managing a pond - algae & such

[TNReb]

We have a bass pond that we built a few years ago. When it's full it's about 7 acres. We stocked it well (half Northern and half Florida), and have had some good bass in just a few short years. We regularly stock bluegill and add shiners for forage.

It was supposed to be about 12-14ft deep at the deepest point. The person who built it didn't even come close to accomplishing that. When it's full, the deepest part may be 8ft. Half the pond is probably 4-6ft and the rest is 2-3ft.

Besides not being dug deep enough, it doesn't have a good watershed and struggles to get enough runoff to stay full. When the water evaporates in the summer, we are down to about 4 acres and an average depth of 1-4ft. The water stays pretty clear, and the grass grows easily. This leads to the entire bottom being covered in a algae sort of grass. I'm not even sure I'd call it algae. It's not always slimy, sometimes more of a dry, stringy, moss sort of grass. You cannot fish any bottom-contact baits at all.

We've push some aqua shade type stuff in, but that didn't really help.

The pond gets low in the summer and stays that way until the spring. In the early spring (right now), we burn off all of the grass around the edges that grew when the water was down the previous summer. We were hoping it could prevent that grass from decaying and causing more of an algae problem.

It's on a farm, so the runoff it does get is likely to contain fertilizers and stuff of that nature that probably contribute to the algae/grass growth.

Anyone have any tips for trying to manage the bottom growth?

[Cliffprocraft190]

Well, if it doesn't have enough watershed to keep 7 shallow acres full, it sure wouldn't have been smart to build it 12-14 ft deep. The size and depth of a pond should be determined by the watershed. If it gets down to 4 acres by the end of the summer, it would have been smarter to locate the dam where the surface would have been 4 acres and then maybe that area could have been made a little deeper. It sounds like the amount of evaporative surface you have is definitely working against you.

AquaShade has to be able to be maintained (not diluted) and constant over a long period of time to be effective. If it rains and you get runoff, you will have to add some more AquaShade. If you get runoff frequently, it probably isn't going to be a viable option., and Yes, fertilizer runoff from surrounding ag land is the deeble. That (excessive nitrogen) and the clear water both are leading contributors to excessive algae growth.

You may have to use an aquatic herbicide like Sonar to get where you want to be. I would only treat half the pond at a time. If you try to kill it all at one time, the decaying vegetation could use up all the oxygen and you could have a fill kill, especially in the hot summer.

[Moose720]

Call a local pond management/fish hatchery. I would suggest grass crap, but you definitely have a water issue that I would deal with first if posy

[bassdge]

Would need pictures, but sounds like filamentous algea may be your issue. As mentioned clear water and shallow water are a recipe for major algea issues. Grass carp are not ideal for algae issues. They would ignore it completely if there were other vegetation available. Tilapia are the best fish for eating algea, but you will likely get a complete die off in the winter requiring annual restocking. There are some relatively safe algaecide options to control the algae. Pond aeration can also help. Unfortunately, if you cannot eliminate some of your large shallow areas, you are going to fight these issues for a long time. If you don’t control the algae you may also run into dissolved oxygen issues causing fish kills.

[TNsmalliesfan]

It’s to shallow.

[TNReb]

Well, if it doesn't have enough watershed to keep 7 shallow acres full, it sure wouldn't have been smart to build it 12-14 ft deep. The size and depth of a pond should be determined by the watershed.

I understand that, but I'm not the one that built the pond. We hired a guy for that. We thought it would get plenty of runoff, and it just doesn't. It's not as if it sits on the top of a hill. We have two other 3 acre ponds in the area that are built very similarly and they have no problem staying full. They hit the overflow pipe often.

There's also the possibility that the builder just didn't quite get to the right soil area and some of it is leaching in to the ground in areas.

I understand it's too shallow. I was just trying to ask if anyone had any tips for controlling the algae/grass/growth.

Sounds like the first step in attempting to tackle the problem is to identify the "algae" or whatever it is that is growing.

[Dixie-Raven]

Check out Bamabass on youtube as he has documented the entire process of building a 5 acre pond from start to finish and addresses some of issues you are speaking about. Link to video series below.

[osutodd]

We have a small pond (1/3 acre) on the neighborhood lot next to our house. Every time we get a good rain, it goes crazy with algae feeding on all the fertilizer runoff. I dump a half gallon of pond probiotic in it each time and that stops the algae. Not sure how much you would need for your pond, but it eats up the nutrients before the algae can.

I order mine from Amazon.

[Cliffprocraft190]

Yes, you definitely want to identify the "algae" or whatever plant it is. That will help you figure out whether a biologic control like grass carp would be best or if it is something grass carp don't care for, then you would probably need to use the correct herbicide for the plant you've identified.
Sounds like you have put considerable effort into stocking and have some decent fishing, so you probably don't want to have to start over. But, in the future, if for some reason you had a complete or nearly complete fish kill, it would be nice to know if you were for a fact losing water through the soil and where, then that would be the time to drain the pond and seal those areas before refilling and restocking.

[Cliffprocraft190]

We have a small pond (1/3 acre) on the neighborhood lot next to our house. Every time we get a good rain, it goes crazy with algae feeding on all the fertilizer runoff. I dump a half gallon of pond probiotic in it each time and that stops the algae. Not sure how much you would need for your pond, but it eats up the nutrients before the algae can.

I order mine from Amazon.

That sounds interesting. Any down sides?

[BP in ME]

Wow, the eathworks guy fell a little short of the specs. Did he not have a level and just eyeballed it?

Well, if it doesn't have enough watershed to keep 7 shallow acres full, it sure wouldn't have been smart to build it 12-14 ft deep. The size and depth of a pond should be determined by the watershed. If it gets down to 4 acres by the end of the summer, it would have been smarter to locate the dam where the surface would have been 4 acres and then maybe that area could have been made a little deeper. It sounds like the amount of evaporative surface you have is definitely working against you.

You lost me here. If I understand the problem correctly, the surface area would have stayed the same if only the pond had been dug to the proper depth. I'd be surprised if they were trying to achieve a 12-14' depth by raising the height of the berm by that much. Sounds like the run-off is sufficient to fill the pond each year it just can't hold the levels through the summer months. Do I have that right?

[gonnabe]

I had a 1.5 acre pond 10’ deep at its deepest area with shallow areas for the spawn. I had plenty of incoming water and enjoyed taking care of my bass it was a healthy environment. At times I had algae and the blue dyes took care of it. As far as the strange grass in the bottom of your pond it’s more than likely Skunk Grass and is actually healthy for a pond, I had it in mine. If you can get a few pieces out and if it smells like a Skunk then leave it alone let it grow it never gets very tall only about 2-3”.

[RangrSkipr]

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[Davidbassfish]

I second bassdge, I have a pond and stocked grass carp in it, and they did nothing for algae.. Sonar will get it though.

[Jeff Hahn]

When my brother built his 5 acre pond, he had a well dug near it and installed a windmill to pump water into the pond if it got low. As far as your algae problem, sounds like the stingy, snotty algae on the bottom. I don't think grass carp will eat that kind. Have someone knowledgeable in pond management identify the algae and recommend a solution. I'm thinking that a chemical herbicide (copper sulfate?) might be the solution.

[WPS456]

Get on pondboss.com
Tons of info!

[bassdge]

Get on pondboss.com
Tons of info!

Yes, a great site.
the mistake has already occurred and the OP is looking for fixes…..
Please post a picture of the grass and algae

[TNReb]

When my brother built his 5 acre pond, he had a well dug near it and installed a windmill to pump water into the pond if it got low. As far as your algae problem, sounds like the stingy, snotty algae on the bottom. I don't think grass carp will eat that kind. Have someone knowledgeable in pond management identify the algae and recommend a solution. I'm thinking that a chemical herbicide (copper sulfate?) might be the solution.

I never thought about a windmill. We looked at a solar powered pump. There were 5-6 thousand, and only came with a one year warranty. The bad part is the people we talked to about digging the well said they were about a year out!

[Mill Creek]

Tilapia will eat the algae and they are prolific spawners, adding to your bass forage base. They're not cheap.

They begin not feeling well/dying when water gets below 60. Don't have my farm anymore, but they really helped the algae problem in my 5 ac pond and were good eating.

[RyanJ]

It won't be easy without a nice source of water supporting the pond continually. I can tell you from personal experience without that water source, the farm field runoff is going to wreak havoc on your fish. You need multiple sources of aeration with that depth of a pond. Is there a well nearby by chance? Running well water into it can help. There is all kinds of chemicals etc that can be used for algae but it is a bare to keep up with it. Had grass carp for many years but they aren't doing anything with algae.