While koi fish can live for several years, they only thrive in the best conditions. This is why it is so important to properly care for your koi pond. In order to ensure the health of your koi fish, you’ll need to perform proper Orange County Koi pond maintenance.
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Caring for Your Koi Pond
The beauty of a koi pond is found in the stillness of the healthy fish swimming about. However, there are a few factors that go into maintaining a koi pond. Read on for three key things you need to do to keep your pond healthy.
- Change the Water Regularly
Water in a pond will always decrease over time due to evaporation. As the water level goes down, certain substances and minerals are left behind. These substances can lower the water’s quality, posing a danger to the fish.
In order to combat the dangers caused by evaporation, 10% – 15% of the pond water should be changed every week. This water change allows the pond to be refilled with fresh water. If you are using tap water to refill the pond, be sure you add in a dechlorinator in order to make it as safe as possible for the fish.
- Perform Filter Backwashing
For the best results, biological pond filters need to be backwashed twice a month. You’ll be able to determine whether or not your filter needs backwashing based on the reading of the pressure gauge. If the reading is higher than it should be, this shows that the filter should be backwashed. Additionally, if more water is entering from an outlet into the pond, this is another sign that you should backwash your filter.
- Algae Control
As the water in a pond is filtered, ammonia turns into nitrate, which is relatively harmless. The algae that use nitrate to grow often begin to overpopulate as nitrate increases. While nitrate may be harmless, having excess algae can spell trouble for your pond. In addition to being ugly, an overwhelming amount of algae can deprive your koi fish of oxygen.
In order to get a handle on any uncontrolled algae growth, koi pond owners should start using algaecides. When using these algae killers, you should be sure to properly research the type of algaecide you need. Depending on the type of algae in your pond, certain brands of algaecide will be more beneficial than others.
A different approach to taking care of algae in your koi pond is to use ultraviolet lighting. With these special UV lamps, you’ll be able to control the growth of algae in your koi pond. The lighting from these UV lamps works to kill any algae before it starts to grow or reproduce. By adding these lamps to the pond’s filtration system, you’ll be able to keep your koi pond algae-free. Be sure to replace your lamps’ bulbs once a year to ensure your pond and koi are as healthy as possible.
Caring for your koi fish requires more than just feeding them. Follow these three strategies to make sure your koi pond maintenance is effective.
Need help in maintaining your koi pond in Orange County? OC Pond & Fountain Care provides professional pond cleaning and repair services.
