Flocculant For A Pond

[SeanPhuket]

Hello All,

Does anybody know where one can get Flocculant for a pond? (to make the suspended particles clump together and fall to the bottom, hopefully).

I have some lovely Koi, only I can't really see them! LOL

Thank you...

[Old Croc]

Flocculant:

AKA - alum, aluminium sulfate, sansom.

Some pool shops charge a fortune for a fancy liquidised version, but powdered Sansom can be bought fairly cheaply in hardware stores and supermarkets.

Thais use it to clean up wells, etc.

Edited April 27, 2012 by Old Croc

[SeanPhuket]

Flocculant:

AKA - alum, aluminium sulfate, sansom.

Some pool shops charge a fortune for a fancy liquidised version, but powdered Sansom can be bought fairly cheaply in hardware stores and supermarkets.

Thais use it to clean up wells, etc.

Thanks Old Croc, I'll have a look...

[petercallen]

I would put the fish in another container while you do it

You need to put the flocculant in the water in the evening

and let settle overnight

[stevehaigh]

i just pump the dirty water on to the garden and refill with clean water

i'm not sure the sang som (aluminum sulphate) would be all that good for the fish.

also its no use on algae if that's the problem.

unless you have a pool sized fish pond, just throwing out the water is probably your best bet

Edited April 27, 2012 by stevehaigh

[SeanPhuket]

I would put the fish in another container while you do it

You need to put the flocculant in the water in the evening

and let settle overnight

Will do..

i just pump the dirty water on to the garden and refill with clean water

i'm not sure the sang som (aluminum sulphate) would be all that good for the fish.

also its no use on algae if that's the problem.

unless you have a pool sized fish pond, just throwing out the water is probably your best bet

Tried emptying, not really much effect.

Quite sure its not algae, just very very fine sediment, the particles are so small and light they get blown about by the fish

Am I right in thinking that this Sansom would be like a 'shock' treatment (the same as a pool) ?. Pond is roughly 2t in size. Perhaps I will put a little copper in there as I have some (when fish are out of course) in case it is like particles of algae.

Thanks all for advice.

[stevehaigh]

I would put the fish in another container while you do it

You need to put the flocculant in the water in the evening

and let settle overnight

Will do..

i just pump the dirty water on to the garden and refill with clean water

i'm not sure the sang som (aluminum sulphate) would be all that good for the fish.

also its no use on algae if that's the problem.

unless you have a pool sized fish pond, just throwing out the water is probably your best bet

Tried emptying, not really much effect.

Quite sure its not algae, just very very fine sediment, the particles are so small and light they get blown about by the fish

Am I right in thinking that this Sansom would be like a 'shock' treatment (the same as a pool) ?. Pond is roughly 2t in size. Perhaps I will put a little copper in there as I have some (when fish are out of course) in case it is like particles of algae.

Thanks all for advice.

sansom will cause all the floating crap to sink to the bottom but then you have to get it out or the fish will just mix it back in

how can emptying it not work? just make sure you wash it with clean water and pump that away too

[petercallen]

You use chlorine to shock treat water that kills the algae

and will also kill your fish, If it is algae you shock treat

the water to kill the algae which will still be suspended in

the water its that fine it goes through a sand filter and

returns to the pool

Then treat it with aluminium sulphate, i had a friend in Australia

who kept fish, she pumped the water through a box with a UV light

in it, this killed the algae and kept the water clean but does

not harm the fish

[steelepulse]

There are also plants that will filter the algae and keep the water clean. There are a few threads in the plants and pets forum here on TV about this.

[SeanPhuket]

All sorted. A couple inches of stones did the trick, clear as day now.

[F1fanatic]

All sorted. A couple inches of stones did the trick, clear as day now.

That's good news but... are you sure that in a few months time the 'muck' will not have grown again - necessitating the whole pond (including stones) to be cleaned?

Have you got potted pond plants in your pond? I ask as my pond was filthy after I put in a couple of potted pond plants. It didn't bother the fish (little fish - not Koi) who were breeding happily, but I couldn't see them. I got my local aquarium shop guy in to 'sort it out' and he emptied the pond and cleaned it (including the rocks that were full of 'muck').

Over the next couple of days 99% of my fish died , presumably from the change of water temp etc.

[petercallen]

All sorted. A couple inches of stones did the trick, clear as day now.

That's good news but... are you sure that in a few months time the 'muck' will not have grown again - necessitating the whole pond (including stones) to be cleaned?

Have you got potted pond plants in your pond? I ask as my pond was filthy after I put in a couple of potted pond plants. It didn't bother the fish (little fish - not Koi) who were breeding happily, but I couldn't see them. I got my local aquarium shop guy in to 'sort it out' and he emptied the pond and cleaned it (including the rocks that were full of 'muck').

Over the next couple of days 99% of my fish died , presumably from the change of water temp etc.

If he used tap water to refill the pond, its the chlorine in the water that killed the fish

Tap water must be left in a container for several days to get rid of the chlorine before putting in fish pond