30,000 gal pond algae problem

[sumthingfishy]

Take some Advil.... The fallen leaves and muck only add to the problem of algae blooms. At the very least try to get another pump or some kind of circulation in the bottom til you can clean it. This will give oxygen to the benefical organisms that will actually break down some of the debris. Not at all a cure, but a helpful step in the right direction.

i have a spare sump pump. this weekend i'm going to try to figure out some way of pumping water down into the bottom. i can't lower the pump into the bottom, it would just get clogged.
it's suppose to be getting a little warmed the next couple of days.
the fish are starting to move around...

 

[Muske]

Try placing the pump in on onion sac. The ones made from mesh will help bock some of the debris. Or is poss. try to place it on a base of bricks or stones to keep it off the bottom. Hopefully it won't churn up to much crap, but you won't know until you try.

 

[koigirlfl]

Just saw you post and noticed nobody mentioned the obvious reason for your problem.

Do you have rocks in your pond, that is where all the muck is building up and where the algae is finding most of the nutrients. Next thing I saw was it looked like your pond was downhill? If so then maybe it is getting some runoff which again feeds the algae.
Dredge up the rocks from the bottom, get friends to help. Build up the rim of the pond to 12" or even 16" to prevent runoff.

 

[hankn]

I have found another thing that cuts the water from being green and makes it more clear. I use something called Perlon which is a poly fiber filter material. Usually it is used in an aquarium mechanical filter, but someone who runs a pond store recommended it. I bought a 1lb bag and I tear a large swatch of the Perlon and place it in my pressure filter (it works best as the first media in a gravatitional filter but works fine in my pressure filter). The trick is to remove the Perlon every day and put in a new batch.

As it says here:
http://www.aquarium-pond-answers.com/2007/05/aquarium-filter-media.html
They use basic aquarium floss. What it does is pick up all the very fine and miniscule particulate in the water. Give a try - cheap and easy to handle.

 

[sumthingfishy]

Just saw you post and noticed nobody mentioned the obvious reason for your problem.

Do you have rocks in your pond, that is where all the muck is building up and where the algae is finding most of the nutrients. Next thing I saw was it looked like your pond was downhill? If so then maybe it is getting some runoff which again feeds the algae.
Dredge up the rocks from the bottom, get friends to help. Build up the rim of the pond to 12" or even 16" to prevent runoff.

there is no rocks on the bottom...
you are right about the run-off ... but here is the insane... my pond is located smack in the middle of a natural run-off from between 2 mountains!!!
i know about building up the sides and not letting run-off in... i'm also digging deeper ditches around the pond to divert water. here is a google-earth picture of the 2 mountains where the water runs to my pond(not in picture)

 

[fishkeeper1]

Yes there is muck, every pond has it in the spring reguardless of the fall clean-up. quote]

oh do i know it?...
the first fall the fence, i put around the pond, pretty much failed (before i put up the small wall that lines the driveway) and i would clean it every day after work until it became to much... Last summer i made myself a net out of heavy duty netting and 1 1/2 pvc pipe (20" wide, 12"tall with a 15' reach{the net was pretty much the size of a 30gal trash bag}) and dredged the bottom. and let me tell you i was shocked that each pull-up there had to be 50-75lb of muck... i coundn't even lift it out of the water, i had to drag it over the rocks... i had the worst back pain ever(seriously). plus i tried to use a old pool pump to siphon the bottom, but that was nearly impossable, since pool pumps need to be below water level and it kept clogging...

Does your pond have a liner, cement bottom, or natural soil?

 

[sumthingfishy]

Does your pond have a liner, cement bottom, or natural soil?

liner

 

[Muske]

Found out barley will take four to six weeks to activate and do some good.

 

[sumthingfishy]

Found out barley will take four to six weeks to activate and do some good.

it's now 6 weeks and i don't see any difference...
the hyacinths are having a hard time growing because of the crappy weather we've been having...

 

[Muske]

Once the hot weather hits, they really take off. I use a product that contains a barley powder. As long as the water temps. are above 60, it is active, and is currently working. I don't have green water, but the string algae is just falling off the rocks. Check out aquascapesinc.com, they have several natural products that might help you. The one and only product I use in my pond is S.A.B. Crystal clear water, always.