I have a 3/4 acre pond that has only been finished about 1 month. It is 6 foot deep, the water has started to settle and was between 10" and 12" this morning.

I jumped in it after mowing this morning and when I got out I had black "mud" that was coated on all the hair on my arms and legs. I also noticed what looked like 1/2 inch string looking particles floating in the water. What do you think this is?

The water surface is clean, it is in the open and has a slight breeze most of the time. I have not fertilized, limed or tested the water yet as I was waiting for it to settle a little more.

Maybe FA?? Sure experts will chime in, but if you have that in there I think you could put some hydrated lime in it and it will kill everything, plant, bacteria, etc. That would clean it up and I think within a week the pH would be back to normal. I had read where you can do that before you stock it or anything so you are starting fresh. Once it gets to 6' you won't have as much trouble with the plants like algae. Just some thoughts from what I've read and learned and wished I would've known when we built ours! Congrats on the new addition!!

Thank you. I just cant wait to add my BG in October. There is nothing along the surface and I posted a pic on another thread where it had a slight film on top of the water but it went away after a recent rain and never came back.

Did you burn any brush in the pool area or watershed? Ash/soot can hang around quite a while in the pond water.

I'd also suggest planting some sort of annual Rye or wheat on those bare areas asap. Even in the pool area since the plants will provide a great jumpstart for your new fish, providing some cover and critters for them to eat as it fills, plus helps stop a lot of erosion and muddied water.

So the pond filled in and stayed clear until about the first of the year. I am not sure if it was a FA bloom, combination of the pollen here and early warm weather or what. But my water clarity is now 3 inches instead of 10.

Should I add a bale of hay broken up in the water?

It should not be a runoff problem because I have a good stand of rye/Bermuda mix on the banks and the lowest part has a few tons of crushed rock/ rip rap on it.

I did burn a few small piles but the large brush pile I pushed into a hole I had dug out. there is no way for it to wash into the pond.

Can you describe the color? Muddy brown, or red? Olive green? Maybe lime-green?
That will help us help you.

I would say a light green but also a little muddy similar to a newer clay pond. It has a tint with all of the pollen we have right now as well but I noticed the change in color prior to the pollen.

Also earlier I noticed either minnow or tad poles on one end in the shallows very active on top fo the water. I am unsure if they were trying to get oxygen or eating something that was in the film on top.

I will try and get some pictures uploaded this evening.

Chambers, after re-reading your thread, I'm betting the "black mud" is actually some charcoal from the original burn piles inseide your pond...it's no harm. The "string looking particles" are almost certainly a species of Filamentous Algae. FA grows on the bottom, or can be loose filaments. "Mat Algae" has just pulled loose from the bottom due to trapped air bubbles lifting it.

You said your water started as "Clear", but only had 10-12 inches of clarity...I would not consider that clear. IF you do in fact have suspended clay, you can still get a green tint to the water due to a planktonic algae bloom growing in only the upper few inches of water.

Have you done a "Jar test"??? If not, get a couple quart canning jars and gather one sample from a couple feet deep, and one from the upper part of the water. Put on lids and let them set, undisturbed for a few days and see if anything settles out, and if the water clears up completely. If it does not clear, but has some sediment on the bottom, but a green tint still, put the water in a dark place, like a closed closet for another few days and see if it clears. If it does, you have an algae bloom (a good thing), but the sediment was colloidal clay (a bad thing). If little or nothing at all settles, go to a grocery store spice aisle that carries "McCormick" spices, and get a small jar of Alum (stocked alphabetically) and spinkle in 1/4 tsp and shake.....if it is clay suspended, the water will turn crystal clear in several hours when again, left undisturbed.

I am going to get some jars and do the test. I looked around my place and couldn't find any.