Pond not deep enough

12 years ago

I purchased a house that has a small pond in front. It is a preformed pond with a ledge about 9" deep and the bottom being maybe 2'? It's about 7x3' wide. I haven't taken a measuring tape to it but almost positive it's not 3ft deep. There is a box filter with bioballs. I replaced the sponges at pump at time of purchase because after sitting all winter and finding dead moles, etc, it was decidely anerobic - you could actually smell the thing from the neighbors house. I drained and cleaned a bit, and have a small comet and shubunkin fish in there right now, along with some Moneywort. I had some hornwort in there but it either died or they ate it! I purchased from an estate, so I can't ask the former owner any questions but the little boy next door tells me the former owner only put one fish in there each year in the past, and that fish always died. based on what I got out of the pond when I moved in, she bought a Koi each year, one too large for a pond this size to sustain. Is it possible to keep any fish in this alive overwinter in temps that usually dont go any lower than -5 tops?

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Comments (6)

TehyaJenZ6
Original Author
12 years ago
Another pic
Craigger7
12 years ago
hi Jenny, nice little pond. Yes koi will no problems in that temperature. Just remember to have an air stone to keep an open area. Also watch your Ph levels etc.. I would not put too many more fish in the pond. The Shubunkin will need to come out for the winter. It will not survive the winter.

Craig
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Holly_ON
12 years ago
My shubunkin survive very well in my pond overwinter. I use a heater and a bubbler and have not lost any except to racoons.
NorthwestPlanter
12 years ago
Please don't put koi in that size of a pond. They grow far too large too fast to be in such a small pond. I would say two goldfish tops is the limit for that tiny pond. I wouldn't even think they would winter over in that because of the shallow depth. On top of the inadequate habitat, koi are expensive compared to 25 cent goldfish.
lisamk
12 years ago
I agree with some of the others...don't waste your money on Koi for a pond that size. I go to Jack's Pets and ask for them to pick out the prettiest goldfish from their 'feeder fish' tank, and they cost .19cents each! In a pond that size, it's very important to keep decaying plants and leaves out of the pond. They will cause gases that will kill the fish. Amonia is another problem. About once a month, you can lay your hose in the bottom of your pond, let it run for an hour, and when the water overflows the pond, it will clean your pond out like new. I do this once a month. I don't worry about the chlorine. My goldfish even have babies, and there's frogs in the pond, and they never seem to mind. Make sure you have bottom plants and plants that cover at least 1/3 of the surface of your pond, to help keep the water temperature down, if you live in a warm climate. Good luck. I've had a pond for probably about 20 years. It's always a learning experience. :-)
gnappi
12 years ago
I had a pond about that size in a small covered atrium and had anywhere from 6-12 or so comets in there. It was protected by three walls and in the summer stayed pretty cool since it only got a bit of sun.

I flushed it with hose water and it got a LOT of rain, and I cleaned it with a diatom filter also. To keep it from overflowing I sunk a 1" PVC pipe in the gravel / rock before building it and when the pond was full I cut the pipe at the level I wanted the water at. I could get a monsoon and it never overflowed.

Everything went fine until it became the local "racoon buffet" The comets didn't survive.

I have no racoons here and I'm thinking about another one.

This post was edited by gnappi on Sat, Aug 9, 14 at 23:06