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Our family moved into a house w/ an enormous
17' x 22' steel pond in the backyard. It hasn't been used
for years and is rusty. We've scraped and sanded w/ a steel
brush and are now ready to paint. The trouble is, what type
of paint to use that will be friendly to aquatic [plant and
animal] life? And do we need a primer?
I've talked to two nurseries [w/
big pond dept's] and the local paint store, and even called
the Shedd Aquarium fishline, but no one seems to have an answer.
A paint company in Calif, said to go
to the local Home Depot and get a chlor-rubber paint, that
the koi society recommends it. I worried the 'chlor' sound
ominous for pond life, but he said the chlorine becomes inert
in water.
I really want to believe him, but would
feel better about it coming from someone on the fish side
of this equation vs. the paint side. Can you help by telling
me what sort of paint I should be using, and is there a resource
in the Chicago area?
Thanks,
Lori
Hi Lori!
Steel pond? I suspect that what you have
there may be a converted old swimming pool. In any case,
the only reliably watertight and fish friendly solution
that would be affordable would be a 44 mil Butyl rubber
liner. There is a guy in Washington State who is doing a
spray-on resin sealer treatment that seems to work well,
but I haven't heard of anyone doing that out here. Paints
are not reliable, are mostly toxic, and tend to deteriorate.
They are also fragile.
I'd suggest a couple of good anti-rust
primer coats, then cover the whole thing with a liner. The
rubber is also way more fish-friendly than the steel surface
from a friction and trauma standpoint as well.
`~From Al Meyer
What is the name of the stuff that Koi
by Keirin advertises as a spray-on pond liner? Maybe
she can get some over the Internet.
Al
Bob, Thanks. I also found this
site, FYI, for your group to know.
http://www.pondarmor.com/
Thanks again for following up
w/ me. I'll let you know if I hear of anything else.
Thanks,
Lori
Bob Passovoy
President
MPKS
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