Midwest Pond and Koi Society - Q&A #161

Hi Bob,

We just had a 4500 gallon pond put in our back yard this summer, with waterfalls, a spitter and submersible pump. We are so very new to this wonderful koi hobby. We live in Illinois.

We noticed the algae problem on the very warm days and I was instructed to use Pond Clear. There were no koi in the pond at this time (I'd already lost them).

How can we properly operate our pond to insure that we can have healthy/happy koi? What equipment is needed, etc.

Hey Mary,

Welcome to the hobby. You've already been subjected to your first hard lesson: Never trust a landscaper to understand pond ecology or filtration.

Nowhere in your description did I see a mention of a biofilter, and without that, your pond cannot support any more than one or two small koi.

I strongly encourage you to spend the winter doing some homework. Steve Childers has been writing a series of columns about pond design in Koi USA entitled "It's A System". It is a great place to start learning about pond ecology and management.

Our website has lots of articles and the Help Files have loads of tips and tricks. Get started there, and come back to me with any specifics you need.