Hi there, I use all Microbelift products.
Especially this one; Microbelift PL.
Just find the best price. I buy from my local pond builder in town. He's my cheapest.

http://www.123ponds.com/10pblg.html

Happy Ponding :)
J

Here is a link that might be useful: Microbelift

Loaded.

Question.

Since water quality is different all across the continent and every setup is different, it helps to give more information on your individual setup.

If you don't have to use any then don't waste your money... more information (?)...have you had your pond installed for long? Size, coverage, devices?

I probably did it a little backwards. I used more chemicals after the initial setup than I needed to... I'm getting away from using most, not because I'm opposed to them, just because I'm finding I don't need them anymore.

You say you're about to fill up your pond so I assume it's a new setup? Gotta chuckle at pondbucket's comment "Loaded. Question." So true!

That said, other than chlor-out at initial set-up, I have never used any chemicals. None. (which is not to say I wouldn't resort to chemicals in an emergency) Nor have I ever tested my water *horrors* My puddle is 7 yrs old and thriving.

I'm no expert, far from it, and the only advice I can offer is to listen to the *voice of experience* on this forum. Experience is an excellent teacher! What I have gleaned from the *experts* here is....plants, patience and filtration. To date, I've yet to be steered in the wrong direction. Nor have I had a need for chemicals.

The key to a flourishing pond environment is BALANCE. Find the right balance and the water quality & health will be a non-issue. The closer you get to mimicking nature, the less problems you will encounter.

Do you plan to add fish? In the beginning I did everything backwards, lol. I started with nothing but water & fish and added a plant or two as an after thought to improve the aesthetic. Wrong! If I had it all to do over again, my pond would be thriving with plant life, have adequate filtration - both bio & mechanical - and THEN I would add my fish.

Enjoy your adventure!

~digger

I put nothing in my pond on a regular basis except dechor whenever I add fresh water during water changes or topping off after evaporation.

Some use start-up bacteria, but you should not need to add it on a regular basis.

As has been stated above, balance is the key. If you're going to add fish, add only a few at a time to get your bio filter going and to avoid overloading it. As it takes hold, you can add more until you reach the stocking level you want. Remember, though, your fish will eventually spawn, so be careful about stocking.

Welcome to the wonderful world of ponding!

I use only Stress Coat to condition new water before I add it to the pond and MicrobLift. The MicrobLift must work really well because I never have gunk on the botttom of the pond even when I am negligent about removing leaves etc

Anne

Ive had my pond for several years, but it has been a trying experience. We had an unqualified person put in the plumbing and have had problems with leaks ever since. Ive just about finished patching it for the 5th time or so time over the past several years. Hopefully this time it sticks. My ponds around 6,000 gallons. 2 skimmers, 2 watefalls. Lined with rock and river rock. probably around 80 or so fish, which is too many I know. Light on the plants just because the pond has had such turmoil. Lillies, iris, and lotus are what I have.

I am between ponds right now, but in the past I have found that if you go light on the fish, heavy on the plants then chemicals are unnecessary.

Yankee Dog

I've had a water garden with fish since 1995. I never added chemicals. When I add water, I run it through a charcoal filter that removes chlorine, or the pond gets filled a bit by irrigation ditch water when I water the lawn.
When I first built the pond, I had been keeping fish in aquariums for decades, so I knew that aging the system and letting it stabilize before adding fish would be beneficial.
After adding water, I let it sit in the pond for a few weeks, then added plants. After over a month, I added a few fish. I never had a problem.
My pond maintenance mostly involves cleaning the filter, adding water in small amounts at a time, and removing the excess of plants.

I use Prime for water changes as our tap water has both chloramines and chlorine. My fish overwinter in a 300 gal tank in the basement so in the spring I move the fish out and their water at the same time. I put the sponge filters and other media from my Fluval XP filter that runs my indoor tank in a netted bag in the pond biofalls and start it up. I usually use koi clay each year but ran out and just got some last week.
For pond startups if you can get some water from an established pond (that doesn't have sick fish problems) you can use that water to help seed your biofilters. Also your biofiltration won't cycle without ammonia hence you need to put in some fish to get that going or use water that's already established.

Duddlydoright,of the RCMP,my vote goes to listentening to the people who advised using nothing more than some chlorine conditioner and slime coat enhancer for the fish, such as Stress Coat, when starting up a pond. That is "The voice of experience speaking" as Diggery calls it.
They got through the start up of their ponds without a chemical dependence

Let the water mature in it's own way, as you add some plants. then a few fish. Allow the the biological filtration to come alive and do it's job.
Patience is a virtue with the start of a new pond, it cannot be hurried.

You may or may not have a new pond algae bloom in the form of green pea soup water.
If this it does occurr, don't start pouring in chemicals right of the bat.
Come back here and "talk" with others who have also gone through the new pond syndrome and survived without the use of harsh treatments that can cause bigger problems.

You know the slogan...."Just say no"! LOL

Good luck with and enjoy your new pond,
"Horton"

You should never need to add bottled bacteria to a pond. Fish will produce everything that is necessary for a biological filter to handle the ammonia and nitrites in the pond. The beneficial bacteria in a bio filter takes around 6 weeks to be fully functional and until then, just keep an eye on ammonia and nitrite levels. You cannot spead this up by adding bacteria because the bacteria in the filter is very fragile and can't be sold in a bottle. It has to form naturally. As long as your pond is properly stocked and kept clean, the bio filter will never need a dose of bacteria to keep things running.

All that being true - there is a nitrifying/nitrafying bacteria product that helps start up bio filters. It comes refrigerated in a pouch for about 90 gallons of aquarium tank. I used one when our start-up aquarium was in trouble (because we were clueless beginnners) and cleared up the ammonia problem overnight. Since then I squeezed ONE pouch worth over the biofilter media of our 3500 gallon pond, and n-e-v-e-r had an ammonia problem in the pond since. It's called BIO-Spira.
One other product I throw in occasionally is PondBalance which helps buffer the very low pH etc of our water. When once every few years the pond seems out of balance we put in three doses and that's it - even though the directions say to add it over and over. It helps keep string algae in check, among other things.
The normal things we do are once a year clean the filters in the settlement chamber, occasionally tend to the plants, weekly drain the gook out of the settlement chamber, every few days top up the water level (well water, no chlorine) and clean the skimmer filter, and daily feed the fishies and sit on the pond deck to enjoy.

:) MaryO

As long as we're talking about biological filters let me share how I re-started my fish tank (where I winter over some of my more delicate pond fish). The same method would work on a pond.

I got a fully functioning bio system going in 15 days. How? I kept adding pure ammonia to get constant DANGER readings on a Seachem ammonia monitor. Day 4 I added a nice plant from my local pet store. I made ammonia/nitrite/nitrate readings daily and watched for the nitrites to spike, followed by nitrates spiking. Once the nitrates were going strong I saw ammonia and nitrites go to nill.

Then a 80% water change and added the fish.

The ammonia replaces "sacrificial" fish to seed the bio system. The plant carried in my bio starter culture.

When I re-started my pond this spring I made sure to add some dingy dirty filter bags from my tank to my pond filter. Starter culture again.

The only chemicals I ever use are dechlorinator and baking soda (1 teaspoon per 5 gallon on exchange).

(I was able to get American Chemical Society rated pure ammonia from where I work, but the cheapest store brand (without chemicals or surfactants, just ammonia and water) should also work. but store

The only chemical you will ever need is dechlor. Really.

Fish need oxygen and a non-polluted environment just as we do. Here's an analogy. If you live in a smog filled, polluted environment do you think of what chemical or gas to add to it so you can breath? Or do you just want clean air?

Regards,
Lisa

Dudleydoright, I agree with no additives besides a water conditioner if you have water supplied by a water company, private wells don't need it. Bacteria's in a bottle are usually nothing more then a placebo! Exception is Bio-Spira that is no longer available. Use the money you would have spent for the bacteria in a bottle and get yourself an accurate reagent test kit, money would be better spent. See the link at the bottom to explain the "cycle" if you are unsure. It is not a technical article, but a basic summary of what it is about.

What Ernie did is called a "fishless cycle" and is a great idea and more humane to the fish. It also gets things going quicker because you can spike the ammonia level well past the danger zone to fish. Bio-Spira is the only reliable "bacteria in a bottle" however it is no longer available in the refridgerated form. There is a new product that was supposed to replace it but there has been no tests to my knowledge that back it. By the way the biochemist who invented Bio-Spira for Marineland, no longer works for them. Bio-Spira is still available under the Bio-spira name for salt water only now.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Pond Forum

Yes there is a product out there that can get your filter going in a day but it is very expensive and is usually only used by commercial aquariums like the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. It has a shelf life of 12 hours and cost more then most ponds. But to say that bacteria in a bottle is a placebo can be right but it can also be wrong. Depending on how the pond was built will determine if you should be using bacteria from a bottle or not. Bacteria in a bottle is not trying to start the nitrogen cycle but in some ponds can help it. But the bacteria for the nitrogen cycle is just a small portion of the bacteria that your pond needs to be a truly healthy pond environment. But it takes quite bit of time to grow all the different types of bacteria that a ponds needs. In my area this usually takes at least four years. No the bacteria in a bottle isn't going to make this go any faster. But if you have rock in the bottom of the pond it is a good idea to use bacteria in a bottle.
Mike

No chemicals here, never, ever....add your water,(add dechlor if you need it - we don't) add plants like hyacinth and water lettuce.
A few days later add fish. Allow the bio filtration to do it's job naturally.

cliff and joann:

Do you have a pump in your pond?

Thanks,

thanks for then info guys, lots to take in here

cliff and joann how on earth do you keep your water so clear?

Pond maintenance seems like a good thread to ask this question on. I emptied my pond in the Spring to rebuild it, and I put the water back in yesterday. All this time my water lilies have been doing great in two big containers about 2 feet high and wide. Now I wonder if I can move them back into the pond. The water in the pond will be less deep -- about 18 inches. I imagine that difference will be OK; the pads will just spread and adjust to lie flat after a while. But, I have never tried to move potted lilies during growing season. I will have to lift them out and carry them 15 feet and lower them into the pond. Will the stems break or kink and die? Should I wait until Fall die-back to move them? Anyone have any experience like this? Thanks.

Well, at least now I know what I'm doing wrong. I have far more fish than functional plants!!! Bring on the plants!

Sharon,

I am not sure if you are being facetious in your post. If you are please forgive me for all the info that comes next. :)

In a fish pond plants are only part of the equation. They suck up nutrients such as phophates, nitrates, ect, that algae thrives on. Thus they compete with algae and will help keep the water clear. But clear water is not always clean, healthy water. Debris in the pond needs to be removed. You can use filters, suction it out, siphon it out, ect. Then you need to address the ammonia that fish excrete. Again this is achieved in many ways such as biofilters, water changes, combinations of both.

Years ago there was the watergarden theory that you could cover the surface of the pond with 70% of plants and you pond would be in balance. We know from experience that it is not that simple when you add fish to a pond. We as ponders with fish have created many different filtering systems that we are usually tweaking. lol

Regards,
Lisa