In each garden pond or even a simple recirculationg water, you find the life of any kind. In this article I want to talk about what happens in garden ponds normal throughout a period of 24 hours. If you understand these basics will be a long way to make your exercise more of your pond.
Think of a pond as a collection of living creatures, fish, plants, algae, frogs, bacteria and tiny insects. All these breathe like you and me and all need oxygen (almost all). All these flora and fauna exhale carbon dioxide. Think of your pond as breathing oxygen during the day, and breathing out carbon dioxide into the night.
Carbon dioxide in a water pool the results of a number of sources, including:
1. decomposition of waste generated at the bottom of the pond
2. by breathing pond inhabitants .... fish, insects, plants, algae
Of course, all of us think first and foremost of oxygen in the pond water as essential and, of course, this is true. Carbon dioxide is also critical. The oxygen and carbon dioxide also work in concert with each other.
In simple terms as carbon dioxide increases in a pond when oxygen levels tend to decrease. This follows a natural tendency. From dawn to dusk (day) levels of oxygen in the pond increase and decrease again from dawn to dusk (night).
Carbon dioxide concentrations in water act in the opposite direction - falling during daylight hours and rising during the night. Oxygen levels are at their highest at dusk and carbon dioxide levels are highest at dawn.
Beware proliferation of algae in ponds
Dawn is the critical moment in a pond. If something goes wrong, it is often just before the first traffic light, because at this stage, the level of oxygen dissolved in water of the pond will be a minimum.
Often, people are waking up to find dead fish ... and ask what happened? These deaths could be associated with very low oxygen levels coincided with high levels of carbon dioxide. When the ponds are full of algae suspension of such problems are more likely to occur.
If there is a very small amount of algal bloom in the pond, you will find oxygen and carbon dioxide will not change significantly between early morning and late afternoon. On the other hand dense pea soup water type May showed variations important.
Impacts on the season oxygen in the water.
The first thing to realize is that oxygen concentrations are highest in winter because the water is fresh. Because oxygen concentrations are high supplemental oxygen is not so quickly exhausted during the night. The plant and animal life has also slowed significantly which means they require less oxygen.
When fish in ponds without fountains or waterfalls indifferent May consider in winter due to carbon dioxide levels to be excessive, but this is normally associated with long-term calm dull day - in these circumstances, there is no natural wave action to allow oxygen transferred to water. The problem quickly sorts itself when wind and bright weather.
In summer, water may contain much less oxygen and plant and animal life (algae) is also growing because of higher temperatures with more nutrients in the water associated with nutrition fish. Living organisms are more carbon dioxide in a potentially catastrophic situation of low oxygen. Then the fish die of suffocation.
You can measure the quantities of carbon dioxide, but not recommended.
pH and carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide dissolved in water to form carbonic acid with a pH less than 7 if the pH will tend to fall when carbon dioxide is high. This is what happens during the night with a reversal during the day.
There is some fairly complex chemistry involved here that I'm going to ignore stress that the pond pH should ideally be around 7.0 to 8, but do not panic if it is 8.5.
In practice, this means that measuring pH can give erroneous results highly dependent time the sample is taken. If you do like to measure the properties of water can do this on an ongoing basis at the same time every day and keep a graphical representation of results so you can monitor developments. Individual results can be very misleading.
Aeration of ponds
I recommend that all ponds should be aerated using a simple fountain or waterfall at least. Many pondkeepers use an air pump with stones air. Another alternative to adding oxygen to the pond water is to use a venturi.
The aeration basin water reached two things that are both very good for pond water and fish:
1. Increase oxygen levels
2. Carbon dioxide is "blown" out of the water which tends to raise the pH levels.
Remember what Nigel Caddock, one of the best UK koi keepers is very committed to say. There should be 3 things in a pond: water, fish and air. Add plants to the list.
Aeration also protects against algae and dying - when they die they rot and release carbon dioxide using the resources of oxygen in the water.
In summary, it is difficult to over-aerate a pond aeration and has all the advantages serial keeping fish. The disadvantage is the cost of a ventilation pump. All top koi ponds air bubble as well as their filters.
Deeper without waterfalls and ponds or fountains as the means to create or mixture outstanding during periods of calm could be more prone to problems of carbon dioxide.
Aeration and mixing of water (waterfalls) are the most effective methods to control the potential of carbon dioxide problems.
Conclusion:
Do not be too concerned, but beware make algal blooms (green or brown cloudy water), especially in summer and especially during periods of calm and when there is no waterfall, fountain or aeration. Installing a fountain of water or at the very least, if you keep fish in a pond garden.
Remember the best way to prevent the proliferation of algae is with a UV light.
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