Mark

How To Install A Pond Aeration Diffuser

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By now, many people know the value and benefits they’ll get when they install a pond aeration system in their pond.  If you’re still in the dark on this critical tool for pond health, you can learn more about it here, and here.

Beyond knowing how good it can be for a pond and fish, there’s often some reservations when it comes to putting one of these systems in the pond.  It’s not that folks don’t want to do it.  They’re just not sure how to install the darn things.

In terms of smaller ponds, the entire process is pretty easy.  But large  ponds can be a bit more labor intensive to deal with, and then there’s the aspect of getting the diffuser placed at the bottom of the pond in the right way.

In truth though, there’s nothing to worry about here, because the entire installation is relatively simple and easy to do.

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The IonGen And Good Bacteria

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We’ve talked about the Aquascape IonGen device before on this blog so I won’t go into great depth about how this system works and all that here.  If you want to learn more about when to use a copper ion generator (and when not to) then please read this detailed evaluation here.

In this short tip I wanted to address a question that came up from a pond owner this week.  He was more worried about using beneficial bacteria, along with an algaecide, and if there were any problems with this.  

Based on the initial details, it didn’t sound like there was much of a problem.  He, like many folks, wanted to use bacteria with something like Algae Fix, or Algae Off.  Both of these algaecide formulas can be used with good microbes and there are no complications with that.  The algaecides will usually knock down or kill of various types of algae, while the microbes clean things up over time.

All good stuff here.

But then he mentioned something called the IonGen.

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All Pond Dye Is On Sale! Save 20% Now!

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A few months ago I wrote an article about when it makes sense to use pond dye.   And in addition I talked about when pond dyes might not be all that helpful.  So be sure to take a bit of time to read that when you can. It’s good stuff to know because in … Read more

Testing The DynaTrap Insect Trap

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Display dt1200Early this summer we had some decent rains in Iowa, and usually with that, you’ll see a pretty good crop of gnats and mosquitoes come along.

And they did just that.

You couldn’t go out in our backyard in the evening and not get bit by something or many things actually and so this seemed like a good opportunity to do a little testing (and scratching).

For a few years now we’ve had the Dynatrap flying insect trap hanging in our shop. We leave the doors open often enough in there that we get some visiting bugs and the Dynatrap has done a good job of catching a lot of them. I was so impressed with it that I posted a bit of a review here last season.

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Can Every Pond Be Restored?

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Pond mountain

You know, we see a lot of pond problems around here.  Algae, weeds, muck, stench, stagnation, all kinds of colors too.

I’m not going to claim we’ve seen it all because nature is a creative force but we’ve seen quite a bit over the years.

And we’ve worked with a lot of ponds.  We’ve helped most, and been frustrated by some.

So we have a lot in common, you and me.

What this is all leading to, is a question that came up recently from a frustrated pond owner, and it’s time we covered it.

Is every pond recoverable?  Can every one be restored?

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A Cost Effective Option To Dredging Your Pond

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Thomaspond

I couldn’t help but notice a recent article from an online newspaper called Sauk Valley which is an area not far from here in western Illinois.

Like many municipalities, these folks are dealing with an aging pond that’s filling in, and of course during the warm months, algae will usually show up too.  Each year it seems to get a little worse.

As ponds become more shallow, the challenges of keeping it clean and healthy can increase and there’s a lot of reasons for this.  Sunlight penetration can stimulate more growth.  Weeds can take hold at the bottom.  The aforementioned algae cycles through it’s typical life and death, and as it dies, it sinks and adds compost like muck at the bottom.  And this feeds more growth.

In the case of the Thomas Park pond in Sterling Illinois, the powers that be have decided to spend some money on dredging out the pond.  This involves the physical cleaning and removal of this bottom sediment, and it won’t be cheap.

The estimated cost will be right around $150,000.

But are there other options that won’t cost so much?

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