Hi laurieoh,
How big is your pond? How big is your fish load?

I can only speak from my experience. I have a small - roughly 5'x5'x3' deep pond with 8-10 4" to 7" goldies/comets (and some babies later on).
Algae loves sunlight and fertilizer (fish poop), and until my plants take off in the spring I get an abundance of string algae which I clean out by twirling a toilet brush in it and removing by hand. Suspended algae (green pea water) usually hits me for about 1-2 weeks each spring, several weeks after starting up the falls and filter, as the water warms up but again before the plants are thriving. I don't have a UV light but many people use them to help with this. I use quilt batting or screen around my pump and change it as frequently as necessary - about twice a week for 2 weeks, then once a week for 2 weeks, then I usually don't need to do it more than once a month. The quilt batting traps an amazing amount of suspended junk. The bacteria in your filters needs warm weather to grow and help filter the water.

Once my pond is up and running I rarely do water changes, just top it off when the water level goes down. Maybe 3 times over the summer a 10% - 20% water change. Drastic water changes and/or cleaning just starts the cycle over. I also have never had any luck with adding chemicals or other algacides. Not saying they don't work, just not for me.

Most ponds need ~ 75% surface covered by plants, good filtration, and a low fish load to have clear water. Right now I can count the pebbles tipped out of the lily pots on the bottom of mine, but I know I will have some green water for a week or 2 this spring as my veggie filters cycle up to do their jobs.

So, PATIENCE. If you have a big pond maybe a UV filter? Don't drain it and scrub. Lots of surface plants - you can always thin them ruthlessly to see your fish after the water clears.

Just my 2 cents. Good luck!

Thanks, Sheepco. My pond is about 150 gal. I think, and 18 or so inches deep. I have one large goldfish and about a dozen or so smaller ones. I don't have a UV filter, but I did the quilt batting last year (in the filter falls). I had a lot of plants last year, but my water hyacynth did not thrive and multiply like they usually do. They were puny. I'm not sure what the problem was, hoping for better luck this year. I won't do a complete water change and maybe once I start the pump up, things will slowly get into balance. It's just embarrassing when guests come over, and the pond looks cruddy.

I've keep a block of plaster paris in my pond near the pump over the winter with pumps runing and this year no algae, knock-on-wood. First year ever. Even though the water has been clear I've added some bentonite to the water. ??

Do you have a test kit. Get one and use it. Bacteria thrives with a high nitrate level. Don't over feed or over fertilize.

Since you have new pump, filterfalls, then you just might need to tweak your system a bit. One thing to consider is how clean is the bottom of your pond? Do you have a way to remove the debris that collects on the bottom such as leaves, muck, ect.?

I believe in partial water changes to freshen things up a bit, and if you have a high fish ratio (which I think you do for 150 gallons) then 10% every couple of weeks would be beneficial IMHO. Full water changes are not recommended due to it being a drastic change in temperature and perhaps PH for your fish. Also you need to consider your source water may contain chloramines, phosphates, ect. Don't forget to add the dechlor.

Another nice thing you might want to add is a small floating planter with watercress, water celery, or other water loving plants to provide shade and suck up some nitrates. Floating plants such as water hyacinth and water lettuce will do the same thing but they will need it to be a little warmer to do well.

Good luck, and keep us posted.

Lisa

I had a fairly new pond 4 mths old, 1500 gallons of water, lots of plants in 3/4 day sun, I developed murky water(very frustrating) The only thing which worked was a a bigass UV filter in end , I already had one in my biofilter but when we pulled it apart , found it was faulty, and undersized for what we had, if you decide on a uv light, make sure you get a bigger one than what you think as they seem to be graded on ponds that don't get a lot of sun, when we talked to the pond guy he " ah more sun, higher uv"
All i can say is that it works, absolutely brilliant. Clear as bell all the time. straight to the bottom and its 3ft 6" deepp.

I love UV's
mazela

Well if your fish are breeding then I would think your pond is doing okay except for your preference for water clarity.

I too would test the water and also check the temp. Some plants that are going to compete for the nutrients with the algae are temperature sensitive.

Make sure you clean the pond's bottom. Get the muck out, as was suggested.

I've had both unclear water and tea-colored water. Pondcare's AccuClear, a flocculent, worked well for me. When you use these products you have to use them exactly as specified. Overdosing is not only more expensive but counterproductive too.

I think you need your pump and falls working to get things circulating. So do that if you don't have them running already.

The UV light will help but it is expensive. I would say try the flocculent first. Give it a little time in that it doesn't work instantly, but over the course of a few days.

My pond is somewhat larger and I think that actually makes it easier for things to stabilize. You're probably closer than you think to this thing working out ::