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| Our Aquascape pond is 3 1/2 years old, and now looks as if it needs cleaning. The pebbles that cover the entire pond and streams are covered in algae and look unsightly. We do not have string algae.
We have had two cleaning estimates: One proposed power washing the rocks; the other said that the algae on the rocks should be left alone, but the sludge under them needs pumping out, which would involve hand-moving all the pebbles down to the liner. This second proposal is very expensive. The two approaches seem to be contradictory: one says remove the algae, but leave the bottom sediment; the other says remove the sediment but leave the algae. The main concern is the fish. What kind of cleaning is better for them ? Or can we safely just leave it alone ? |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Niagra, Why don't you contact Aquascapes and ask them what they recommend. There have been (sometimes very heated) discussions on this and other pond forums about the pros and cons of lining the bottom of a pond with gravel/rocks. After three and a half years, I suspect there will be quite a bit of toxic junk from fish waste, plant decomposition, uneaten fish food, etc under and between those rocks /gravel, that should be cleaned out. I have posted a link to an Aquascape site, which has (though not much) information on cleaning their ponds. The second company, you mentioned, ideas, reminds me of the story about the dentist, who said to his patient, |
Here is a link that might be useful: Aquascape information site.
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| How large is the pond and stream? If reasonably sized, I would start on it myself. If you could rig up some sort of filter at the end of the stream then I'd take the rocks out, let them bake in the sun and kill the algae, and releasing the yuck that was under and between. You'd have to have a good filter at the end of the stream. Now about the pond itself, if it is lined with rocks/stones, I'd remove those before I did the stream clean and deal with all the yuck you're definitely going to find there. Used those rocks to make a raised flower bed or something. Once you get the inside of the pond as debri clear as possible (this will take a LOT of netting) or the use of a wet vac. Don't replace any rocks in the pond. Then go work on the stream. Yes I said this all backwards, so sorry. My pond is 1000 gl. It's liner lined and I can see clearly to the liner 4 and a half feet down. There is some sand there from a spilled plant, but nothing else. |
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- Posted by cliff_and_joann z7 L.I.,NY (My Page) on Sat, May 1, 10 at 11:43
| You didn't say how big your pond is? I would take the pebbles out and leave them out of the pond. This way you can vacuum the pond bottom. Just keep a few rocks here and there if you like the look. You may be able to leave the pebbles just in the stream, as they are probably easily reachable(?) for cleaning and hosing off. We just have rocks in our shallow beach area they we blast with the hose occasionally to clean them. wait a few weeks until your fish on on their feed for awhile ...The rocks on the bottom of your pond are host to a lot of parasites, and you don't want to stir them up before the fish are built up after their long winters nap. |
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| The reason aquascapes people like to install rocks in a pond is so they can get huge annual income for cleaning. They claim that the rocks create a "natural ecosystem", which is not even remotely possible in a liner pond. A natural ecosystem is an open system with many thousand of gallons of water per fish plus a constant water exchange. A liner pond has a dense stocking rate and minimal water changes. Since we can't duplicate a natural pond, we have to maintain the water via filtration and keeping the environment as clean as possible. A pond with no rocks is by far the healthiest environment you can have for your fish. The only reasonably safe way to have rocks in the bottom of a pond is to remove the rocks and totally clean the pond every single year. That sludge at the bottom of the pond is not good or healthy. It is decaying fish poop, uneaten food and rotting plant material. It is loaded with parasites, anaerobic bacteria and pockets of hydrogen sulphide gases. If a pocket of gas breaks loose, all creatures living in the pond will be dead within hours. The best thing you can do for your fish is remove the rocks. Don't do it with the fish in the pond though. Set up one of those ring top pools in the shade. Pump pond water into it and move the fish to the pool. Move the filter to so you don't kill the beneficial bacteria that is living in the filter. Remove all of the sludge and rocks, but don't scrub the liner (it has good bacteria living on it). After everything is nice and clean, refill the pond and put the fish back in. Good luck! |
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- Posted by nancym1956 (My Page) on Wed, May 5, 10 at 13:38
| I'm with Cliff and Joann and ccoombs1. Get those rocks out of there. They trap loads of waste and provide breeding beds for all kind of nasties. The Aquascape ponds can look awesome, but like ccoombs1 said, they make a lot of money on the annual cleanings. Rocks also displace a lot of water. If you remove them, you'll be surprised how many extra gallons you gain! |
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