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How to Ensure Your Pond Is Clean: A Complete Guide

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by Grey Anderson

2022-11-30 05:35 PM

What you have in your pond is a miniature ecosystem. It means that under the water surface of your garden pond, several activities will affect its appearance and substance, necessitating pond management at regular intervals.

The absence of clean water in the pond makes it unpleasant for the fish to swim in. The fish waste buildup of ammonia and other substances that are toxic to fish can result from not removing this debris from the pond.

Since fish require oxygen, cleaning and aerating the pond is essential. Even while plants provide oxygen to a garden pond, it's crucial to maintain a stable environment for the fish and other aquatic life there.

Pond management is a common problem for all garden pond owners. Simple and natural upkeep of your garden pond is possible, and this post provides some guidelines for regular pond cleaning and maintenance.

Remove Litter From Pond Immediately, Before It Rots

man cleaning pond

Backyard pond cleaning is still needed regularly, even if there are no fish. The presence of green algae is the most common problem in backyard ponds.

Algae cause the water in ponds to take on a pea soup color. If these algae were to grow too rapidly, they might eventually starve the garden pond of oxygen. Along with algae, aquatic weeds can diminish the aesthetic value of your garden pond.

As you can see, several things could damage your garden pond and threaten its vegetation and animals. While these processes are inevitable in any body of water, you can manage it with regular pond cleaning and maintenance.

Removing Algae from a Pond

a woman removing green algae from a pond

Unpleasant green water is also manageable. If you know how to drain the pond when maintenance is complete, keeping one in your backyard won't be too much of a hassle.

First, green algae flourish in bright daylight. Hence plants that partially shade the garden pond can lessen the possibility of these algae forming.

However, rain can also nourish algae in the garden pond. Without other vegetation, water lilies can give welcome shade to ponds. You should divide the lilies every three to five years if they begin to overrun the garden pond.

How To Have Clean Water In Pond Without The Use Of Chemicals

pond with clean water

Natural cleaning methods can help large pond owners save money and effort to have clean water in pond. Several companies now sell barley straw extract and barley straw specifically for use in backyard ponds. However, beware of using the straw has not been sprayed with any injurious chemicals.

Pond maintenance contractors should consider barley straw because of its science. It's helpful in keeping the pond in the garden tidy. Clean the water in your backyard pond with this all-natural solution that won't harm your aquatic life. It is also a cost-effective option for large ponds.

Barley straw extract may clean garden pond water better than many store-bought chemicals. Some chemically-based, high-end pond water cleaning techniques are too expensive for large garden ponds. This cleaning method is worth a shot if your backyard pond is on the larger side.

Decomposing straws produce chemicals similar to hydrogen peroxide which kills algae and leaves the water in the garden pond crystal clear. 

Introduce barley straws with a mesh bag or net to avoid pond cleaning. Since algae is not digested by barley straw or barley straw extract, cleaning is necessary. Neither green water nor single-celled algae will be a problem for you anymore.

If you need help with regular pond cleaning and maintenance, Easefix can find you the best pond contractors near you.

How to Clean A Pond That Doesn't Drain

man cleaning pond with net

Now that the water is cleaner, green algal filaments may stick to the rocks and other items in your backyard pond. 

Use a cheap toilet brush fitted on a garden cane to remove the string algae from your garden pond. You may clean the pond without dipping a finger in it using these simple methods and materials.

Do not use your bathroom's toilet brush for this operation. Chemicals in household cleansers are hazardous to garden ponds.

The bristles of the brush will collect algae and reach hard-to-clean areas. You can also use the same toilet brush to clean your backyard pond. If you're having difficulties removing algae from your garden pond, a spot treatment like Multi Clean will help you remove even the most tenacious spots on the rocks.

Cleaning and maintaining your pond is a lot of work, but Easefix can connect you with the best local pond contractors to help you clean your pond.

Get a Pond Pump of the Appropriate Size

pond pump

Pond cleaning necessitates the water in the pond to be circulated at least once each hour. You shouldn't pump water any higher than necessary, and check the skimmer and biological filter for debris that could impede the pump's flow. The maximum flow rate of any given pump varies. 

Simply removing the basket from the pond skimmer and washing the waterfall filter media regularly will keep your pond looking like new for many years. Since the ecosystem garden pond waterfall filter has biological cleaning bacteria, you can wash the mesh pad with tap water. 

Select Appropriate Filtration For Your Pond

man cleaning fish pond

Maintaining a clean water filter in your garden pond is essential. In the summer, when the weather is warm and sunny, the mechanical filters of some models are better to clean daily or as often as feasible.

It's best to tailor your water garden's filter to your pond pump. Most pond filters will cease functioning as intended if you operate the pond in less-than-perfect conditions. Always use a larger filter and clean it as directed.

You can filter water in an Aquascape ecology pond in one of two ways. Mechanical filters, often called skimmers, skim floating waste like leaves and sticks from the top of your pond's water. The biological filter is set up at the outset of the waterfall you intend to build in your pond. Using bacteria, this filter converts pond wastes into safer substances for aquatic plants to use as fertilizer.

Bare pond liners are easier to clean in most UK garden ponds. The naked lining is like a patio—easy to clean, but leaves will sit on it until the wind blows them somewhere.

Eco System pond rocks and gravel retain the liner and act like the forest floor where microorganisms decompose waste. The mesh pad in a waterfall filter on an ecosystem pond is only a tiny percentage of the biological filter stage.

The filter system houses the most beneficial bacteria in all other garden ponds. Therefore, rinse the media with garden pond water or rainwater to remove debris and sludge. It may take time, but it's worth it.

Tap water may kill any beneficial bacteria, rendering your garden pond filter sterile and needing 4-6 weeks to mature again. You may have learned something that most people who own backyard ponds in the United Kingdom are unaware of.

Keep A Balanced Population Of Fish

fish in a pond

Having more than 10 inches of fish for every 100 gallons indicates that your pond is overpopulated. An imbalance in pond water may be the result of excessive fish excrement, and fish excretions can cause water contamination and require frequent pond cleaning exercises.

Avoid Overfeeding Your Fish

a hand feeding fish

Overfeeding fish results in waste when the leftovers end up in the pond. Fish should only be fed once a day and consume as much as they can in two to three minutes. Pick high-quality fish food, ideally the kind that won't get sedimented at the pond bottom if some of it goes utilised by fish. The leftover fish food and fish waste decompose over time to deplete clean water in a pond.

Ensure A Healthy Ecosystem By Adjusting The Ratio Of Plant Species

plants in a pond

Your pond plants should cover or provide shade for 40-60% of the pond’s surface area during the height of the growing season. The process of photosynthesis, in which plants absorb oxygen and release carbon dioxide, can lead to oxygen deficiency at night if there are too many plants. Your fish will die without oxygen. A higher plant ratio can pollute the water and may require pond management in shorter intervals.

Final Thoughts

It's a common frustration for folks who own backyard ponds to deal with maintenance. Fish don't like swimming in dirty water because it's unpleasant. Delaying clearing this rubbish out of the pond can accumulate fish waste, ammonia, and other fish-killing toxins. Keeping your pond clean and healthy is easy with the advice in this post.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the optimal method for pond cleaning?

To clean a pond, remove string algae by fishing, treating the water with hydrogen peroxide or barley straw, maintaining the pond with aeration, and removing plant debris by using a pond vacuum or pumping out the water.

2. When cleaning a pond, should the fish be removed first?

If the water is extremely murky, has an unpleasant odour, or has a thick layer of sediment at the bottom, it’s best to remove fish before proceeding. The fish can stay in the pond while you clean it if necessary.

3. What should ideally be a pond cleaning routine?

Maintaining a pond is essential to preventing it from turning into a bog garden, so ponds must be regularly cleaned and inspected. Debris buildup in ponds of any size necessitates a complete overhaul every five years, whereas ponds of that size or larger require such an undertaking every ten years.

4. Is there a certain season when ponds are easiest to clean?

Before your water garden emerges fully from its winter slumber, preferably before the water temperature in the pond rises over 55 degrees Fahrenheit, early spring is the best time to undertake a pond clean-out.