You don’t want to mess with it a lot. Some people try to move it around, up and down, but pH is logarithmic so any change, sudden change, that’s even a half of a point up or down could be really dangerous to your fish. What you do is boost the alkalinity in your water, and a lot of times people confuse alkalinity with a high pH, but actually a high pH is a basic — above 7 is basic, below 7 is acidic.  When you boost the alkalinity, you’re actually buffering the changes in the pH, so you use products like water conditioners and stress coats which boost alkalinity. A simple thing like sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) buffers by boosting alkalinity. So you want to avoid drastic changes in pH.

What pH levels do fish thrive in?

They thrive in 6 to 8. The ideal pH is 7.5. The most stable pH Koi can thrive at consistently is between 6.8 and 8.2.  PH below 7 is acidic which burns their skin, and a high pH will chaff their skin. A variation more than .5 in a 24 hour period is very dangerous and that would be considered a pH swing.

Are there any other symptoms that fish will display that tell you there is a pH problem or a water problem?

No, not so much. If pH is higher than 7.5 and you have any ammonia readings in your pond — you know you can get ammonia from over-stocking your fish or having too many fish in a pond — so if there’s any ammonia,  they can tolerate a little bit, but the higher the pH, the more dangerous the ammonia is, so it becomes more deadly to them.

See water treatment products available in our online store

Check out the Barley Straw Pellets and water treatment products at our store

Did you know?

Barley is a natural way to control algae and there are different forms of barley:

• barley bales
• barley pellets

What they do: once in the water they start to release barley extract which is the key ingredient that prevents algae growth. It’s not an algaecide, it’s an all-natural way without any chemicals to help control algae. It’s not the fix-all though, and sometimes it’s not enough. In these cases we use barley extract in conjunction with an algaecide like AlgaeFix to get a good grip on it – most of the time.

Factors that contribute to algae growth:

• lack of plants because having other plants in the water will steal nutrients that algae needs to grow
• any type of phosphates that get into your water can contribute to algae growth
• fluctuations in PH can also contribute to algae growth

So there are a lot of things that contribute to it, but if you stick to the plan of using bacteria, barley extract, and an algaecide like AlgaeFix you can keep it under control instead of trying to figure out the problem, asking, where am I getting this algae growth? It’s coming from the sun mainly.

Our rule of thumb is 1 inch of fish per every 10 gallons of water. So in 2,000 gallons you can have 200 inches of fish–not 200 fish, but 200 inches worth of fish. Keep in mind that your fish will grow and you do not want to overload your pond. Overloading can cause excessive stress on your filter, create more bacteria and will create more work for you when it comes to cleaning and feeding.

Call or visit the store to purchase submersible and aeration pond pumps including Big Frog, Little Frog, Max Flo, Hakko, and Alita

If you’re planning a pond that will include plants and fish many customers ask, what size of pump do I need? The first question we ask is, what type of waterfall do you want to see?

The most important consideration when choosing a pump size is the circulation of your pond. You want to make sure that you’re circulating your pond fast enough to give maximum benefit to your plants and fish. A trickling waterfall is not enough to accomplish effective circulation of your pond, so you may need to take into consideration a larger pump and more powerful waterfall.

With plants and fish you want to turn your water over, or circulate it, 1-2 times per hour. For example for a 2,000 gallon pond you want a 4,000 gallon per hour pump. You have several different options for circulation and not all of your water has to go through your waterfall or UV filter for circulation. Sending all of your water through a UV filter requires slowing down the water which is something we don’t recommend.

All of our pumps have their own specifics and working with one of our experts will help you determine which path is right for your pond. We can help you find the right solution whether it is to do a bypass with your water, running part of it through a filter, or running all of your water through your filter, if it can tolerate it. Most people keep it simple and run their pump to their waterfall, filtering the water back and forth. If you’re interested in long term fine-tuning of your pond you’ll want to use a UV filter, including a bypass. You can control the flow going through the UV bypass to create the most effective way to kill parasites, bacteria and algae.

Is it cheaper in the long run to fine-tune your pond with a UV filter?

Yes, you’re also using your UV light to its fullest potential by slowing only the flow through it. By utilizing the UV filter you reduce your dependence on chemicals, while still turning your pond over, and you’re getting proper aeration, which is the most important thing to your pond, plants and fish–Producing Oxygen. You will save money on chemicals and preserve your fish, as well, by keeping algae growth under control.