5 Critical Tips for the Summer Pond Season

As we approach the dog days of summer there are things that you need to remember about your water feature in order to keep a balanced ecosystem pond along with happy fish! Take a moment to refresh your memory with these 5 critically important tips.

1. Add oxygen to your pond by placing an aerator or AquaForce® pump in your pond. You can also install a fountain with a pump if your pond doesn’t have a waterfall or stream built in.


2. If you feed your fish, feed them in the morning and be careful not to overfeed. Uneaten food decays faster in warmer water and can pollute the pond.


3. Be sure to remove dying leaves and flowers before they have a chance to decay in the warmer water.


4. Aquatic plants such as waterlilies help provide fish with shade from the heat of summer sun, cooling the water and making algae control easier too.


5. Is there really a leak?

Often, people do not realize how much water can evaporate from a pond during the dog days of summer.

For a pond to lose 1.25cm – 2.5cm of water per day under certain extreme conditions is not terribly uncommon and probably no cause for alarm. Some ponds may not experience evaporation levels this high.

The amount of water evaporating will depend on several factors including; cloud-cover, shade over the pond, humidity, wind, and the specifics of the waterfall or fountain. The longer a stream the more water is exposed to the air greatly increasing evaporation. Other ponds with large pumps pushing high volumes of water, or ponds designed with multiple waterfalls and a lot of cascades and splashing may have evaporation rates much greater than these.

If you need any assistance with your summer pond maintenance, you can get in touch with us at Aquascape Supplies Australia and we will be happy to assist you.