Spring Checklist
As the days get light and the weather gets warmer, you might find yourself lounging by the pond or tending to it more often. Or you might want to get it prepared for the Spring period for the benefit of any fish or wildlife you might have.
While it might need a lot of work depending on your pond and its condition, now is the time to start preparing for the warmer weather and activity your pond generates.
You may also want to check out our Spring Pond Care blog, which goes into detail on the things you need to need.
Preparation is key with anything in life, especially your pond. For the first step, simply check around your pond for any hazards or weaknesses. Maybe the cold, frosty weather has affected your pond liner or your equipment? What about your water features and rocks around the pond? If you see any signs of the water levels dropping, you will need to identify the cause as quick as you can to protect your fish.
2. Check your Pond Equipment (Useful Blogs: Pond Pumps Blogs, Filters & Their Maintenance)
After your cursory glance, check your pond equipment in more detail. Pay particular attention to your pond pump, filter and UVC.
• Pump Checks: Check the insides for any damage, dirt, or debris. Give the strainer cage and the impeller chamber a thorough clean and inspection. Check the condition of the impeller; see the product instructions on how to access this.
• Filter Checks: Clean the foams out and check their condition. Worn out foams will catch less debris! You should also give the foams a quick clean in a bucket of pond water to remove any debris. Further to this, check the condition of any O-rings on your filter. Do they look worse for wear? If an O-ring starts to wear down, you may find your filter will leak. If your filter has been in use over winter, do not clean the biomedia (normally plastic balls or small white stones), as this is where your healthy bacteria resides!
• UVC Checks: Whether you have an external or integrated UVC, the checks are the same. Check the quartz sleeve and bulb for damage. Check the O-rings. Have you replaced your UV bulb in the last 6 months? If not, you will need to do this. If everything seems normal, you’re good to go!
3. Make a list
While you’re inspecting your pond and equipment, start to make a list of all the things you need to do. This will stop you from forgetting anything important (like repairing a liner or replacing a UV bulb) and it helps you view the number of things you need to do.
As your fish start to come out of their hibernation period, you will need to check them for any signs of ailments. So check for any signs of stress, scratches, odd movements, ulcers and so forth.
5. Make sure you have enough food; if not, purchase some! (Useful Blogs: Fish Food)
You will need to restock on fish food. Many people forget to purchase fish food until the fish are already at the surface looking for food!
6. Bring your pond back into balance. (Useful Blogs: Bacteria, Pond Sludge, How to Remove Chlorine from your Pond)
If you have removed your pump and filter over the winter period, your pond may have a light layer of sludge at the bottom. In time for spring, its best to use a pond vacuum or a sludge treatment to remove this, and then a bacteria treatment to reinvigorate the pond with healthy bacteria to bring it back into balance. The main priority is that the sludge is removed; this is because the sludge can cause the water to become toxic to the fish in your pond. An easy solution is to manually remove the sludge and put it onto any garden beds you have in your garden; the sludge acts as a great fertiliser!
If you do a partial water change, do not forget to use a chlorine treatment or dechlorinator to remove the harmful Chlorine!
A useful tool here are water testing kits, notably the Tetra Pond Test 6-in-1 or the Blagdon Pond Health Test Kit. They measure the various chemicals in the pond and tell you if any of the levels are too high or too low.
You may also find the below blogs useful:
• Spring Pond Care
• FAQs
• Top Tips
• Pond Problems
If you need any assistance, please email us on info@pondkeeper.co.uk.