Forums36
Topics40,963
Posts557,996
Members18,504
|
Most Online3,612 Jan 10th, 2023
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6
|
OP
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6 |
I built a 3/8 acre pond in the hill country. Aerated with a vertex, stocked it with fish from Overtons and I have been burying fish for 2 days now. Why did the vertex not keep any fish alive? I obviously had a algal bloom that sucked all of the DO out. I am frustrated and am wondering if I wasted all my money putting in aeration to prevent this from happening. The fish were growing and reproducing great. I have scooped up tons of perch,catfish and fathead fry! I do not have any aquatic plants in this pond and will be getting some soon. What else can I do? I tried to do it right, and still got burned. I also had a feeder on the pond as well.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 1,930 Likes: 2
|
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 1,930 Likes: 2 |
Could be like a new aquirium, the beneficial backteria and plant life etc might not have been able to keep up with the fish load ( waste nitites/nitrates etc). Perghaps it needed to mature a some before a heavy fish load. I am not sure if this appies to smaller ponds or not.?
Goofing off is a slang term for engaging in recreation or an idle pastime while obligations of work or society are neglected........... Wikipedia
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,544
Hall of Fame Lunker
|
Hall of Fame Lunker
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,544 |
Might wanna get your water tested.. Sounds odd to me.
I believe in catch and release. I catch then release to the grease.. BG. CSBG. LMB. HSB. RES.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 21,499 Likes: 267
Moderator Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
|
Moderator Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 21,499 Likes: 267 |
What is the time line on the events ? Start with the building of the pond date to current.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6
|
OP
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6 |
Oct 2010 pond built and I pumped water from my well to keep about 3 feet deep February 2012 filled with spring rain May 2012 stocked it and began feeding and aerating August 2012 crashed
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 3,794
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 3,794 |
I built a 3/8 acre pond in the hill country. Aerated with a vertex, stocked it with fish from Overtons and I have been burying fish for 2 days now. Why did the vertex not keep any fish alive? I obviously had a algal bloom that sucked all of the DO out. I am frustrated and am wondering if I wasted all my money putting in aeration to prevent this from happening. The fish were growing and reproducing great. I have scooped up tons of perch,catfish and fathead fry! I do not have any aquatic plants in this pond and will be getting some soon. What else can I do? I tried to do it right, and still got burned. I also had a feeder on the pond as well. Murph, your story sound all too familiar to me – same story …. Perfect Pond – Had one… http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Main=23883&Number=299979#Post299979My 2 acre pond was in “perfect balance” for my goals until the extreme record breaking Texas heat wave shrunk it to 1 acre …. Too many fish and not enough air to go around - recipe for a a fish kill every time. My solution has been for Overton to install a Kasco surface aerator for emergency use. Good luck – it happens to all of us at some time or another – you also have more survivors than you realize. George Glazener
N.E. Texas 2 acre and 1/4 acre ponds Original george #173 (22 June 2002)
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6
|
OP
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6 |
George thanks for the encouragement , I will get it right eventually, but dang it hurts when you have spent as much money on this as I have!
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 21,499 Likes: 267
Moderator Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
|
Moderator Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 21,499 Likes: 267 |
Very strange for a brand new pond to have O2 problems with only stocker fish. Should not be a carrying capacity problem. How much has the pond shrunk in size , if any ?
Has the water been tested?
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,544
Hall of Fame Lunker
|
Hall of Fame Lunker
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,544 |
Doesn't aeration help with DO?? He had a Vertex system installed..
I believe in catch and release. I catch then release to the grease.. BG. CSBG. LMB. HSB. RES.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 201
|
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 201 |
Get the aquatic plants. And, as Ewest suggested, get a comprehensive water test done. You could have other problems than just DO.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6
|
OP
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6 |
Water has not been tested, and the pond was down about 1 foot and did not lose much surface area. I will get the water tested when I get a chance. I took my pool water kit down there and ph was 7.8 and the alkalinity was high at 180. I do live in the hill country and it will always have high alkalinity.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 4,318 Likes: 6
Ambassador Lunker
|
Ambassador Lunker
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 4,318 Likes: 6 |
PH of 7.8 is starting to get a little high I think, when did you take that test? PH can go up and down a lot. Lots of times it will spike in the evening. So if your PH was 7.8 in the morning or mid afternoon I wonder if it's spiking into the mid to high 8's in the evening and the fish couldn't handle it? PH high's and low's can be very stressful on fish. Not sure if that was your problem just throwing around ideas?? Like Mr. Eric said you should get a real water test done. Maybe a soil test too if you can.
The only difference between a rut and a Grave is the depth. So get up get out of that rut and get moving!! Time to work!!
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 21,499 Likes: 267
Moderator Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
|
Moderator Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 21,499 Likes: 267 |
That is a very good alkalinity for fish. 75-200 is ideal. I have posted this before. From https://srac.tamu.edu/index.cfm/event/getFactSheet/whichfactsheet/112/ A desirable range of total alkalinity for fish culture is between 75 and 200 mg/L CaCO3. Fish and other vertebrates have an average blood pH of 7.4. Fish blood comes into close contact with water (1- or 2-cell separation) as it passes through the blood vessels of the gills and skin. A desirable range for pond water pH would be close to that of fish blood (i.e., 7.0 to 8.0). Fish may become stressed and die if the pH drops below 5 (e.g., acidic runoff) or rises above 10 (e.g., low alkalinity combined with intense photosynthesis by dense algal blooms – phytoplankton or filamentous algae). Pond pH varies throughout the day due to respiration and photosynthesis. After sunset, dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations decline as photosynthesis stops and all plants and animals in the pond consume oxygen (respiration). In heavily stocked fish ponds, carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations can become high as a result of respiration. The free CO2 released during respiration reacts with water, producing carbonic acid (H2CO3), and pH is lowered. H2O + CO2 = H2CO3 = H+ + HCO3 - Table 1 summarizes the relative changes in dissolved oxygen, CO2 and pH over 24 hours. Carbon dioxide rarely causes direct toxicity to fish. However, high concentrations lower pond pH and limit the capacity of fish blood to carry oxygen by lowering blood pH at the gills.
Last edited by ewest; 08/07/12 04:48 PM.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 201
|
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 201 |
Listen to Ewest. With Alkalinity at 180. the pH is going to be buffered quite well. There will not be any wide range of fluctuation. Ph of 7.8 is actually near ideal.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 28,539 Likes: 845
Moderator Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
|
Moderator Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 28,539 Likes: 845 |
How many of what species of fish were stocked? How much were you feeding? (how long did a 50# bag of food last?)
Was the aeration running 24/7?
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6
|
OP
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6 |
About 90 bass from different sizes ranging from 4 inches to 2 pounds, 200 6 -8 inch catfish, 500 bluegill Tilapia and minnows I wanted to put as many fish as I could, I am not going to lie.
I was feeding about 15 seconds twice a day and a bag of food every month.
Aerator was running 24/7.
Last edited by Murph; 08/08/12 06:36 AM.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 3,794
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 3,794 |
Musta' missed it Murph.... what size pond?
N.E. Texas 2 acre and 1/4 acre ponds Original george #173 (22 June 2002)
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6
|
OP
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 6 |
Little over 3/8 of an acre
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 28,539 Likes: 845
Moderator Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
|
Moderator Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 28,539 Likes: 845 |
Unfortunately, you found out what happens when there's too many fish (too large of a biomass) in a pond.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 3,794
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 3,794 |
Little over 3/8 of an acre Murph, some of us push the envelope - same song second verse... I have a problem of falling in love with my fish - gotta start harveting - cull all of your female CNBG except the giants. You probably have more survivors than you think. I know some fish farmers overcrowd their brood ponds sucessfully with surface aerators - botton diffuser systems circulate water - not enough air in these 105 temp days. Good luck!
N.E. Texas 2 acre and 1/4 acre ponds Original george #173 (22 June 2002)
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 21,499 Likes: 267
Moderator Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
|
Moderator Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 21,499 Likes: 267 |
With it being a new pond it must have been a explosion of tilapia and BG growth and reproduction, if it is a carrying capacity problem. I am not sure that was the problem although it will be if that many stay and grow.
|
|
|
Moderated by Bill Cody, Bruce Condello, catmandoo, Chris Steelman, Dave Davidson1, esshup, ewest, FireIsHot, Omaha, Sunil, teehjaeh57
|
|