Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Help with pond management

Hello all... been lurking and reading over the last few weeks. Great place I've found here for sure!

My wife and I purchased a new home in November with 2 ponds (between cincy and dayton in ohio). I'll briefly describe both, and our goals for each, and will appreciate any advice you pond guru's have!

Front Pond: 1/8 acre, not sure on depth yet
Current Status: Has lots of frogs, some fish (don't know what kind yet), occasional ducks passing through. Fills from groundwater from basement sump pump and runoff, overflows into the neighbors pond. Water looks pretty clear, a little bit of algae showed up after it iced over a few weeks ago. the ducks have been munching on that. No aerator exists here that i know of
Goals: Scenic only, but would like it to remain healthy. We'd like to eventually have a fountain with lights in it for visual effect only.


Rear Pond: 1/2 acre, not sure on depth yet.
Current Status: Lots of frogs, fish, snails, occasional ducks and a blue heron that hangs around from time to time. Fills from run off (20 acre sloping lot behind us), overflows into a little creek / treeline with underground culvert. our lot used to have the same creek but it was piped and flattened. Diffuser in the middle, (assuming bottom), no aerator pump currently.
Goals: Want to build a dock, be able to safely swim with kids and friends, keep fish stocked and healthy for fishing (mostly catch and release. may fry up a couple here and there). do a little lazy floating around or laps in a kayak.

I'm thinking my first step is to replace the aerator pump for the back pond. It has a diffuser in it, with air tube running underground (about 650 feet) to our pole barn where I'd like to install an aerator. I don't know when the previous aerator died, but I'd guess it's been a while. I did test the line with a regular air compressor, and bubbles come up no problem, to the line is clear and working.

I've looked at these eco inline aerators. I plan to the aerator inside our metal pole barn (no electric at pond) and use the existing air tube. We are on a tight budget now with having to fix and remodel and landscape, so we were hoping these aerators may work well for us? We want to to be quiet, and I'd put a timer on it if needed to run on a schedule (and I'm open to suggestions on that).
http://www.aquacave.com/Eco-Plus-Commercial-Aquarium-Air-Pumps-C1045.aspx

So my main questions at this point:
Will one of those Eco Plus aerators work, and what size would I need for 1/2 acre. Or will it be wise to determine depth before purchasing anything?

Is there a way to know if our pond is safe for swimming? What do we do to get it (or keep it) safe for swimming?

When should we begin aerating, and on what type of schedule?

Any time of treatment needed for regular pond maintenance?



Finally -- all suggestions must be Dog-safe as we have 2 dogs that stick their feet in and drink (neither will actually swim, even though they can) -- and neighbor dogs that poke around in the ponds as well.



Feel free to answer any questions I didn't ask as well

Thanks so much, we are excited about having ponds and learning about all this stuff!

Edit: One more question -- do we want turtles in our pond? Red Eared sliders are pretty common around here, but not sure how the survive winter?

And here is my property and ponds!

What kinds of fish do you like to eat the most?

It sounds like you want a fish that can live with as little effort for you, right? I think I would suggest hybird bluegill (HBG) for you.

You are correct, we want it to be simple to manage! I don't really like fish that much, but just for fun i'd probably try to eat some. I know i like talapia.

I do know there are some blue gills in the pond, not sure what time! Found laying about 6 feet away... i think the blue heron may have plucked him out?

Welcome, 96, sounds like a nice place.

Not an aeration expert,and suspect someone who is will chime in, but I doubt any of those pumps would be strong or durable enough to run an aeration system in a pond your size, though knowing depth would be helpful in making that assumption. Since you have the rest of the system in place, buying a new pump might be an option, and as folks here hopefully respond to your questions, you can probably PM for quotes.

Is your pond safe for swimming? Good question. There are a lot of incredibly virulent bacteria that live in water. Vibrio sp, aeromonas sp, pseudomonas sp and others make MRSA and E coli look friendly by comparison, and Naegleria....don't let your wife read about that. However, the incidence of water borne illness is low as long as no open wounds are exposed, no water swallowed. I've swam and waded in pretty rank ponds and creeks and never had any type of infection, nor seen it in any of my companions. As long as your watershed doesn't contain any sewage or other contaminants, you're almost certainly "safe", meaning the risk is finite but extremely small.

One other thing to think about when contemplating your pond community-some fish do nibble, especially small sunfish if present in large numbers. Some swimmers find this objectionable, especially very small children, although it is totally harmless. If you think this might apply to your brood, folks here can give you recommendations on how to minimize this by choosing the right community of fish.

Hope this helps.

Welcome aboard 96, What is the ID of the 650 ft trunk line to the pond?Before putting a compressor to that diffuser you should pull the diffuser up and see what kind it is. Just making bubbles may make things worse. Then if its a viable diffuser match a compressor to it.Operating ranges vary by cfm and no sense in putting more or less air to a diffuser than the manufacture suggets.Line loss in the 650 ft line will have to be calculated for cfm loss also. I would do some random depth checks down the center and east and west of center to get a feel for the bottom. Lots of information on this site (search function) about sizing a proper aeration system. So take you time and do it right your off to a good start.Also concerning the EcoPlus Pump it will have a difficult time pushing air that distance and especially providing enough available cfm for most air stations. After you know the ID of the trunk line and water depths the correct compressor type can be determined.

Good advice from Ted L. IMO the Eco Plus pump would be best used in the small front yard pond. The larger pond is likely too deep for effective aeration using an EcoPlus style of pump.

Thanks guys. Definitely sounds like a need to get some more facts (depth and diffuser type) before i go further. Since the pond has ben non-aerated for a while, I assume there's no big rush to get it all figured out? I'm looking for a cheap kayak, but i can use a blow up raft in the spring if i need to to check depth, and pull up the diffuser.

I'll confirm the diameter of the tubing as well. good call on that one.

I figured those Ecos might be a little weak for a 1/2 acre, but i liked the price of them ;-).

As soon as i can get a way to check depth without freezing myself, i'll do that and see if i can pull up the diffuser and snap some pics and get any model details I can find....

Thanks!