Testing our Pond Water and Why

We now have a great selection of Colombo Pond Test kits availabe at Holiday Aquatics.

http://www.holidayaquatics.com/koi-pond-test-kits-67-c.asp

Heres a run down of what we need to test and why, never under estimate the need to test your water :

AMMONIA – Ammonia is formed when fish waste and other organic debris (leaves, grass, dead fish, or frogs, etc) begin to decompose. This decomposition releases toxic Ammonia into the pond water. A test reading of Zero Ammonia is best but not always possible.

NITRITE – Nitrifying bacteria work on the Ammonia and break it down to Nitrite. Nitrite is also highly toxic to your pond fish and the ideal reading should again be Zero.

NITRATE – Eventually Nitrite is broken down further into Nitrate, which is less toxic to your pond fish although still bad enough in higher concentrations. Ideal reading would be zero.

pH – Testing the pH of your pond is critical according to many experts. The ideal pH reading in your pond is debatable by many but is often considered to be 7.0 – 7.5 although pH will vary throughout the day.

KH – Carbonate Hardness = Total Alkalinity which is different than pH. Carbonate Hardness is the ability of the pond water to stabilize the pH in the system. According to Dave Jones, owner of The Pond Professional in Woodstock GA, KH should be at least 100 PPM. Ideal KH readings are between 100-200 PPM.

PHOSPHATES – Phosphates are usually introduced into a pond thru fish waste and are a nutrient that algae require to flourish. Algae, like other plants, require many nutrients to grow so the presence of Phosphates alone does not ensure an algae problem is imminent. A reading of Zero PPM is ideal although many ponds can have much higher concentrations with no algae issues present.

If your Water parameters are in acceptable levels it will go a long way in producing Healthy and Happy fish.

Holiday Aquatics
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