A garden pond is a magical feature of any landscape, so long as it’s properly maintained. There are several steps you should take to keep your water clean—especially if your pond contains fish.
Read on to discover how to maintain a pond and preserve the health of animal and plant life within it.
Choose the right size pump
When it comes to how to care for a pond, the first thing to consider is the pump. You need to choose the right size pump for the size of the pond, ensuring that the entire water volume circulates at least once per hour. Keep a close eye on the skimmer or biological filter, and remove any debris that may prevent them from doing their job.
Stay on top of your cleaning routine
There are several ways to keep leaves and other landscaping debris from piling up in your pond. If you have a pond skimmer, it should remove most of the debris on its own from the pond’s surface. You can remove any remaining debris manually with a pond skimmer—just make sure you check the pond regularly, so leaves and twigs can’t reach the bottom to decay. Decaying debris, leftover fish food and fish waste combine to raise ammonia levels which can kill fish and plant life.
Neutralize ammonia
Does it seem like your fish are trying to jump out of the water? This is a sure sign that ammonia levels are too high in your pond—and it can happen even if you’ve followed a regular cleaning routine. Typically, ammonia spikes are caused when you add an algae treatment to the pond. Use an ammonia neutralizer and beneficial bacteria to remove the ammonia and keep the pond water healthy.
Install proper filtration
You need to be sure the pond’s filter is a suitable size for the volume of water in the pond. If you’re purchasing a filter yourself, always up-size, so you can be sure the filter can easily handle the capacity of your pond. Your filtration system should consist of a skimmer and a filter. The skimmer removes surface debris, while the filter uses bacteria to break down pond waste into beneficial fertilizer for the plant life in the pond. After installation, be sure you’re sticking to a cleaning schedule according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Keep the pond cool
Learning how to care for a pond can be particularly challenging for Arizona residents since the temperatures get scorching hot in the summer. When pond water gets too hot (usually over 75°F), it has a hard time maintaining appropriate levels of dissolved oxygen. Without oxygen, your fish will die. Shade the surface of the pond with aquatic plants, and add an aerator to keep the water moving to cool it down in hot weather.
Learning how to maintain a pond is a fun challenge, but it never hurts to have a little expert assistance. Reach out to the professionals at Arizona Pool & Pond Company today. Using decades of insight, we can keep your pond flourishing year-round.