Pond Boss Forums AERATION Systems questions Using AquaKler to provide Aeration for trout pond

Greg-

Our experiences indicate that the anoxic conditions found in the sediment layer allow the Phos. to escape. By changing the sediment layer to an aerobic condition, the redox is moved to the positive thereby locking the phos. and removing the ability to release into the water column.

R. Wicker, please correct if I am wrong. Thanks.

Thanks Cary well stated, but will Aquakler do that Wicker?

Greg,

That is exactly right. Aquakler works by oxidizing the sediment. Mr. Martin is exactly correct. The soluble Fe2+ is easily oxidized to Fe3+ by oxygen in a wide pH range. Fe3+ has a great affinity to form insoluble complexes with ligands such as mono and polyphosphates. If these complexes are subjected to anoxic conditions, Fe3+ is reduced to the soluble Fe2+ and the phosphates are released in solution.
Moreover the soluble Mn2+ oxidizes only under alkaline conditions (pH >8) to the higher valence states. Oxidation of Mn2+ under alkaline conditions is catalyzed by Fe. Oxidation of Mn2+ is enhanced by H2O2 leading to a Mn3+ polymer with O. In the presence of Fe, Fe-O-Mn complexes can also form. Acidification of this complex quickly releases Fe back in solution.

Effects of Anoxic Conditions:
Other oxidants become more important
Sulfate reduction (SO42-) forming H2S then FeS…
Denitrification (NO3-) releasing NH3 which accumulates
Fe reduction (FeOx) forming Fe2+ releasing P
Mn reduction (MnO2) forming Mn2+ releasing P

Also to answer your question on depth, because a body of water has exchange of oxygen with the atmosphere may mean that the water column itself is aerobic, but 2mm into the sub-aqueous content pH will drop as will the oxygen levels. The exchange of porewater from the sediment into the water column can carry Phos.

I hope this helps....

thanks for the lesson. I apparently know much more about water than I do soils. If you knock me on the head enough it fianlly sinks in. I will probably give some a try. thanks

Hope changing the topic doesnt throw anyone off, but I thought this topic better suited the thread.

R. Wicker,

Ted mentioned water temps in one of his posts. With Bender's question pertaining to raising trout can you comment on how this product reacts at different water temps? This may offer those folks that live in areas or have marginal summer water temps where year round trout raising is not possible.

What kills trout quicker, low DO or high water temps?

R. Wicker :

Two questions. I understand your prior post about how the product works in general. Could you address these in both general language and chemically.

1. If an infertile low alkalinity pond is being fertilized with typical NPK pond fertlizer (to keep it simple 0-46-0) the missing or short chemical is P. How does this product interact or react since it locks up P in its function?

2. What effect does the product have on alkalinity or acidity in the pond bottom and water?

I will try to answer both your questions as general as possible.

Russ, Aquakler will become somewhat more reactive with higher temperatures as will most reactions. However, Aquakler's reaction is more based on pH. The lower the pH the faster the release of oxygen. With regard to your question on what kills trout quicker I can not answer, but like all aerobic organisms oxygen is very important. That being said, the solubility of Oxygen increases with the decrease of water temperature. Trout naturally live in cooler waters which contain much high levels of DO as opposed to warmer waters. Again these are my thoughts...I am not an expert in trout farming.

Ewest,

You can always overload the system with P, we have been doing it for hundreds of years now, and we have drastically increased the curve in the last 150 years. But, I understand this is not your question.

The amount of transition metals are the key. When you have much more P than transition metals you will overload the system. This is not normally the case, but it is possible. In this case you would be saturating the sediment and the water with DO. If you wanted to off set the load of P you could do so with the proper steps, but I assume that you would want the P for a specific reason as growing phytoplanton, etc.

Aquakler will act as a buffer to raise the sub-aqueous pH. Once it has reached close to a nuetral pH the reaction will begin to slow down. You would have to put an exuberant amount of Aquakler in a to change the pH of the water column and most developed pond are well buffered naturally. I can not see this being an issue.

Hope this helps...thanks for the questions.

So does this mean that when I apply it to my pond with a pH of 8.4 that the oxygenation will occur, but just more slowly? Or will it not occur at all?

Yes it will occur but much at a much slower rate. Please remember that the sub aqueous content is almost always lower than that of the water column. You may have 8.4 in the water column but I am sure that is not what it is in the sediment if you have excessive organic matter.

Water pH fluctuates daily due to photosynthetic activity, being low at dawn and high mid afternoon. Sediment pH is less variable on a daily basis. Anoxic conditions lead to lower pH sediments due to increased CO2 levels. When these anaerobic conditions occur other oxidants become more important, sulfate reduction (SO42-) forming H2S then FeS
Denitrification (NO3-) releasing NH3 which accumulates. Fe reduction (FeOx) forming Fe2+ releasing P. Mn reduction (MnO2) forming Mn2+ releasing P

Sorry about the typos....I have been giving seminars all day a little tired.

R. Wicker :

Not sure I understand your answer. I will ask the question in a different way.

Many (a high % of) ponds in the Southern US and parts of Texas are naturally infertile and acidic with low buffering ability. Alkalinities are form 4 to 20 ppm ( very low buffering ability) and thus many people use ag lime and high P fertilizers to increase fertility and thus carrying capacity. These ponds , most without aeration, have a summer thermocline and anaerobic pond bottoms in summer and more bottom O2 after fall turnover.

What would the product do in those conditions wrt alkalinity and P fertilization ?

Interesting point.

Can anyone advise on the costs of this treatmeat? How long does it last before requireing re-treatment?

Frank

Frank - this product needs to be applied by a profesional applicator so you would need to contact someone in your area for a quote. It would be more cost effective to invest in an aeration system for your 3 acre pond unless your pond is extremely shallow and aeration isn't an option (less than 4 feet). The AquaKler can last for 2 - 4 months depending on conditions (pH, BOD)Maybe longer - we're not sure, which is why we are testing.

Frank I will put it to you this way. We have lake management companies that do one application of Aquakler in the spring do not have to touch the pond all summer long and you can use it on any depth of pond. These ponds have a history of problems ranging from algae to BOD. We are using it lakes that are 80 feet deep to very shallow ponds and it is extremely easy to work with. About like spreading fertilizer.

There are several distribution companies of Aquakler in Georgia, Frank and if I can answer any more of your questions please do not hesitate to let me know. I will actually be there this month doing training seminars.

R Wicker

Thanks for the info. Please provide me with the names of Georgia distributors.

When will you be in Georgia? Where? Perhaps we could meet at my pond to discuss specifics. I am near Macon in central Georgia.

I have no electricity at my pond so typical aeration systems are not possible.

Thanks

Frank