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Pond Start-Up Guide

By Sandi Soedjono and Karen Pattist

K.O.I. Copyright 2011 by Sandi Soedjono and Karen Pattist. All Rights Reserved.
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Table of Contents

Ponds Take 4-8 Weeks to Cycle3

Beneficial Bacteria...3

What is the volume of my pond?............................................................3

What are ammonia, nitrites, pH, KH, and DO? ......................................3

How do I detect ammonia, nitrites, pH, KH, and DO?............................4

How do I control ammonia, nitrites, pH, KH and DO?............................4

How is a water change done and why should it be done at least

weekly? ..................................................................................................4

The Relationship Between pH, and Alkalinity (KH) ................................5

pH Crashs ..............................................................................................5

If you want more information ..............................................................5

Shopping List for Pond Owners .............................................................6

A few helpful formulas and conversions: ...............................................6

K.O.I. Copyright 2011 by Sandi Soedjono and Karen Pattist. All Rights Reserved.
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Pond Start-Up Guide
The most important thing to know about the start-up of a new pond is that it usually
takes a minimum of 4, and up to 8 weeks depending on water temperature, for a
pond to cycle or achieve good water quality. What this means is; over a period of
time, the good or beneficial bacteria will multiply in the filter media until it has reached
its full capacity to break down ammonia in your pond and convert it to nitrites and then
into nitrates, the latter being generally safe for your fish. This process is what creates a
balance in your pond and protects your fish.

The pond temperature must be 60 F or above for the beneficial bacteria to multiply.
The primary waste product of fish is ammonia which is their by-product from
respiration. Ammonia is also contained in fish urine and produced from the
decomposition of fish feces, and other organic matter in the pond. The beneficial
bacteria in the filter require ammonia in order to survive and multiply, and the filter can
be thought of as a home for the beneficial bacterial. Products that claim to be nitrifying
bacteria in a bottle may smell convincing, but according to the multiple research
projects, do not start filters any faster than nature will do on its own. Heat between 74
and 80 degrees F will help beneficial bacteria establish as fast as it can.

Here are the questions you must be able to answer to have a healthy start-up pond for
your fish.

1. What is the volume of my pond?

a. Use a water meter attached to a hose when filling your pond. Your house
meter may not be accurate because of water usage inside your home. Borrow,
rent or buy a meter that attaches to your hose. All future water quality and fish
treatment chemicals will depend on you knowing the accurate volume.
b. You may use the formula: Length (average length) x Width (average width) x
Average depth x 7.48 = Pond Volume (note this is only an approximation, and
requires straight edged and vertically walled ponds measured in feet without
fractions to be really accurate). An approximate volume calculator may be found
on the Internet at: [Link]/[Link]

2. What are ammonia, nitrites, pH, KH, and DO?

a. Ammonia is the waste product of fish and may also come from the break-
down of organic waste. It can seriously burn the gills of fish and cause death.
b. Nitrites come from the break down of ammonia by beneficial bacteria. It can
cause severe damage and/or death to your fish.
c. pH is a measure of how acidic or alkaline (also called basic) the water is.
Below 7 is acidic, higher is alkaline. Since everyone has a different water source,
your goal should be to stabilize the pond pH near the source water pH.
d. KH is a measure of carbonate (CO32-) and bicarbonate (HCO3) ions dissolved
in the water and represents the main buffering, or pH stabilizing, capacity of pond
water. KH helps keep the pH from crashing (falling rapidly into the acidic range
see pH Crash section).
e. DO is dissolved oxygen. Koi must have sufficient DO in the water to be able
to breathe and the beneficial bacteria in the filter need DO to survive and
multiply. Large Koi have a higher total demand for oxygen than small Koi.

K.O.I. Copyright 2011 by Sandi Soedjono and Karen Pattist. All Rights Reserved.
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3. How do I detect ammonia, nitrites, pH, KH, and DO?
Buy a test kit (or kits) with liquid reagents and test tubes and test the pond water
daily, for the first 3 months of a new pond (thereafter, weekly testing should be
sufficient). Make sure the ammonia test kit is a Salicylate reagent test. Do not
use ammonia test kits with Nessler reagents for pond water that has been treated
with an ammonia- binding conditioner. See shopping list.

4. How do I control ammonia, nitrites, pH, KH and DO?

a. Ammonia should always be zero when tested. Ammonia will be present when
the filter is starting. When detected, add ClorAm-X or Ultimate to bind the
ammonia. Once the ammonia is bound, it is non-toxic for the fish but can still be
utilized by the filter. Make sure the ammonia test kit is a Salicylate reagent test.
After the filter has started, ammonia should test zero.
b. Nitrites should always be zero after the filter has started. Nitrites will be
present when a filter is starting. When nitrites are detected, do a water change
and add Salt to bring the salt reading up to between 0.1 to 0.3% or about 0.8 to
2.5 pounds of salt per 100 gallons of pond water. When nitrites reach zero and
the filter has started, do water changes to reduce the salt reading to zero. Salt
should not be used longer than 3 weeks, and it is detrimental to keep low levels
of salt in the pond all the time.
c. When the buffers (KH) are used up, and the pH drops below 5.5, the pH
may then drop rapidly, causing a pH crash (see section on pH crash).
Buffers (KH) are constantly being consumed by all living things in the
pond, so the KH level is constantly dropping. Prevent a pH crash by doing
weekly water changes and testing KH daily. Maintain KH at over 100 with
baking soda (see pH Crash section). If the pH falls below about 5.0, Koi may die.

5. How is a water change done and why should it be done at least

weekly?
a. To do a proper water change, empty out 5-10% of the pond volume and
replace with fresh water. Topping up a pond after evaporation is NOT a water
change. Use a chlorine remover (Sodium Thiosulfate) if your source water is
treated with chlorine. Use a chlorine remover (Sodium Thiosulfate) AND/OR an
ammonia binder (AmQuel or Ultimate) if your source water is treated with
chloramines. Check with your City Water Department to see what additives
(chlorine or chloramines) they use and when, as that will tell you what to use: a
dechlorinator, or a dechlorinator and/or ammonia binder.
b. While change is usually a big threat to Koi by causing stress, water changes
are more beneficial than harmful. Doing small daily water changes is less
stressful than doing larger water changes less often. Do weekly water changes
at a minimum. Also consider that the smaller the pond, the bigger the percentage
of water you should change. In general, the more water you change slowly
the healthier your pond will be. Many Koi keepers change 10% or more per day!
c. Water changes mimic nature, reduce mineral build-up, add buffers to the
water and dilute pollutants such as ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, acid rain and
pheromones. Koi will not grow properly unless pheromones are removed.
d. KH or carbonate hardness is constantly being consumed by the fish, algae,
other plants, and the filter. It must be replenished to avoid a pH crash. Baking
soda may be used to immediately add carbonates (KH) and bring up the pH (see
pH crash above). In the long term, oyster shells, Plaster of Paris pills or crushed
coral can add carbonates gradually. KH should always be over 100 ppm.
K.O.I. Copyright 2011 by Sandi Soedjono and Karen Pattist. All Rights Reserved.
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The Relationship Between pH, and Alkalinity (KH)

As mentioned above, pH is a range of acidity (<7.0) to alkalinity (>7.0), with 7 being

neutral.
Koi keepers should allow their pH to be what nature provides from the source water
(unless it is less than 6.5, in which case baking soda will need to be added at each
water change). The usual pH range for ponds is about 7.0 to 8.5.

KH - carbonate/bicarbonate ions, act as a buffer or stabilizer for pH, keeping the pond
water on the alkalinity side of the scale. The only way to know how much carbonate
hardness there is in your pond is to use a KH test kit. It should measure between 100
and 300 ppm. Higher than 300 ppm is not particularly harmful if there is sufficient DO,
but lower than 100 ppm is dangerous because KH is always being depleted by every
living thing in the pond. KH is also called temporary hardness.

pH Crash

When KH is depleted, it causes pH to fall or crash into the acidic range. KH MUST be
replaced QUICKLY so the pH will move back into the alkaline range. In most cases,
doing daily or weekly water changes will replenish KH, but test your source water! In
some cases, baking soda will need to be added with every water change. WARNING:

1. NEVER correct pH without testing ammonia, which should be zero. If Ammonia is

not ZERO, add ClorAm-X or Ultimate at a dose of 1.5x the label directions, to bind
the ammonia BEFORE adding baking soda.

2. KH (carbonates) can be increased by adding baking soda, 1 cup per 500 gallons.
Add the dose to a 5-gallon bucket o pond water. Stir well until water is clear, and
distribute the mixture evenly around the pond. Circulate through the filter and
retest after 15 minutes. Repeat until KH is at least 100. It is advisable to test KH
daily to observe the daily drop so that you become familiar with the factors that
affect your pond water.

If you want more information

This guide is not intended to teach you all that you need to know to become a good
pond owner and Koi keeper, but to introduce you to the concepts necessary to be
successful. For a complete guide to basic pond ownership, please go to:
[Link], and log in. Then, download K.O.I. 101 and read it
carefully (or you may choose to watch the swf file, listen to the MP3 file, or download it
to a book reader)! You should save and refer to that document often you will get
something new out of it each time you read it!

If you want to really understand the hobby of keeping Koi, Koi Organisation International
offers a full range of courses including Certified Koi Keeper and Master Koi Keeper
certifications! The web site also has information about recent scientific discoveries and
current, accurate and useful information regarding the hobby.

K.O.I. Copyright 2011 by Sandi Soedjono and Karen Pattist. All Rights Reserved.
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Shopping List for Pond Owners

Test Kit for ammonia (Salicylate type usually has yellow-to-green shade charts, rather than
the yellow-to-red of Nessler type test kits), nitrite, pH, KH, DO and salt. Master Liquid Test Kit
from Hagen/Nutrafin for ponds or Tetra Koi Master are good choices. Do not use paper test
strips as they are not accurate enough.

ClorAm-X or Ultimate will both bind ammonia and chlorine.

Sodium Thiosulfate is an easy to use, inexpensive choice for chlorine removal in municipal
water.

Stress-X or Ultimate are both good choices whenever Koi undergo stress, and are particularly
useful when starting a pond.

Solar Salt can be used if a nitrite spike is measured. It blocks nitrites from harming the gills and
reduces stress. Use sodium chloride ONLY. Do not use water softener salt. Solar Salt is sold in
40 pound bags at Home Depot or Lowes for under $5.00.

Baking soda will raise carbonates which buffer the pH of the water. Baking soda is sold in 12
pound bags at Costco, BJs and Sams Club, for under $5.00.

Extra air pump with air stones can be a real life saver if you need to add medication to the
pond, if the pond becomes too hot during the summer, or if your primary air pump fails. Always
keep an extra on hand. Koi die quickly without oxygen in the water!

Thermometer is needed to test the water temperature to know when to feed your Koi. Do not
feed if the water temperature is below 50 degrees or over 85 degrees.

Water hose used for the pond should be drinking water safe. Many hoses are made of
polyvinyl chloride, which uses lead as a stabilizer. Some of the hoses that were labeled as
unsafe for drinking had 10 to 100 times the level acceptable by the FDA. Since you fill your
pond with a hose, make sure you buy a camping hose that is drinking water safe and lead free.
It is only $30.00 for 50 and well worth keeping your pond lead free. Adding a bit of Ultimate
weekly to the pond will bind any harmful heavy metals that find their way in.

A few helpful formulas and conversions:

Area:
Rectangle or square = Length x Width
Circle = 3.14 x (Radius squared)

Volume:
Rectangular box = Area of rectangle x Depth
Cylinder = Area of the circle x Depth

Conversions:
1000 grams = 1 kilogram
264 US gallons (rounded) = 1 metric ton = 1000 liters
1 ounce = 28.35 grams
parts per million (ppm) = 1 gram per 1000 liters = 1 mg per 1 liter

Salinity:
1# of salt will raise 12 gallons of water to 1%
1# of salt will raise 100 gallons of water 0.12%

K.O.I. Copyright 2011 by Sandi Soedjono and Karen Pattist. All Rights Reserved.