I’m wondering what you all think of that. Should I keep the aeration going until it (hopefully) clears, or should I leave the aeration off for the foreseeable future and monitor DO for when to turn it on? As a potential third option maybe I leave it on but apply a flocculant to try to get the clay to settle out faster.
Ted - congrats on your large, deep pond!
Based on your paragraph quoted above, it appears you do understand that clay suspension is NOT the same as the suspension of sand or other solids.
The link below adds a little more detail.
Control of Clay TurbidityRight now, I would be in the "turn aeration off" camp, just to observe the results in your pond. (Though I would also note that Sunil and esshup are far more expert than I am.) It should be perfectly safe for the amount of minnows currently in the pond.
If you have a colloidal clay suspension in your pond, then turning off the aerators should only make a tiny improvement. You will have to use a flocculant to treat the problem. (It is not possible to have THAT type of clay suspension settle outside of the diffuser locations.)
Here is a link for running a jar test.
Jar Test for Cloudy WaterIf the clay stays suspended during your jar test, then you can test various treatments on your jars.
If you do reach the "treatment recommendation" stage, then post that on the forum and there are several experts on Pond Boss that can review that for you prior to the application.
I think that you should be able to remedy this current problem, and then get back to a deep, clear pond with your aeration running to keep it that way!
Good luck.
