Silt

[RobStubbs]

I foolishly let a lot of leaves rot down in pond last year and this has added to the silt build up. I have at least 6 inches on the bottom and I want to know how best to remove it. The plant life love it, but I'm not sure it didn't contribute to spate of fish deaths in the spring / early summer (deoxygenated ?). So any ideas how I should deal with it ?

 

Thanks,

 

Rob.

[jevs]

You can get a chemical "sludge buster" which is supposed to break down the gunge.....i've personally never found them any good.

 

Or, you can wait till autumn and give the pond a complete clean out. Get as much water out of the pond along with fish and plants and put them all into a kiddies paddling pool. You can run the filter in there too if you have one.

 

Then, empty the pond of remaining water and silt, give it a good hose down and refill using tap water and the water from the paddling pool. replant and add fish.

 

It can be done in a day quite easily if you're prepared and the pond's not too big.

 

Ponds should have a good clean out like this once every 5 years anyway.

 

The silt/dirty water can go onto the flower beds in the garden.

 

HTH

 

Andy

[RobStubbs]

Andy,

OK thanks for that - might have to get dirty then, later in the year.

 

Rob.

[ljk]

I foolishly let a lot of leaves rot down in pond last year and this has added to the silt build up. I have at least 6 inches on the bottom and I want to know how best to remove it. The plant life love it, but I'm not sure it didn't contribute to spate of fish deaths in the spring / early summer (deoxygenated ?). So any ideas how I should deal with it ?

 

Thanks,

 

Rob.

 

Or...

 

what about one of these??

 

http://www.aquatics-online.co.uk/Z212421.asp#product3017

 

Len

[jevs]

Or...

 

what about one of these??

 

http://www.aquatics-online.co.uk/Z212421.asp#product3017

 

Len

 

Aqua-vacs are pretty good at getting small amounts of silt out but if the silt's as bad as Rob say's, you'll be emptying the pond with the aqua-vac anyway !!!!....plus it'll cost you a lot more.

 

Just my opinion though.

 

There is another way if you can do it and that's to syphon it out using 1 1/2" flexi pipe. The trouble with that is the bottom of the pond has to be higher than the other end of the tubing.

 

Or, you can hire some sort of industrial pump and pump the crud out.

 

Andy

[argyll]

You need to vacuum it out. I 've tried all of the cheap manual pump devices and they fall to pieces in less than a season. I now use a Heissner vacuum (about 80 quid on eBay) and if you have a very big pond I can recommend the Argonaut AG surface pump. In the process it will of course remove water too, but I usually do a partial water change anyway in this weather, so I combine the two.....hypethetically of course during the hose ban

[RobStubbs]

The possible plus here is that I have a pump in the pond (in the deepest bit). The pond has a waterfall in but I decommissioned it a few years back as it just clouds up the thing. I can probably still use the pump , pump it into the old filter unit and use that as a settling tank before returning the water and discarding the worst of the silt.

 

I'll still leave that until the autumn though I think.

 

Rob.

Edited July 17, 2006 by RobStubbs

[grumpybum]

I made a net up using galvanised fence wire for the frame. For the net enlist the help of a female, wife, girlfriend etc. eg borrow or steal a pair of tights. Cut off both legs and sew it up, then sew the knicker part to the frame. If the net is made rectangular it can be dragged across the bottom. It wont pick up all the silt but it will pick up the majority.

[Elton]

The possible plus here is that I have a pump in the pond (in the deepest bit).

 

You may be better off moving that to a higher ledge, Rob. I had mine on the bottom and the hose split at the filter. I was 30 miles away when my wife phoned to say that the fish were flapping around in about 4 inches of mud

 

You need to vacuum it out. I 've tried all of the cheap manual pump devices and they fall to pieces in less than a season. I now use a Heissner vacuum (about 80 quid on eBay) and if you have a very big pond I can recommend the Argonaut AG surface pump. In the process it will of course remove water too, but I usually do a partial water change anyway in this weather, so I combine the two.....hypethetically of course during the hose ban

 

I've got to get one of those. The silt in mine is bad, as it is surrounded by trees.

 

Had my first death in years today, although i do think the fish was on his last legs anyway

[Ken Davison South Wales]

A good solid net drag over the bottom will remove most leaf/silt, it also causes less pain to occupants allowing natural food sources the chance to remain in the pond. Do a section each evening until completed this does not stress the fish to much.

Edited August 7, 2006 by Ken Davison South Wales