Hi, New pond owner here - bought a house and got a pond. I am located in NE Ohio, this is a about 60'x 100' pond with a max depth of about 6' have had two pond management pros over to review the health. Both say it is in A condition (more details below). I have also raked the leaves from this pond (et nausea) - and it looks clean and clear! I have been reading up and THANK YOU all for your great information, now I have a few questions from the group:
#2-3 Aerator placement, good location choice? – Per my photo, I will be moving the diffusers to their new positions at #2 and #3. – the difusers are sand filled bases with rubber membrane difusers – this is about 4-5ft deep in these areas – the aerator is on 24/7 (matala 4 pro with 2 valves) – the fountain is on about 4-5 hrs/day if it is not windy or raining also, should I put the diffusers on a cement block -- also to add a hiding place for catfish and bass?
#4 Over spillway, keeping the pond fuller I like the height of the water there is a creek that runs behind the pond There is a 4" PVC pipe coming about 12 feet below the top level of the pond and about 10" behind, and there is a concrete block where I have indicated in the photo on the ponds edge the pond level had dropped about 10" after the winter thaw and we recently found the overflow ,may have been leaching water? not sure bit I put a lot of mud mounded higher that the spill and it seems to be holding the height. if this works, what is the right way to block this area or dam the dam?
#1 thinning the cattails done a lot by hand so far (a lot of crappy work!! but fun) and will supplement with a spray later this year to keep these within a walk in area where I can walk into the pond to cut the cattails in the fall. I have Resolve contact herbicide for these any other advice on these to keep them contained?
Water Lilies I recently added two hardy waterlillies that will grow to a max of 6' should I put the pots in another pot of pea gravel so the roots dont take into the natural pond?
Treatment plan – I have a variety of grasses, duckweed and filamentous algae (to be treated with citruine plus 16oz) – also about 6" of muck (to be treated after the citruine -- with muck pellets, about 16 per treatment) – Pond dye (I use very little for the fish camo and algae control) –also manual removal and raking any additional advise?
Wildlife – ducks (adorable) frogs and tadpoles – Dragonfly nymphs – geese have been held at bay – possible heron visits – Stocked with common goldfish, shiners, bluegil, cats and bass any additional advise?
Natural ramp looking to build a natural ramp to the right of the boat should I put carpet down themn a liner over then rocks -- or just wait to see if the muck reducer works? I may not follow through on this
perimeter planting I am planning on doing a little wildlife flowers on a hill to the right that you cannot see in the photo for the birds, butterflies and dragonflies. any plants to stay away from? I am planning on doing cosmos, iris, lily of the valley and ostrich fern
The max flow is what that pump will put out without anything hooked up to it. You are currently running your pump very close to the rated performance...that's a good place to be. Moving the diffusers deeper will cause it to dip below the Rated Performance and add stress to the pump which will likely shorten it's life. How much, who knows. I'd leave them at the 5 foot depths, but you could move them elsewhere in the pond if you'd like, just keep them in 5 foot of water or a bit shallower. I have found that my diffusers can sit 3 foot off the bottom (on home-made stands) in 7 foot of water and still circulate the 10 foot deep water that is 40 to 50 foot away. Your diffusers have a good chance of pulling water up from the deepest part of your pond while sitting in the 5 foot depths. So long as you tested temps at all depths and found that minor temp difference, I'd say your system is turning the water over well. My only concern is that it is early in the year and ground temps and air temps in your area may be equal (on average) and this may be giving you a false sense of security. eg. The ground temps are 55° F and the average air temps are 55° F (or close)...whos to say of the water IS getting turned over and not just staying consistent because of the surrounding earth and air temps ??? The temp testing needs to be periodically performed as summer air temps increase. When you turn off your aeration, you are looking for cooler bottom temps and warmer temps towards the surface. The bigger the difference between bottom to near (~18") top (without air), the more confidence you can put into the temp testing once the air is turned back on. You may find little to no temp difference without aeration this time of the year and have to wait until it warms up a fair amount.
There is always dissolved oxygen testing that you can do, but I have not mastered that at my pond and cannot offer much assistance other than how to get the water samples. Even with aeration at my pond, the DO seems to differ from top to bottom in the water column and does not seem to be as reliable as temp testing. We will have to rely on some other PB members to help determine what DO levels are considered good from top to bottom.
EDIT: And, without Lift-rates for the diffusers, you will have to rely on testing at the pond to know for sure. The diffuser specs sure seem to mimic what I have seen for other 9" Matala's and are close to the Vertex brand that I am familiar with.
