As many of you know, we bought a 23 hectares farm to relocate my koi business. Unfortunately, due to certain politics, I decided not to go ahead with this, but has now secured a better farm on the N7, close to Philadelphia, (25 minutes from Cape Town) which I named Nishiki Koi Farm, and the ball is rolling.

Herewith my draft layout, phase 1.



Any ideas will be appreciated.

According to your plan, your koi farm will looks very nice.

But are you planning to act as a koi breeder or a koi dealer?

All koi breeders in my opinion are also koi dealers in a sense.

Initially I am mainly going to import top quality small Koi from the best breeders in Japan and growing it on for sale locally and export to the UK.

However, I will also do some breeding for the lower market and local trade.

If you are planning to breed koi, my suhhestion are:

1) Build the outdoor concrete pond (+- 1m deep) used for raising koi fry near to where you live.

2) And mud pond can be build futher from where you live.

But if you are not so into breed, than you can build mud pond anywhere you want.

To raise fry I believe the best depth is between 60 and 80cm and not in a concrete pond, but a mud pond. The clay is full of minerals and will be supplemented by topsoil/compost/manure for better growth.

If it is deeper, the sun does not reach the bottom and you limit growth of organisms on the bottom being the eventual food. for the fry.

My fry mud dams will only be created during phase 2 with large surface area and not too deep.

The growing on ponds (Phase 1) will be between 1 and 1.5 meters to accommodate all different sizes and to ensure warm water during summer but also deep enough to ensure good body shape.

sas wrote:

If you are planning to breed koi, my suhhestion are:

1) Build the outdoor concrete pond (+- 1m deep) used for raising koi fry near to where you live.

2) And mud pond can be build futher from where you live.

But if you are not so into breed, than you can build mud pond anywhere you want.

sas, why do you suggest a concrete pond for raising fry?

Admin wrote:

To raise fry I believe the best depth is between 60 and 80cm and not in a concrete pond, but a mud pond. The clay is full of minerals and will be supplemented by topsoil/compost/manure for better growth.

If it is deeper, the sun does not reach the bottom and you limit growth of organisms on the bottom being the eventual food. for the fry.

My fry mud dams will only be created during phase 2 with large surface area and not too deep.

The growing on ponds (Phase 1) will be between 1 and 1.5 meters to accommodate all different sizes and to ensure warm water during summer but also deep enough to ensure good body shape.

Ok, i see.

But i am sure your farm will look nice.

SAS

Jaco wrote:

sas wrote:

If you are planning to breed koi, my suhhestion are:

1) Build the outdoor concrete pond (+- 1m deep) used for raising koi fry near to where you live.

2) And mud pond can be build futher from where you live.

But if you are not so into breed, than you can build mud pond anywhere you want.

sas, why do you suggest a concrete pond for raising fry?

Firstly, Concrete pond for fry is just my personal experience. I found that fry growing in a concrete pond of not too big, with green water that you can still see the bottom, provided enough oxygen and home made food, the fry will grow faster than those in a very green mud pond.

Also, the fry survive rate will be higher. Because you can see immediately if anything go wrong...etc...

It is a long story and it's just my personal opinion. So it will not suit every koi breeder's style of koi breeding.

But yes, Paul is right. The traditional way of koi breeding is to keep fry in green water mud pond of 60 to 80cm deep.

I just want to add something about adult koi in mud pond, in Sakai Koi Farm their mud ponds are very clear which you can more or less see the bottom of their mud ponds.

I need holding/selling ponds and security walling /boundary walls around the homestead. (As indicated on above image.)

That is why I decided to combine the two and to create ponds right around with vibacrete and pond liner inbetween as follows:



Obviously with netting, ... on the corners I will extend the pillars to make provision for the roof/netting, and bottom drains leading to settlement chambers/filters.

To act also as a security wall/boundary wall to keep unwanted elements out and livestock in or out, the pond should be above ground level as much as posible, but the vibacrete will not hold the pressure of the water if it is all above gound level.

My question, how much of the total hight of the pond ( 1 meter plus space above water surface) should be below gound level to ensure that the vibacrete pillars will hold the pressure. I thought of 60 above 50 below.

(Obviously concrete walling/ponds will be much better, but my idea is cheap and can be erected in a day or two. I can always go the concrete route at a later stage.)

Admin wrote:

I need holding/selling ponds and security walling /boundary walls around the homestead. (As indicated on above image.)

That is why I decided to combine the two and to create ponds right around with vibacrete and pond liner inbetween as follows:



Obviously with netting, ... on the corners I will extend the pillars to make provision for the roof/netting, and bottom drains leading to settlement chambers/filters.

To act also as a security wall/boundary wall to keep unwanted elements out and livestock in or out, the pond should be above ground level as much as posible, but the vibacrete will not hold the pressure of the water if it is all above gound level.

My question, how much of the total hight of the pond ( 1 meter plus space above water surface) should be below gound level to ensure that the vibacrete pillars will hold the pressure. I thought of 60 above 50 below.

(Obviously concrete walling/ponds will be much better, but my idea is cheap and can be erected in a day or two. I can always go the concrete route at a later stage.)

I think this kind of question, only an engineer can answer.

Admin,

This is the best compact (small) koi farm that i ever seen...

{MOVED TO ANOTHER CATEGORY}

Nice but out of my league. My major concern is the cost aspect.

I am not too worried about filtration because I will have a constant flow of new Ammonia/Nitrite free water coming in and bio filtration will not be that important. I have got plenty of water and space and will not overstock in these liner ponds. Settlement chambers connected to the bottom drains will be flushed twice a day to get rid of solids with at least a 10% water change everyday.

Rezanne and I are finally moving to the farm the end of this month, so please note, visit only on appointment at my premises in Table View as tenants will occupy it and look after some fish.

One large fry mud pond ready for my anticipated 2008 spawning. (Breeding stock: Chogoro Purachina's)

Still a lot to do to accommodate my current stock (500 +) and newly purchased koi on its way from Japan(430) and 300 in my mud dam in Wellington.

Still very accesable to clients, 15 minutes from Table View on the N7.

Our initial accommodation is very small:



but at least the land can accommodate numerous mud dams and I will spend most of my time at the dams.



Accommodation for the koi comes first again. The liner ponds as descibed above are in progress and then meters and meters of netting to keep the Herons (who currently occupy the land) out.

I am like a small child who can not wait for Christmas.

Congratulations!

Map:

Hi Paul

Well done my friend go get your dream! It will not be always easy but it will be rewarding.

If there is any thing I can help with please feel free to contact me directly.

SA needs more commercial koi farms. Did you know that all the farms in SA only supply 30% of the local market demand and 70% is imported?

Exporting to the UK and EU is not easy at all, from the time you apply to export to them it takes 2 years before the first koi is shipped.

Oooooooo …… and don’t dig the mud pond side’s at 90˚ angels make them ± 30˚ you will thank me in 2 years time. If you insist on 90˚ angels you will kick your self after 2 years.

Again well done!

I have seen a very interesting thing recently on a Koi Farm here ... instead of netting the owner has spanned yellow baling twine across the ponds at 1 meter tracks and the again from the other side the same but with a height difference of around 200 mm ... the twine form squares of 1 meter by 1 metre if looked at from above. Apparently no birds go into that twine mesh and it is a lot cheaper than netting. He also told me that he does the same on home ponds where birds are a problem but here he uses very thin fishline ... the blocks apparently confuse the birds, including kingfishers and it looks a lot less intrusive than a net.

Collin wrote:

If there is any thing I can help with please feel free to contact me directly.

Thanks Collin, will probably need some expert advice in due course. So I will probably press on your number.

I bought the manuals on fish farming written by Lesley Ter Morshuizen, covering most aspects including construction of mud dams for koi farming. In collaboration with Rhodes University or JLB Smith Institute of Ichthyology, the author has written several scientific, and a number of popular publications on fish farming. He has presented papers at conferences, presented proposals to State and Federal Ministers in Namibia, Nigeria, Madagascar & Mozambique, and has undertaken a substantial number of aquaculture consultancies. He was also involved in the development of the Koi farm in Bonnievale.

I am also waiting for the book currently written by Servaas De Kock on the subject. He told me last week that it is due for publication early next year. He is leaving for Japan for final research this Wednesday.

Colyn wrote:

I have seen a very interesting thing recently on a Koi Farm here ... instead of netting the owner has spanned yellow baling twine across the ponds at 1 meter tracks and the again from the other side the same but with a height difference of around 200 mm ... the twine form squares of 1 meter by 1 metre if looked at from above. Apparently no birds go into that twine mesh and it is a lot cheaper than netting. He also told me that he does the same on home ponds where birds are a problem but here he uses very thin fishline ... the blocks apparently confuse the birds, including kingfishers and it looks a lot less intrusive than a net.

Thanks Colyn. Will look into the possibility. The bird netting that I want to use are quite expensive.

Hi Paul

I know Lesley Ter Morshuizen a good person but very expensive though A business plan of 17 pages R18 000.00. Eclusive of expenses a nother R 4000.00 In total R22 000.00 So be carefull!!!!

Thanks, will do.