Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations very old pond needs help

i purchased land in so missi and it has a 1-2 acre pond on it. its been like 7 years or more since anybody has done anything with this pond, so it very over grown with trees ( willow, cypress and who knows what else. the shore line is over grown with various types of plants, and the pond is completely covered with what appears to be duck weed. the bottome im sure after some research is covered with about a foot or more of debrise ( leaves ) question 1 do i drain and start all over? im a new magazine subscriber great mag! thanks

Have the site evaluated by a professional. I recommend Southeastern Pond Management's office in Jackson. Their main number is (888)830-7663.
A site evaluation will tell you plenty. Be sure to outline your goals for the pond, and as the pro tours the site, he can provide the best information.

It sounds like the pond is pretty much dead. What I mean by dead is that the oxygen levels in the pond are probably below that which would sustain fish life, less than 2 mg/l. You have your work cut out for you but if you are willing to put in some time and money you can get the pond in pretty good shape within a year or two. You probably do not have to drain it and dredge it out, contrary to what a lot of so called experts will tell you. Check the depth. If the pond has a minimum depth of 5-6 feet on average you will need to install aeration. Use a diffuser system with airstones on the bottom, not a fountain. Place the diffusers in the deepest area in the pond. If the pond is 2 acres you will probably need at least 2 diffusers. For a one acre pond use a 1/3 hp compressor with one diffuser assembly, for a 2 acre pond use 2 or three with a larger compressor, as much as 3/4 hp. Also, the shallower the pond the more diffusers you should use. If the pond is only on average 3-4 feet you will need more diffusers but if it has deep holes 8-10 feet you are okay with the minimum. Let me know if you need more specifics. Once you get it aerating the pond will begin to recover immediately. Oxygen will short-ciruit the nutrient supply to the duckweed and begin to starve it. But to speed up the process you might want to try to skim some off. By harvesting, you take nutrients out that are bound up in the plant. So this speeds recovery by tanking nutrients out in the form of the plant. Think of it this way. Duckweed is growing hydroponically on the surface because the nutrients are pumping from the bottom all the way to the surface. The aeration will stop the pumping but the plant will continue to grow for some time. If you remove some of what is there it will speed up the die off. I have done this personally on several ponds and it works in theory and practice. I cleared up one pond that was 1/2 and acre in less than 2 months. Another alternative is to use Sonar, Avast, or Reward herbicides to kill it, but the nutrients just go back to the water delaying recovery. Harvesting removes the problem nutrients once and for all. Harvesting is more of a restoration action whereas herbicides or sort of a band-aid approach and will probably have to be reapplied in the near future. As for the banks, you probably will need to just clear it up but don't go crazy. See what is there and what you can tolerate and cut out the rest. The bank vegetation dumps leaves each year that cause problems for the pond by creating a pool of nutrients and organic material. This is what causes the muck on the bottom. The aeration will also take care of this. Oxygen will begin to decompose the bottom muck. It is hard to say more based on what you have posted but I am quite certain that what you have is restorable given a little bit of effort and tender loving care.

Covered in duckweed? You may have had a fish kill. Before I spent alot of money I would see if you can fish the pond. If you have no fish (if your on this board I assume you want good fishing) then drain and start over. This would allow you to clear the pond of undesirable trees, etc as well as deepen the pond if necessary. WIth proper stocking and management you could start catching some good fish in only a couple of years.

well tahnk you all for the responses. i actually live in alaska and my son lives on the property now. i was there last week and we started to clear some of the trees around the pond. i have noticed alot of small minnow sized fish around the banks and when i purchased the proberty last march i was there and there were what appeard to 100's of small minnow like fish there. so i think there are fish in there but who konows what kind or quanity. we actually did throw a lne in 1 night with a crawfish on it and the nest morning the line was broken so who knows turtle/ catfish?

sorry 1 more question ok maybe 2. do u have ant recommendations on a areation system that you spoke of and any idea of cost, second i am assuming from previuos post that is better to run the system constantly?

To see lots of small minnows is typical and sort of supports the idea that you have few preditor fish, like bass and bream, that can eating them. Chances are that they are few if any because of the poor oxygen conditions. The duckweed blocks oxygen diffusion from the air and there is no phytoplankton to produce it in the water. Being in S. Miss., the high temperature in the summer causes rapid oxygen depletion. It is fairly easy to determine what you will need for aeration. Do a search for Aquatic Ecosystems and they have plenty of information to help you determine what size you need. Also, I deal frequently with Stoney Creek in Michigan which I find has very reasonable prices. Just about any company that sells these systems can help you spec it out but you will need two things. Determine the area of the pond and the average depth. Also figure out if you have any deep holes and determine the depth.

If you have deep hole you will be able to get by with a smaller system. For a one acre, expect to spend about 500 to 700. Two acres may run as much as 1500 depending on the depth to area ratio. One other thing. If you are good at rigging things, you can try to build your own system. I can tell you from experience that this usually turns out to cost almost as much as a package deal. Do a little research and determine what you need then then shop around and determine if you can afford it. I can tell you that you the investment will be worth it. Within a few weeks of aeration you can at least restock the pond. By the time they grow you'll probably see improvement. Whether or not you need to dig it out absolutely depends on the pond architecture. Figure this out first then decide what the next steps are.

Take a boat out and start probing around and when you get a better idea of the depths you will be much better equipped to spec it out for aeration. If the pond averages out at 4-5 feet and has some deep holes at 8-10 feet you don't have to drain and dredge. You have plenty of volume and you just need to work on restoring what you have. Digging it out will cost you several thousand but aeration will be a fraction of this. Do a little more research and see what you can come up with.

Oh yes, run the aeration 24/365 as long as you are in restoration mode. Once the pond is in pretty good shape you can put it on a timer and run it 8-10 hrs in the evening. These compressors are designed to run constantly. I have some running for 4 years straight. As long as it takes.