Living where I do, "cold" is not usually a problem, it's the heat. However,
with all the Arctic Blasts we've been hit with recently, my pond water temps
have been bouncing all over the place (from the 60's to a low of 45,
currently 52). The fish have NOT been fed for over 3 weeks, but are still
gobbling the algae on the sides. My biobugs have quit. I'm supporting my
pond on Amquel. I just purchased two 500W submersible heaters for the sump
side of my skimmer box, which I hope will heat the water enough to wake up
the biobugs (the water goes from the sump to an Ultima II to my biofalls,
back to the pond). I don't expect it to heat the pond (except marginally),
but I hope with 1000W in about 20 gals. will heat the water enough to
encourage the biobugs (which will be in direct contact with the heated
water) to wake up.

How will I know when they're awake again? Should I look for a nitrIte spike,
like you do with new ponds? Or will I just not have to use the Amquel so
often? I didn't have to worry about this last year, so I'm not sure.

TIA, Lee

"Lee Brouillet" wrote in message
...
Living where I do, "cold" is not usually a problem, it's the heat.
However,
with all the Arctic Blasts we've been hit with recently, my pond water
temps
have been bouncing all over the place (from the 60's to a low of 45,
currently 52). The fish have NOT been fed for over 3 weeks, but are still
gobbling the algae on the sides. My biobugs have quit. I'm supporting my
pond on Amquel. I just purchased two 500W submersible heaters for the sump
side of my skimmer box, which I hope will heat the water enough to wake up
the biobugs (the water goes from the sump to an Ultima II to my biofalls,
back to the pond). I don't expect it to heat the pond (except marginally),
but I hope with 1000W in about 20 gals. will heat the water enough to
encourage the biobugs (which will be in direct contact with the heated
water) to wake up.

How will I know when they're awake again? Should I look for a nitrIte
spike,
like you do with new ponds? Or will I just not have to use the Amquel so
often? I didn't have to worry about this last year, so I'm not sure.

TIA, Lee


Hi Lee. Put your thermometer, test kit, and Amquel on a shelf.......enjoy
your fish :-) JMHO, but........seriously. I don't use any of those items
(or a heater) and I'm not having any problems........I even exchanged the
lava rock in the biofilter with store bought bioballs the day before the
first "Artic blast" (lightly cleaned the sponge filters) Even the Plec*o
is doing fine. Still feeding too (although not as heavy). I do use
Canadian peat (3.4 pH) though, to keep the pH down as the ammonia is only
toxic to the fish in a high pH environment.

I'd *love* to do that, but in my ignorance last year, when Spring came
around, I lost half my fish. I don't do that any more. For a "relaxing"
hobby, I spend a lot of time obsessing about my fish, their health, and
their water quality. Not so relaxing, but I have beautiful, healthy fish.

Just for grins and giggles: how large is your pond, and how many fish do you
have in it?

Lee

"volts500" wrote in message
m...


Hi Lee. Put your thermometer, test kit, and Amquel on a shelf.......enjoy
your fish :-) JMHO, but........seriously. I don't use any of those
items
(or a heater) and I'm not having any problems........I even exchanged the
lava rock in the biofilter with store bought bioballs the day before the
first "Artic blast" (lightly cleaned the sponge filters) Even the Plec*o
is doing fine. Still feeding too (although not as heavy). I do use
Canadian peat (3.4 pH) though, to keep the pH down as the ammonia is only
toxic to the fish in a high pH environment.

"Lee Brouillet" wrote in message
...
I'd *love* to do that, but in my ignorance last year, when Spring came
around, I lost half my fish. I don't do that any more. For a "relaxing"
hobby, I spend a lot of time obsessing about my fish, their health, and
their water quality. Not so relaxing, but I have beautiful, healthy fish.

Just for grins and giggles: how large is your pond, and how many fish do
you
have in it?

Thanks for asking. I'm glad your fish are healthy! I think we all go
through that "relaxing" phase :-)

Our "ponds" are probably more accurately described as water gardens. We
have 3 of the pre-formed. The first one installed was a 125 gal Sam's Club
special with a "waterfall". I built a pergola over it......still need to
install the lighting though. We stocked it with a half dozen (12 for a
dollar) feeder fish. That was fine for a while until the tree frogs and
toads decided it was a great place to spawn. When the goldfish started
eating the frog and toad eggs.......my wife wouldn't have _that_, so the
goldfish were moved to one of the aquariums on the porch and the rear pond
is now a dedicated frog pond. It's fun to watch 100's of baby frogs hopping
around the yard. Surrounded the pond with a butterfly garden. Had to bring
the Monarch caterpillars in the house during the cold snap....almost ran out
of milkweed to feed them.

Of course, I couldn't have the goldfish in an aquarium, so up went a fence
in the front side yard and in went another 150 gal.....strategically placed
so that another 150 gal (with spillway) would just "happen" to fit next to
it :-) I moved the comets into the bottom pond and put in a baby plec*o
(about 6" now). The spillway pond is more or less a veggie filter, with a
homemade biofilter discharging into it (with the pump in the bottom pond)
The original comets (now about 10", including tail) spawned on the first day
of spring last year. Now the babies (about 25 survived "naturally") are
breeding size (4-6"), so it should be a real fiasco this spring :-) A baby
redear slider came from who knows where and made a home in the spillway
pond, where a bullfrog also moved in. A swing in both the front and
rear......now we just sit and watch the world go by :-)

The part that I find funny is the toads and frogs decided not to spawn in
the rear pond anymore, so I get to rib my wife (since she made me move the
goldfish out of the rear pond) while she moves the eggs from the front to
the rear pond :-)

What kind of fish do you have? Names?

Lee, even with your temperature swings I wouldn't think it would slow the
bacteria down that much. How's your KH & pH doing? Bacteria has an optimum
pH also. Do you have any BZT on hand to jump start the filter? ~ jan


See my ponds and filter design:
http://users.owt.com/jjspond/

~Keep 'em Wet!~
Tri-Cities WA Zone 7a
To e-mail see website


On 30 Jan 2003 15:54:20 -0600, "Lee Brouillet" wrote:

Living where I do, "cold" is not usually a problem, it's the heat. However,
with all the Arctic Blasts we've been hit with recently, my pond water temps
have been bouncing all over the place (from the 60's to a low of 45,
currently 52). The fish have NOT been fed for over 3 weeks, but are still
gobbling the algae on the sides. My biobugs have quit. I'm supporting my
pond on Amquel. I just purchased two 500W submersible heaters for the sump
side of my skimmer box, which I hope will heat the water enough to wake up
the biobugs (the water goes from the sump to an Ultima II to my biofalls,
back to the pond). I don't expect it to heat the pond (except marginally),
but I hope with 1000W in about 20 gals. will heat the water enough to
encourage the biobugs (which will be in direct contact with the heated
water) to wake up.

How will I know when they're awake again? Should I look for a nitrIte spike,
like you do with new ponds? Or will I just not have to use the Amquel so
often? I didn't have to worry about this last year, so I'm not sure.

TIA, Lee

Jan, I figured out the problem: cold water does not yield proper/true
results. Once I began to warm the tube of water before I added the reagents,
I received more accurate results. I don't remember having this problem last
year; maybe it was pure ignorance? All my other water parameters are "dead
on". The specifics you inquired about: pH is 8.2-8.4 AM/PM, steady. The KH I
keep around 200-215 because my Ultima II kinda likes higher KH. NitrItes, 0.
NitrAtes, 5. I haven't tested the GH lately, but it was 110 the last I did,
so it's OK. DO is max.

So, the answer appears to be to warm the water sample before conducting the
test. I also moved my test kits in from the (unheated) garage to the dining
room floor: cold tests kits don't work, either!

Thanks - Lee

"~ jan" wrote in message
news
Lee, even with your temperature swings I wouldn't think it would slow the
bacteria down that much. How's your KH & pH doing? Bacteria has an optimum
pH also. Do you have any BZT on hand to jump start the filter? ~ jan


See my ponds and filter design:
http://users.owt.com/jjspond/

~Keep 'em Wet!~
Tri-Cities WA Zone 7a
To e-mail see website