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#527922 11/23/20 11:12 AM
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Hello, I'm brand spanky new to this forum and to being the proud owner of a newly dug pond. My new pond is approx 1.3 acre feet that just filled with rain water and run off about 2 weeks ago or so. I'm in south western Virginia, 30 miles west of Richmond and we have the lovely red dirt/clay.
Haven't added fish to my pond yet because I want to get the water clear of the clay particles and get the pH correct first. pH currently around 6.5. I've done the jar test, only with 32oz of water though as those were the largest mason jars I had on hand. I found it took approximately 3 days for the water to clear in the jar I placed 2 tablespoons of Alum in. Now, I need to figure out how much Alum to add to my pond and what ratio I should mix the slurry. Any help would be very much appreciated. Planning on stocking in Feb/March next year with FHM, RES, HB, and LMB.
Here's a picture of my pond as it looks now. I will update the pics as I progress in the process pending pearls of wisdom from this forum.

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Suggest getting the FHM , RES , HB started first with good hiding places / cover. Once they take hold introduce the others. If the LMB are put in especially if you are not running a feeder they will be eaten quickly.

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Thanks. That was my plan, but the fish truck folks are telling me I can put all in at once from them because they're the same size. I wasn't sure about that. The consensus on this forum seems to agree with you though.

Any advise on my other question about the aluminum sulfate and mixing it? Thanks

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Congrats on your new pond. It does look scenic in your photograph!

What is the tree species that you left standing in the pond? I hope it is a tree that can handle waterlogged roots.

Good luck on your new project!

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That seems to be a LOT of alum for it still to have taken TWO DAYS to clear in 32 ounces! Just my opinion. My clarity is only about 2-3 inch in my water from clay particles and my jar test with a teaspoon of alum in 32 ounce cleared crystal in a matter of 1-2 hours! Also , Welcome to Pond Boss from deep east Texas. My question is ...how in the world did you dig that pond around all those trees and IF you damaged the roots they are probably going to die and fall in the pond? What kind of trees are they? Can you tell yet how well your pond is holding water? The stocking of your bluegill and other forage fish first is so they can get large enough to reproduce and have plenty of forage in your pond BEFORE you stock your bass. Good luck. The Pros will be along shortly to give you their advise.


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The trees in the pond, well, many of them were part of an old creek bed that still exists on the other side of the dam in the back of the pond. All of the trees are poplar. I figured, if they don't make it and fall into the pond, I can simply drag them out with my tractor or something.

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Originally Posted by Flame
That seems to be a LOT of alum for it still to have taken TWO DAYS to clear in 32 ounces! Just my opinion. My clarity is only about 2-3 inch in my water from clay particles and my jar test with a teaspoon of alum in 32 ounce cleared crystal in a matter of 1-2 hours! Also , Welcome to Pond Boss from deep east Texas. My question is ...how in the world did you dig that pond around all those trees and IF you damaged the roots they are probably going to die and fall in the pond? What kind of trees are they? Can you tell yet how well your pond is holding water? The stocking of your bluegill and other forage fish first is so they can get large enough to reproduce and have plenty of forage in your pond BEFORE you stock your bass. Good luck. The Pros will be along shortly to give you their advise.

I think I'm going to redo the experiment again to be sure I got it right :-) My pH might now be what it needs to be in order for the Alum to do it's thing. I hear a lot of talk on here about using hydrated lime. That stuff is next to impossible to find around here. Can I simply use pulverized lime to increase the pH in the pond? It's setting at around 6-6.5 now. Already shoveled about 20 50lb bags of barn lime in a few weeks ago. I guess that's all sitting on the bottom of the pond now. Didn't know that wasn't the type of lime to use until after the fact. Thanks

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Originally Posted by Flame
The stocking of your bluegill and other forage fish first is so they can get large enough to reproduce and have plenty of forage in your pond BEFORE you stock your bass. Good luck. The Pros will be along shortly to give you their advise.

Thanks for the feedback Flame. So, if I only stock the bait/forage fish in, say Feb or Mar, how long should I wait to stock the LMB and CCs? How often do the forage fish reproduce? I plan to have some larger logs about 8-10 feet out in the pond and partially on shore for them to place eggs under. anything else I can do to encourage breeding amongst the FHM, HBG, and RES? Thanks


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