:idea:Hi there ,new to this site , need some insight from u pond experts,please . I have a two stage pond ,top one is 900 liters flows via waterfall into a 7000liter pond,pumped to two partitioned settlements full of lilies and taro,s through aerated bio balls and then upward flow through alfagrog{aerated}bio to waterfall and back into small pond,thinking of turning small pond into water garden/mud pond/spawning pond all in one using Montmorillonite clays as the mud for beneficial nutrients for the fish
question is, will i still get the water clarity in the 7000 liter pond ,please share your views

I use the clay you talk about in my pond. When added the pond turns cloudy for some time (sometimes up to two days). Thereafter the clay seems to settle and the water clarity return.

When you refresh the clay the story repeats itself.

I believe you will experience the same.

From what I have learnt clay she is good. In my case the water feels smooth and soft.

I had similar problem with water clarity after using clay.

The more your pond/system mature the quicker the water returns back to its normal clarity. After a year my pond is clear in the morning when adding clay the previous night , before it took between 2 and 3 days and when you do a water change it starts all over again. My system is gravity fed, no pressure pumps or sandfilters, so you need patience.

thanx Jan and bobby ,nice to get feed back .no sand or pressure pumps by my system either,one submersible and air pump .am building a gravity filtration system ,trying to feed back to the pond without the need for a pump via my bottom drain got the some ideas, but need more the time ,very frustrating

Hi Ianage

My pond is also gravity fed. Welcome to the small club of non-pressure-water keepers.

The circulation through my filters is driven by air only not water pumps. I attempted to describe the setup in my posting under Chat – Koi related; title My first visit to a Koi show and now I wonder.

If you have to use a pump consider putting it after your filter system.

Maybe that can help.

Hi,

Why do you use montmorillonite clay?

I am very happy with my gravity fed set-up. Small 1800lt Waterfall pump located after the filtering system, returning the water via a waterfall and 2 mid water returns to the Pond.

Pieter J de Villiers wrote:

Hi,

Why do you use montmorillonite clay?

like a koi pond multivitamin

Ok,

Only joking, I know what montmorillonite clay is.

Why adding the clay into the water?
It does not really clear the water and most are lost sitting in the filter system anyway, a waste and not very practical if you which the Koi to ingest it.
Rather, mix it with your Koi food to assure better results.

Hi Pieter

Wayne and company believes that adding losts of clay before a show ensure good skin lustre!
I agree with adding it to the food.

LG
Sorry about the friendship part :

I tend to agree with Pieter and Bobby. Most of my clay ends up in filter as can be seen on photo


[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Hi Marius
You can also use the clay extract that would reduce the filter clogging up a lot. I have seen keepers mix the clay with pond water, only add the extract (like weak tee) to the pond and re use the clay once more, it will clear the water very quickly and not clog the pipes too much, not sure how effective this method is?

From a visual point of view, it does give the water a very nice shine and improves clarity, maybe the experts can comments should this method add value?

ok thanx for the in put,but dont think i made myself clear.the thing is a pond is artificial and the clay is natural ,if one can create a pond that has a natural and artificial combination= more balanced ecosystem. creating a clay pond in the middle of the pond which is separated from the outer using rocks .the inner clay pond is only 5cm from the surface on the outer edges ,river rock protruding, allowing minimal flow through the inner clay pond between the gaps in the rocks .plants and lilies are then introduced in the clay pond
the clay pond will settle remaining clear ,because of no fish action.in which case one will benefit from the minerals being released naturally from the clay without clogging filters and clouding water

Hi,
I use montmorillonite clay.

I have been considering lining one of my shallow intermediate ponds with this clay as an experiment. Will get around to it one day.

I use the clay in much higher dosages than recommended. It really clears the water. Most of the clay gets bound up in the algae. If you do not have a good algae growth the pond takes longer to clear. We should actually use it and then suction the floor and walls as the clay would have bound many of the suspended solids and settled them out of the water.

Should the clay build up in the filter leave it for a week or so. The passing water will come into contact with it. Then just flush it out.

Use montmorillonite clay after you medicate the pond for some reason. It will bind up residual medications and impurities out of the water. On recommendation from Dr. Neville Marais

If you are going to use it as a floor covering in some part of the pond it will work well. You will have to suction it off/out every year or so. They do the same in koi mud dams by replacing the floor and walls after a certain time. There will be a build up of anaerobic bacteria over time in this area.

There are some koi keepers overseas who bathe their koi in stong clay baths before shows to increase the lustre.

Chris

Chris,

Why going through all this, if you could achieve the same result regarding “luster” on Koi by adding it to the food?
I am using 10g-15g clay per 1kg.Koi food, and not that much clay to achieve the same results by adding it to the water.
I have found that by using it on my filter system, I am wasting clay and water as the clay “blocking” my sand filters very quickly.

Hi

I find all these views very interesting. I also experienced the clay-in-filter-and-washed-by-bottom-drain phenomena and considered it a waste. But the benefit must still be present.

If we start at the beginning. Ianage is considering creating a mud pond for plants/spawning with this connected to his main pond. Using the clay in question for this pond can sure only be of benefit?

Jan

??????????????????????????

blank replies?

Eish! My comprehension she is blank for baas Pieter!

Pieter J de Villiers wrote:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Something you don't understand and want to ask?

Is that what the symbols mean?

Jan wrote:

Is that what the symbols mean?

Yes, the symbols can mean the followings:

1) Question
2) Unsure about something
3) Want to ask something

Pieter's Question to the forum
How would the forum react seeing I am going to replace all my sand filters?
I have enough filters to open a retails store, so will the members support me?

LG