You can ask anyone here at The Pond Guy; usually the first question we ask when someone says they have a bad algae problem is, “How many fish do you have?”, followed by, “What size water garden do you have?” 9 out 10 times, there are way too many fish in the water garden. So why does having that many fish cause algae? Let me explain.

 

Sunlight + Food Source = Algae: Algae really only needs two things to grow, sunlight and a food source. The food source can come from many sources but fish waste is a major contributor. This means the more fish you have, the more waste, the more algae. Make sense?

 

Finding a Balance: When you put fish into your water garden always consider the future. Small fish become big fish and fish are very romantic creatures. Let’s say you purchased 20 koi at around 3″ each. Your pond may be able to handle the fish load for a few seasons then all things start to change. As time goes by, your fish have grown and maybe even started a family. As nature takes its course, your pond starts to pay the price and water quality becomes an issue. Take into consideration that 40 1″ fish produce the waste of just one 12″ fish. So even though your pond may have been able to handle the fish load in the past, you must consider that your fish load or fish waste grows expotentially every year.

 

Reprinted from The Pond Guy 05/22/09