Pond Update

[Anonymous]

hi.
Seems like the water only circulate around the left side of the pool, while the rest of the pool does not has much water movement???

If you have space, fill some large white containers with water (freshwater is fine), and run some plastic tubing thru them. Every morning, you will have barrels of nice cold water at 65F to cool salt water from your pool by running the pool water thru the tubing. Not as good as other method, but sure save some electricity bill. Keep the cooling water barrel away from sun will help them stay cool during the day time. Have a timer that shut it off during night when they are not needed.

If your pool is close to your water main from the city, you can build a heat exchanger that pump the heat from your pool to the water going into your house, but that involve a bit of work, and does not work well if you are not home during the day to use the household water. There are so many options to keep your pool cool, some are good projects, others are waste of time.

 

[danmhippo]

yeah, I will definetly setup the cooling coil like you and Ernie suggested.

Water movement in the pond is quite strong actually, the power head circulating the pond water is not in the basket to the left, but next to it, and is sitting on the sand. It's a mag 9 blowing jets of water and the jet circulates along the tank wall. There is a small minijet that sits in a white basket that is pumping water from the pond to the smaller circular pond and cascade back down to the pond to agitate water surface. The third pump sends water to the canister pond filter and the water goes around and empties into the other side of the pond for added flow.

Thanks for the suggestions BTW.

 

[texman]

Hey Dan, watch out for invading snakeheads! I heard they can live through anything!

 

[reefsRcool]

just outa curiosity how much you have invested in this little project?

 

[danmhippo]

Pond 50
12 bags of Southdown 180
small pond 15
pond filter 40
Heater, litemeter, garbage can, hoses, clamps, baskets 300
clams - moved from my tank
pumps (thanks to Cheeseburger for his generous donation.....sorta of), almost free.

Subtotal: Less than $600

The Southdown is the killer. But I think it's worth it in the long run.

Still debating if I should get the chiller. I think I will try the coil-in-garbage can idea before I turn this small investment project into BIG investment project. :?

 

[danmhippo]

Lol, texman, thanks for the heads up, I think I should get my Chinese friends to drop ship some snake heads to Pakistan, and put them in every lakes of theirs.

 

[danmhippo]

Update:
I finally received and installed the 1/2 HP chiller (CSL). Now temp is maintained between 79n and 82. I am going to monitor the water quality for a couple of days. I've also planted 2 pounds full of widgeon grass and have noticed some has already taking roots in the wand with new shoots springing up. Not a good specie for typical herbivores, but the widgeon grass makes excellent pod farm with their thick growth and tolerance of temp swings. Being a fast grower, I expect a more stable water chemistry balances.

I am preparing to try my hands on some anemone and ricordia, then pipefish, seahorses, and clams. The clams and anemone should appreciate the California sun.

Wish me luck........

 

[liquid]

Personally I'd be holding off on the pipefish and seahorses. If memory serves me correctly, reeftank temperatures are about 10°F higher than they see in the wild. I'd suggest reading "Seahorses, Pipefishes, and Relatives: A comprehensive Guide to Syngnathiformes" by Rudie H. Kuiter before attempting them to make sure the species you pick is conducive to the temperature your tank will see.

Shane

 

[Minh Nguyen]

I second Shane’s recommendation. Like Mandarin, Seahorse and Pipefish are really good predators of micro crustaceans. They wipe out your pop population in no time, especially in a new tank without refugium.

 

[skylsdale]

What about something smaller, like dwarf seahorses (Hippocampus zosterae)? They only reach around 2" and have a lifespan of about a year. Reef Fishes says they "can occur in water with a a specific gravity of 1.006 to 1.025 and at a water temperature of 62 to 90*F. However, in the aquarium, H. zosterae are best kept at a specific gravity 1.016 to 1.021 and at water temperatures of 68 to 82*F." While Scott isn't the definitive resource on pipefishes, etc. he does have a pretty in-depth section on them in Vol. 1 that I think is worth checking out. This species might be a good "starter" species to try, and with such a short life span, it would be cool if you had succeeding generations within the pond. Water flow would be a major consideration, as well as filter or pump intakes. Just a thought....


Besides temperature, how are other parameters within the pond holding out? Calcium, alk, pH, etc.?

 

[danmhippo]

Well, that can be considered, but I am worrying about feeding those tiny mouth........

 

[skylsdale]

It may be a little too late since you already bought the chiller and it seems to be working well, but here is another idea you may keep in the back of your mind for cooling purposes.[/url]

 

[liquid]

danmhippo,

How's that widgeon grass growing for you? I'm thinking about getting some to plant in a refugium style tank off the main system. Did you get some muck along with it from Bill?

Shane