Demonstration Pond

Here at the Fish Helpline, we have a fully working demonstration pond and quarantine tank.

We cannot stress too strongly that you should:

Become a water keeper first, and a fish keeper second

which is why we have built this area.

See our warning on filter containers on the filters page

The Fish Helpline runs a full comprehensive maintenance scheme for Koi ponds, which can include water changes and supply of food. We can also source your Koi.

The photos on the right are all from our demonstration area, including the quarantine tank.

Go to our Health pages to find out more about fish health problems, and why we insist upon quarantining fish before they are introduced to a healthy pond.

Filters.

Go to our Filtration page for a greater understanding of this area.

There are so many on the market now of which 50% are just black section tanks like you have in your loft. The best way to check one of these out is to put a white sheet down alongside your pond than put contents on sheet and look what you are asking it to do you see them for sale for a 3000 gal pond inside 3 rows of foam one bag of floccus this would not support 300 gal to say 3000 even 10 in line would not support 3000 gal

When buying products for your pond find a fish keeper using one first and ASK. Always remember a lot of these so called filters are the same as anti ageing cream - rubbish!

A filter size is based on the water flow and the kind and amount of media used. You can buy filters 6 foot long with so much space taken up by up and down in and out there is no more media than a black section tank - there's is one difference about £300. Just because its advertised in the magazines as a Koi filter does not mean its any good. Like cars, you can buy one at £200 and one at £2000 - they both may get you to London once. With filters SIZE matters! A Koi filter needs to be 1/4 the size of your pond. This does not mean all in one container, but at any one time a 1/4 of your pond gallonage needs to be under filtration. There is no way round this if you want GOOD water and that's what its all about. Keep the money in you pocket and ask or come to see one working at the Fish Helpline. If I've not got one I may have a client with one and with one phone call could arrange for you to view.

Hydroclean are a good product range. Does what it says on the tin, but you need a minimum of 1000g/hr and not an Aquamax or similar design low wattage pump, as they have no back pressure. Many do use these pumps, they're good, but will not drive any pressure filter, protein skimmer, fluid bed or water polisher no matter what make.

A lot of products for sale are tested in clean water void of fish and detritus such as foam in filters - a complete waste of time. At no time with any test would I put my fish's heath at risk so you may conclude that many products don't get to be tested because they are not considered to be in the fishes best interests.

I can't fault Easy Pod as a water polisher and removing water bound sediments (see photo on the right). To clean with high blow 80:

1. Drain down water so the level is 1" below the outlet pipe in the centre of the Easy Pod
2. Turn on blower leave 3 mins
3. Give all k1 a good stir ( apart from this and the protein skimmer, the only use for k1 I've ever found - as a filter media its rubbish)
4. Open drain to waste.
5. When empty turn on the pump to clean dirt from the outer base and use a brush (soft), wet and rinse down the outside of s/s basket and inside of Easy Pod and clean outer ring base and allow all to go to waste.
6. Close waste and start pump - 5mins in all - first class!

However, as a pond filter not a chance. Unless you're a workaholic or you have 6 fish in 10,000 gal and feed them once a fortnight.

Netting

The netting around the pond in the photos is to allow the fish to feed on aquatic insect life. You would be surprised how many edible goodies fish find in there. The netting has to be soaked for around 3 months in a rainwater barrel to allow debris to get into to the net weave. It's a messy job to fit, and hydroclean gets some stick for about a week from when installed, but once alga has grown and bound it all together its a job in town. I got the idea from an Asian carp farmer who showed me how. Over the last 4 years plant seeds have got stuck to it and I have a good growth of plants and their leaves out of the fishes reach - their roots also help to bind it all together.

The netting is rolled up like a carpet around the sides also its a haven for eggs and fry after spawning you can hear the fish sucking at the net 3 doors away and at night its sounds very spooky!

Pressure Filters
Pressure filters are fine provided they are cleaned well and often with a complete strip down for driving a waterfall> So called self clean by lifting handles to squash sponges and running the dirt within the filter to waste is like selling snow to Eskimos. Its just not going to happen.

Vortex
If you have a vortex filter and its under 6' across you do not have a vortex just a empty chamber doing nothing so put brushes in.

Protein Skimmer

For the purists out there foam = D.O.C. = Dissolved Organic Carbons.

I have tried all types of pumps etc. and the best by far after 20 weeks trial is an Amphibious 850 with 8" sponge on the front of the pump, which is suspended 12" below the surface. In this way the skimmer does not take debris and works much better off the bottom - also you only have a 1 meter lift, giving you 700 g/p/h on 1" flexi piping.

Out of all the different ways I have tried, this is by far the best, and removes more protein than any other method.

The skimmer goes green, but only alga on inside of body, k1 stays clean, so there's no need to clean for 4 weeks, and then only the inside, the k1 is free of dirt.

K1 tower - I am well impressed is not the word - an A1 filter. But not as a main filter.

Just close the intake from pump 1200 gal p/hr, open the waste and air is allowed in through a side air intake - see picture (black red topped air intake valve) so to bubble, and bubble it does.

To clean K1, I would recommend when starting up, to run the outlet to waste to clear, as the last of the dirt is removed on filling up.

The pond is 4000 galls with 22 koi, 12 of which are 30in plus, 3 of which over 30lb. My oldest fish is 7 years, and there are 4 sturgeon one is 5' 3in 50lb 10oz, another 4' 30lb 6oz and the other two are 1M 18lb and 28in 9lb.