Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Water chemistry Iron in well water

I have been running our well to the pond the last couple days to bring up the level some as it has been a while since we have had a decent amount of precip. I noticed today a small amount of iron precipitate on the ice at the edge of the hole the aerator has blown thru the ice. Is this a concern?

I never run the well more than 24 to 48 hours at a time every 2 or 3 weeks. The well delivers 35 GPM and will raise the level of our 1/4 acre 3 to 5 inches in 24 hours.

I followed the same practice of using the well last summer to keep the pond topped up and did not notice any orange coloring or precipitate buildup.

Bill D, I would think there is no more iron in there now than there is in the summer. Thing is you see it accumulate at the edge of the ice as when in the summer there is no concentration area to alarm you.

Thanks Bob. That was the answer I was hoping to get. I probably aggrevate things a bit too by having the well water discharging into the pond not far from the winter aerator diffuser. My thinking on doing that was to try to aerate the low DO well water a bit as it enters the pond. It may be the quick exposure of the water to the O2 is causing it to precipitate out quicker?

You're doing it correctly. There's a higher concentration of iron in the well water than the pond water, and it's building up on the ice similar to what a building looks like if the sprinklers hit it all the time with high iron content in the water.

Thanks guys! Historic moment for me...doing something correct with this pond!