breathe. You only have about 1/2 hr to fix the problem or they are dead.

"Two is one. One is none."

Look for a Helena Chemical Supplier in your area. Watch the pH of the water, you might have to buffer it with hydrated lime.

Anderson are good people. 1"-1.5" weigh between 2 and 3.8 pounds per thousand. 3"-4" weigh 13-30 pounds per thousand.


Yes to a regulator like is on a cutting torch. You have to have a flow control gauge to limit the amount of flow going through the air stone. I use point four air stones. https://pentairaes.com/point-four-micro-bubble-diffusers-mbd Follow the instructions with the air stones. I cannot tell you what the flow rate is, that depends on the size of the fish, the amount of fish, the water temp, etc., etc. That's where the O2 meter comes into play and stopping to check O2 levels is important.

Yes, too much O2 will cause a problem with the fish. They will get their gills burned and "get the bends" from too much O2, that is why I will not haul fish without an O2 meter. https://www.ysi.com/proodo This is what I have. I try to keep the O2 level at 10 mg/L.

If you are using the O2 cylinder while driving you also have to have this on it. https://weldfabulous.com/gas-cylinder-regulator-protector-safety-cap-fine-thread-3-1-8-x-11/ Take note that there are coarse and fine thread models. Not all O2 cylinders have the same thread type, and I don't know why.

Then you have to have the hoses, fittings, etc., etc. I use cutting torch hose.

I also have duplicates of EVERYTHING on the truck just in case something happens to one of the pieces of equipment. Extra air stones, extra regulator, extra flow control, etc., etc. I have had the air stone crack within 1/2 hr of checking the O2 level in the water and I lost a whole tank full of 6" BG. I also carry an extra O2 cylinder "just in case". I've had regulators go bad, flow controls fail, etc., etc.

I also use different chemicals in the water to help the fish during transport. That is a proprietary mix and I won't give up all my secrets. As you can tell there is a steep learning curve to it. Most fish haulers use salt in the water plus a de-foamer. It ain't cheap, but then neither is killing fish and the associated miles to replace them.

Its a 10 hr drive one way for me from here to Lonoke.

What is your budget? And how much of the leaf reduction per year do you expect to achieve with the bacteria?

But you knew not to ask. Never ask a man if he's from Texas. If he isn't, you'll embarrass him. If he is, he'll decide when you deserve to know.

Thanks for this

Is there any bacteria’s you can recommend that will get rid of the leaves? Something we can toss in every few weeks?

Thank you

The net is 1/4 mesh may have some issue with shiners but maybe not the fatheads. The LMB that are available in May are 2 to 3" and price is $1.80 per fish.