hi there all well i went and bought a pond master test kit today the tablet one just did a water test and am worried.
amonia 0.1mg/litre
nitrite 0.1mg/litre
ph 7
nitrate 100mg/litre

the nitate is off the scale what should i do i had already done a water change of about 20% could that have pushed the nitrate up tap water?

what should i do to get it back down. every other reading is 100%

Hi Shawn
Nitrate is the only high reading that is not as risky, although one will also prefer this reading to be low, Koi is more tolerant to higher Nitrate levels. A Bakki Shower will help to keep nitrate low.

http://my3ponds.blogspot.com/2009/04/must-you-change-water-in-your-koi-pond.html

Your Amonia should preferable be zero unless you tested this after heavy feeding.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Water-Testing-and-Ammonia-Levels&id=3072222

I might be completely wrong but from what I know the nitrite level is the one that is important and that level will be effected by the condition of the bacteria in your bio system. A bakke shower will help for this because it will allow more surface area for the bacteria.

The nitrate levels is an indication of the health of your bio system globally and this level will promote algae blooms unless you have sufficient plants to extract the nitrates from your water.

Amonia will disperse into the atmosphere through natural gas exchange and will become threatening if you do not have ample exchange opportunities. Large surface areas are natural exchanges but you can increase this with showers, waterfalls, streams and venturies.

DOn't be tempted to chase the processes of removing the three, amoniac, nitrites and nitrates with chemicals. As long as you have the right bio elements in place and enough plants the natural processes will very quickly set the balances right. The easiest way to protect your fish while the bio system catches up is to cut back on feeding the fish.

Just my 2 cents.

Nitrate levels in a pond can build up from the same sources that cause elevated nitrites:

• Uneaten fish food;
• Fish waste;
• Too many fish in a body of water that is too small;
• Fertilizer run-off;
• Decaying plants and insects;
• Any other source contributing high nitrogen levels to the water.

Prevent nitrate build-up by controlling feeding and fish population. Also monitor the nitrate levels so that you can neutralize them before they are converted to more harmful forms.

Large amounts of organic mulm and decomposition in filters is often a common cause of persistent nitrate problems. Another clue to this is a pH that tends to drop quickly, often even with buffers added (assuming a higher new water pH); the breakdown of organic mulm or similar will lower pH while increasing nitrates.

thanks for the replys guys so from what i gather i think the problem came from my water wall that was full of algi and when i was away it went off and all the algi from the 2m high water wall landed up in my sand filter i have cleand the hole thing out and am doing a water change again 20% will let you all know what the result is thanks so much.

Nitrates will always build up in your pond - even when you have a low stocking level and low feeding. It's the final product of the chain. There are 3 ways to remove it -
1. Big water changes if your source water is low in nitrates - our tap water is at around 30ppm! - Some people believe in a slow trickle of fresh water 24/7. It's great if you can collect the wast water and water your garden.
2. Bakki showers -or trickle towers. Very effective but you need a high flow with a bakki shower which in return is costly with energy. Bonus is that it cools the water in our hot weather conditions (koi like it below 26 degrees) and adds lots of O2.
3. Hydrophonic (my spelling sucks!) filters - basically massive veggi filters almost the size of your pond.

I've had success with a trickle tower (10 000 bio balls!) and the flow through method. My pond water has a lower nitrate level than my tap water

I've also got a better ORP level in my pond than our drinking water!