I put some water in jars yesterday and so far it looks equally cloudy, so maybe I need a flocculant. That said the prior version of this pond (same location just smaller) had aeration and did eventually clear up, so maybe I shouldn’t jump to add a flocculant too quickly and should instead wait a few weeks and see what happens.
"Wait and see" is always a good strategy - especially for avoiding wasting your money or labor.
I assume your Canadian swimming season is almost over for the pond? Your minnow population would probably thrive a little better in clearer water, but that will matter much more next Spring.
However, your jar test does strongly suggest electrostatically charged clay particles are contributing to your cloudy pond water. Now might be a good time to get a chemical analysis of a water sample. You can then make a plan for next year after ice out.
