Bill,
Went out to pond this morning and here is what I've got.
In the shallow end with muddy water ...visibility less than 1 foot and water about 6" low the temp readings are as follows:
84 at surface
84 at 1 foot
83 at 2 feet
82 at 3 feet
80 at 4 feet
79 at 5 feet
Deep end same water clarity..
84 at surface
84 at 1 foot
83 at 2 feet
83 at 3 feet
79 at 4 feet
73 at 5 feet
70 at 6 feet
69 at 7 feet
66 at bottom
Help please????
Hey, LB, I'm not Bill Cody, but I do have a few observations.
First, it appears that the thermocline is quite pronounced and starts around 3 or 4 feet. If that persists for a long period of time, you may have issues with anoxic water at the bottom.
Second, without diffusion or wave action, this will likely get worse as the water warms. My new pond has a standup pipe that drains from the bottom, for example. After it filled in March, the water coming out seemed perfectly fine. But by late April, as temps moved higher, I noticed a distinct nasty smell. The pond seemed okay, but the bottom layer was obviously no longer so.
I don't have electricity yet, and am working on it so can put in diffusers. But as anyone here will tell you, care must be taken not to overmix the anoxic bottom water too quickly, otherwise a fish kill might ensue. Sadly, the biggest fish are the first to die.
Good luck!
