AboutBrigitte Expertise Pond and Water Gardening (aquatic plant selection and care, Koi and pond fish selection and care, pond and water garden building and maintenance, etc.) of all sorts.
Experience
Experience in the area: Own a Water Garden Supply Retail Store and Pond Supply Mail Order Company www.pondmarket.com
Organizations I belong to: St. Louis Water Gardening Society
Publications:
Editor of Splash! The Garden Pond & Water Garden Newsletter!
St. Louis Gardener Magazine, various internet gardening newsletters, and others
Question Hello Brigitte,
Thank you in advance for your great service! I'm having a frustrating spring
with my pond & I hope you can help. I have a 750 Gallon pond with 6 small 6"
koi and about 10 goldfish the pond has been up and running for 3 years and
all my levels seem fine 0-ammo, 0 nitrites, 20-nitrates and ph at 7.8. I've lost
3 large koi due to ulcers! I've tries high salt in my pond (.03ppm), pro-form-
C, koizyme, melafix, & currently on our third day of tricide-neo dips. I can't
seem to solve this problem, I currently have them in a 250 gallon hospital
tank heavily oxygenated and salted. How can I "disinfect" the main pond while
they are isolated? I think I want to start over in the main pond. Any
suggestions would be appreciated.
-Alex
Answer Hello Alex!
The best way to disinfect the main pond is to drain it and then use salt to scrub it down (or fill it with such a strong salt solution that nothing can survive in it and let it sit a day or two - remove plants)and rinse it with vinegar. Double rinse it with fresh water after that.
I would also get another test kit and re-test ammonia and nitrites. These poisons are THE most likely culprit in causing the ulcers and sometimes test kits do go bad.
Add some Stress Coat or Koi TLC to the hospital tank to facilitate healing and feed anti-bacterial pond fish food.
Hope that helps (let me know how it goes)!
