Mike and Funky - I don't know what this stuff is, but I do have thick pollen coverage in spring which will cover the pond surface entirely on a calm day. The early phase of this scum development resembled pollen, but was more oil-like. It tended to float in groups or cloud-like formations. Then, the real scummy stuff came on. I really don't think the pollen like stuff is related to the scummy stuff or maybe it's phases that its going through...IDK, but they are both co-existing currently. I was able to turn the aeration on 24 hr/day over the weekend and that may have helped break it up, but it seems to have stopped multiply/gathering and may be on the down hill run. Friday was definitely the worse of it so far. I did learn something about my aeration system...If I reduce the flow to the deepest diffuser and overrun the shallow ones, I get alot more surface agitation/movement.
Joey- I am using the API Pond Master Test Kit, but their literature does not specify Total Ammonia Nitrogen (TAN) or otherwise. And, I did run all the tests on Saturday (see post 508843, 7-19-19). The ammonia and phosphates stayed between 0.0 and 0.25 throughout the day while the nitrates stayed at 0.0. I figured retesting those parameters on Sunday was not too necessary. That, and I had other stuff to do. My main concern was DO. I had borrowed a YSI Pro 1020 and that made DO and pH readings fast and easy.
I am hoping that the arrival of my test kits fell on a down swing regarding DO, and things will improve as summer continues, but I will be monitoring on the weekends with the kits and visually daily. I'm torn between adding submerged plants to help with DO and/or improving clarity (which has me stumped). If my pond has higher nutrient levels, improving clarity boosts FA, but I can't get a good crop of submerged plants without better clarity.
One question...do my test results indicate any information regrading the pond's nutrient level??? I have always thought it was high, but don't understand how to quantify.
THANKS for chiming in folks!
