Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Help Adding water during drought

We have an approximate 1/2 acre aerated pond. It is stocked with catfish, small bass and bream. This year we have experienced a very long drought and as a result the water level is dangerously low. We need to add water but having it shipped in isn’t an option. I’ve read to fill 5 gallon buckets and use dechlorinator, letting it sit for 24 hours. That would take forever to raise the level. What is the safest way to add hose water more quickly but is safe for the fish?

We've used water from a garden hose in our neighborhood pond before, and we don't think we had any real negative effects. However, we were in a desperate water-needing situation, so it would have been the lesser of two evils.

Try to splash the water against something, or make some kind of 'diffuser' type thing to break up the water before it goes into the pond.

...and welcome to Pond Boss!!!

I'm no expert on this but have read a couple other posts having to do with filling a pond with tap water out of a hose
If your pond is 2' ft. deep you have approximately 326,000 gallons of water. I would assume you may get 5-7 gallons a minute out of your hose
You would have to run the water 38 days continuously to double the depth.
If you are on well water there will be no issues, If you are on city water you may want to check the cost of water before moving forward
Also if its city water the dilution factor should be great enough that it won't harm anything

Two large scale ways to remove chlorine from tap water are to use evaporation and UV radiation.

The reason "letting it sit for 24 hours" works is that much of the chlorine will evaporate out of the water over that time period.

There is also a lot of UV radiation in sunlight, so leaving the water for a period in direct sun would also break down a significant amount of chlorine.

For a tiny garden pond I think you could fill a kiddie pool in the morning and leave it all day. Fill the garden pond from the pool the next day and the fish would be 100% safe.

However, you need to deliver WAY more water than that for a 1/2 acre pond!

I am thinking maybe run several sprinkler heads to the upwind side of your pond. You do NOT want a lawn sprinkler that you move around on the end of your hose - that is designed to expel streams of water. You want something that makes water droplets. (I think that will get you the maximum evaporation of chlorine over a short period.)

Maybe build a manifold from 3/4 PVC pipe and spread out 3 or 4 sprinkler heads. Just put a female garden hose thread on the inlet so you can attach your hose.

I think the biggest safety factor for your aquatic creatures will be DILUTION. Even if there is some chlorine remaining in the water you are adding, it should be quickly diluted to safe levels in your pond.

I would definitely run an experiment first. Try whatever method you settle upon, and then raise the pond water level 1-2". Observe your creatures for a week. If everything looks fine, then try to raise 3-4" as your next increment. I would certainly add the water in baby steps!

[I am definitely NOT an expert on the level of chlorine that becomes toxic to fish. I do know that if your pond water gets shallow enough and hot enough, then fish will die. So you are making a trade off. Maybe an actual expert will drop into your thread with some better guidance.]

P.S. Many water systems charge a significant premium price for water if you greatly exceed your usual monthly usage. One acre-foot of water is 326,000 gallons. To raise your 1/2-acre pond a single foot, you will need 163,000 gallons. Make sure you can afford that BEFORE you start filling.


Good luck on your fish protection project!

If using city water, double check with the water dept to see if they are using chlorine or chloramine. They are not the same.