Greetings all,
I've been on the market for a house for some time, and while I have made three offers, I am only backup on each of them. However, yesterday, I found out that one of my coworkers was selling her house. I went to take a look at it, and the price is right, it's in a quiet neighborhood, it's on an acre of land, and it's got a nice big pond in the back. Meaning, about 130'x130', and probably about three feet deep minimum. There are fish in it now, catfish, sunfish, and some others. I live in Florida, so the water probably doesn't get colder than 60 degrees, except on very rare occasions.
Anyway, I have been thinking that this might be a cool place to have a couple of monster fish. Arowana and even arapaima would be awesome to have, although arapaima might be very difficult if even possible.
At the moment, the depth of the pond is unknown, but I plan to figure this out somehow in the near future. The pond is also pretty murky from mud, and I suspect it may need aeration, especially toward the bottom. I'd appreciate your input on how to solve these problems--heating, aeration, murkiness, algae/plant control--so that I could potentially get some monster fish in here, or at least have a nice place to do some fishing after work. I'd like to keep things as natural as possible, with lots of plant life to keep the water clear, but I don't have a problem with using a heater or aerator if necessary.
Anyway, what do you think about my ideas, and what would you look into and research if you were in my position? My ideal goal is having monster fish in the pond, but failing that, I would be more than happy with just a clean, clear, self-sustaining place to fish.
Any help is much appreciated. Thanks in advance.
I've been on the market for a house for some time, and while I have made three offers, I am only backup on each of them. However, yesterday, I found out that one of my coworkers was selling her house. I went to take a look at it, and the price is right, it's in a quiet neighborhood, it's on an acre of land, and it's got a nice big pond in the back. Meaning, about 130'x130', and probably about three feet deep minimum. There are fish in it now, catfish, sunfish, and some others. I live in Florida, so the water probably doesn't get colder than 60 degrees, except on very rare occasions.
Anyway, I have been thinking that this might be a cool place to have a couple of monster fish. Arowana and even arapaima would be awesome to have, although arapaima might be very difficult if even possible.
At the moment, the depth of the pond is unknown, but I plan to figure this out somehow in the near future. The pond is also pretty murky from mud, and I suspect it may need aeration, especially toward the bottom. I'd appreciate your input on how to solve these problems--heating, aeration, murkiness, algae/plant control--so that I could potentially get some monster fish in here, or at least have a nice place to do some fishing after work. I'd like to keep things as natural as possible, with lots of plant life to keep the water clear, but I don't have a problem with using a heater or aerator if necessary.
Anyway, what do you think about my ideas, and what would you look into and research if you were in my position? My ideal goal is having monster fish in the pond, but failing that, I would be more than happy with just a clean, clear, self-sustaining place to fish.
Any help is much appreciated. Thanks in advance.
