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FAQ
What are Koi?
Where did they come from?
Where do you keep these fish?
How big do they get?
What is a Koi Pond?
I need to purchase a pump. What size do I need?
Are there any benefits of adding aquatic plants to my pond?
What should I feed my fish and how often should I feed them?
How many fish can I add to my new pond?
What size pump should I use for a waterfall.
Can I Turn Off my Pump at Night?
Will My Fish Live Through the Winter?
The common carp is the forerunner of our present day Koi. Koi are not big goldfish. The goldfish is a distant cousin to Koi.
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The Japanese name for Koi is Nishikigoi. Nishikigoi were developed by the Japanese over 200 years ago.
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These gorgeous creatures usually live in lushly landscaped fish ponds outdoors. The ponds are constructed to provide adequate oxygenation and filtration of the water. These ponds make an excellent landscaping addition to a garden.
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The average Koi can grow to 24 - 36 inches! The size of the pond, the amount of aeration, and feeding methods will affect the growth of the fish. It is not uncommon for a small Koi to grow 2 - 4 inches a year in a backyard pond.
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A Koi pond is an enclosed, recirculating, freshwater system for keeping Koi (Japanese fancy carp).
This subject area has been the hardest to describe. I am not trying to offend anyone. But, before we go any further, it is important to note that when we refer to a pond it is considered a "pond for Koi." Please do not confuse a Koi pond referred to here with a "natural garden pond," a waterlily pond, or a small water accent in the garden. There is nothing wrong with any of the these. It just that here, the purpose of a pond is to provide a healthy home for Koi. Koi can live in the others, but not in the numbers that necessitate a Koi pond.
A Koi pond should serve two main functions;
• One is to provide a healthy home for your Koi.
• The other is to provide "clear-water" so that you, the owner, can enjoy your Koi.
Neither of the above is dependent on the other. You can have healthy and happy Koi in a "pea-soup" green pond, or you can have diseased and dying Koi in green water. Having "crystal-clear" water is not an indication of a healthy pond. Water is an excellent solvent. It is possible to have unhealthy, toxic, crystal-clear water. In fact, you might have pond water so unhealthy that even algae would not grow in it!
In addition, most Koi ponds are an attractive addition to the garden!
The way we achieve the above two functions is mainly through "biological filtration" as opposed to using "mechanical" filtration and/or "chemicals.
Design Considerations for a Koi Pond.
• 500 gallons or larger. "The bigger, the better."
• 24 inches or deeper. Deeper is better. Does not take up any more space or proportionally more filtration.
• Straight or near vertical walls. Protection from predators and more pond volume.
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• A bottom that slopes towards the drains and away from water falls or incoming water.
• Some form of surface skimmer. The pool and spa skimmers with a "weir" work best.
• A biological filtration system.
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A Koi's health depends upon the environment provided by the human owner. Koi have a high resistance normally and succumb to disease usually only after exposure to stressful conditions that break down the normal immune system. A stressed fish becomes a sick fish. It has been said that:
Fish Disease = Stress Condition + Disease Agent
Stress is the main factor man has the most control over. Many disease causing organisms normally occur in the same environment as the fish. They usually only become a problem when present in significant quantities and/or stress occurs. Therefore, by controlling stress you can help maintain a healthy pond. Prevention is easier than treating your pond for disease.
Some causes of stress are:
• High ammonia level
• Low dissolved oxygen level
• Handling and/or moving fish
• Poor water quality
• Crowding
• Parasites
• Too high/low water temperature
• Other toxic chemicals (chloramines, oak blossoms, weed spray, etc.)
• Sharp edges in and around pond
• Inadequate and improper nutrition
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The pump is one of the most important equipment purchases you will make for your water garden. It is the heart of the pond, circulating water to the filter and keeping the ecosystem healthy. Because it runs constantly, it must be both dependable and energy efficient. The pump you choose is based on the size of your pond and the pumping capacity in gallons per hour (gph). The pump should circulate the entire volume of the pond at least every hour. So, if you have a 1000-gallon pond, you need a pump that handles at least 1000 gph. When in doubt, you should purchase a slightly more powerful pump. You can always slow or divert the flow of a pump, but you can't increase it.
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Besides adding beauty to the pond, aquatic plants also provide welcome shade, which reduces algae growth, and natural filtration, which helps clean the water. After the bacteria in your filter break down harmful pollutants, plants are able to absorb and remove them from your pond. For optimal growth, remember to choose plants suited to your climate and to keep plants a reasonable distance away from moving water.
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Pond fish need the proper combination of protein, fats, fiber, minerals and vitamins. Too much or too little of any particular nutrient can have an adverse effect on both the health of the fish and the quality of the water. Fish should be fed one to two times daily. Only feed as much as they will consume within five minutes.
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Make sure you don't overload your pond's ecosystem with too many fish. For a new pond, a good rule of thumb is one inch of fish per square foot of surface area. A mature pond can support two to three inches of fish per square foot. Once your pond is built, add the fish a few at a time over the course of 30 days to ensure that the pond and filter are biologically ready to support aquatic life. Simple precautions, such as testing water quality, neutralizing chlorine when adding water and protecting against common diseases, can assure your pond fish remain in optimum health.
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To choose the proper pump for a waterfall, you first need to understand pump head height. This is the water pressure generated by a pump. The maximum pumping height is the height a pump will raise water straight up resulting in zero gph of water flow at the top. As the height of any pump discharge increases, the flow will decrease. For example, a 1000 gph pump may pump 850 gph at a height of two feet, but only 500 gph at a height of ten feet. To calculate the pump size for your waterfall, decide the width of the spillover you want and determine the vertical distance from the top of the waterfall to the pond surface. Every inch of spillover width requires between 100-200 gph of water flow at the height of the waterfall. For example, if you want an eight-inch wide stream over a waterfall that is four feet above the pond, you need a pump with a flow rate of at least 800 gph at a height of four feet. Again, when in doubt always purchase a slightly more powerful pump. You can always slow or divert the flow of a pump, but you can't increase it.
For a light flow, you can figure 50 gph times the width of your waterfall (in inches), 100 gph for a average flow and 200+ gph for a strong flow.
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No! Not if you have fish. Nightime is the absolute worst time to turn off the pump. During the day plants take CO2 from the water and give off oxygen. At night, however, plants turn into Mr. Hyde by stealing oxygen out of the water and giving off CO2. Aeration is vital to your fish and lack of aeration will kill.
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Most of the time the answer is yes. It depends on where you are and how deep your pond is. Fish cannot survive in water temperatures of 36 degrees and below. They become semi-dormant in temperatures between 36 and 50 degrees and just hang around the bottom until the water temperatures begin to rise. If you are in a climate where the water freezes down several inches you definitely want to place a de-icer unit on the pond. De-icers switch on at 42 degrees and keep a hole in the ice for gases to escape. For more information on wintering the pond read our articles,
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