foam

[ba5416]

I live about two hours north of Toronto Ont. I have a 3 yr old pond about a
1000 gallons or so. Healthy from the beginning. There are about 10 fish in
there and I have had successfull breeding since the first year. The deepest
part of the pond is about 46" deep and I leave the pump running throughout
the winter as I leave the fish in year round. There is a fountain on the
pump and a water fall at one end. The waterfall rock is limestone that I
collected from an old fence line.

My problem is this year I am getting foam buildup from the water fall. Did
not have the problem last year but this year it is bad. Water tests that I
do indicate that everything is fine for all the important things like PH,
nitrites, nitrates, hardness etc.

The local store is at a loss why the foam. They have done tests as well and
have not found anything bad. I have seen foam on rivers which says to me it
is something natural, but it looks terrible.

Any suggestions???

[Lee Brouillet]

It's probably DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon), or the visible results of
overfeeding, perhaps the need to clean the pond or filters, etc. Water
changes can help; I also know people that have used food grade liquid
silicone to change the surface tension of the water so the foam goes away.
This is a neat trick to use 2 hours before a house full of guests shows up
and you want the pond to look its best, but the *best* way of taking care of
the problem is to, well: take care of the problem. Clean the pond/filters if
necessary, cut back on feeding and do some water changes. It's harmless, but
unsightly.

Lee

"ba5416" > wrote in message
ble.rogers.com...
> I live about two hours north of Toronto Ont. I have a 3 yr old pond about
a
> 1000 gallons or so. Healthy from the beginning. There are about 10 fish in
> there and I have had successfull breeding since the first year. The
deepest
> part of the pond is about 46" deep and I leave the pump running throughout
> the winter as I leave the fish in year round. There is a fountain on the
> pump and a water fall at one end. The waterfall rock is limestone that I
> collected from an old fence line.
>
> My problem is this year I am getting foam buildup from the water fall. Did
> not have the problem last year but this year it is bad. Water tests that I
> do indicate that everything is fine for all the important things like PH,
> nitrites, nitrates, hardness etc.
>
> The local store is at a loss why the foam. They have done tests as well
and
> have not found anything bad. I have seen foam on rivers which says to me
it
> is something natural, but it looks terrible.
>
> Any suggestions???
>
>

[Lee Brouillet]

It's probably DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon), or the visible results of
overfeeding, perhaps the need to clean the pond or filters, etc. Water
changes can help; I also know people that have used food grade liquid
silicone to change the surface tension of the water so the foam goes away.
This is a neat trick to use 2 hours before a house full of guests shows up
and you want the pond to look its best, but the *best* way of taking care of
the problem is to, well: take care of the problem. Clean the pond/filters if
necessary, cut back on feeding and do some water changes. It's harmless, but
unsightly.

Lee

"ba5416" > wrote in message
ble.rogers.com...
> I live about two hours north of Toronto Ont. I have a 3 yr old pond about
a
> 1000 gallons or so. Healthy from the beginning. There are about 10 fish in
> there and I have had successfull breeding since the first year. The
deepest
> part of the pond is about 46" deep and I leave the pump running throughout
> the winter as I leave the fish in year round. There is a fountain on the
> pump and a water fall at one end. The waterfall rock is limestone that I
> collected from an old fence line.
>
> My problem is this year I am getting foam buildup from the water fall. Did
> not have the problem last year but this year it is bad. Water tests that I
> do indicate that everything is fine for all the important things like PH,
> nitrites, nitrates, hardness etc.
>
> The local store is at a loss why the foam. They have done tests as well
and
> have not found anything bad. I have seen foam on rivers which says to me
it
> is something natural, but it looks terrible.
>
> Any suggestions???
>
>

[Sam Hopkins]

I agree. You need to change some water.

"Lee Brouillet" > wrote in message
...
> It's probably DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon), or the visible results of
> overfeeding, perhaps the need to clean the pond or filters, etc. Water
> changes can help; I also know people that have used food grade liquid
> silicone to change the surface tension of the water so the foam goes away.
> This is a neat trick to use 2 hours before a house full of guests shows up
> and you want the pond to look its best, but the *best* way of taking care
of
> the problem is to, well: take care of the problem. Clean the pond/filters
if
> necessary, cut back on feeding and do some water changes. It's harmless,
but
> unsightly.
>
> Lee
>
> "ba5416" > wrote in message
> ble.rogers.com...
> > I live about two hours north of Toronto Ont. I have a 3 yr old pond
about
> a
> > 1000 gallons or so. Healthy from the beginning. There are about 10 fish
in
> > there and I have had successfull breeding since the first year. The
> deepest
> > part of the pond is about 46" deep and I leave the pump running
throughout
> > the winter as I leave the fish in year round. There is a fountain on the
> > pump and a water fall at one end. The waterfall rock is limestone that
I
> > collected from an old fence line.
> >
> > My problem is this year I am getting foam buildup from the water fall.
Did
> > not have the problem last year but this year it is bad. Water tests that
I
> > do indicate that everything is fine for all the important things like
PH,
> > nitrites, nitrates, hardness etc.
> >
> > The local store is at a loss why the foam. They have done tests as well
> and
> > have not found anything bad. I have seen foam on rivers which says to
me
> it
> > is something natural, but it looks terrible.
> >
> > Any suggestions???
> >
> >
>
>

[Sam Hopkins]

I agree. You need to change some water.

"Lee Brouillet" > wrote in message
...
> It's probably DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon), or the visible results of
> overfeeding, perhaps the need to clean the pond or filters, etc. Water
> changes can help; I also know people that have used food grade liquid
> silicone to change the surface tension of the water so the foam goes away.
> This is a neat trick to use 2 hours before a house full of guests shows up
> and you want the pond to look its best, but the *best* way of taking care
of
> the problem is to, well: take care of the problem. Clean the pond/filters
if
> necessary, cut back on feeding and do some water changes. It's harmless,
but
> unsightly.
>
> Lee
>
> "ba5416" > wrote in message
> ble.rogers.com...
> > I live about two hours north of Toronto Ont. I have a 3 yr old pond
about
> a
> > 1000 gallons or so. Healthy from the beginning. There are about 10 fish
in
> > there and I have had successfull breeding since the first year. The
> deepest
> > part of the pond is about 46" deep and I leave the pump running
throughout
> > the winter as I leave the fish in year round. There is a fountain on the
> > pump and a water fall at one end. The waterfall rock is limestone that
I
> > collected from an old fence line.
> >
> > My problem is this year I am getting foam buildup from the water fall.
Did
> > not have the problem last year but this year it is bad. Water tests that
I
> > do indicate that everything is fine for all the important things like
PH,
> > nitrites, nitrates, hardness etc.
> >
> > The local store is at a loss why the foam. They have done tests as well
> and
> > have not found anything bad. I have seen foam on rivers which says to
me
> it
> > is something natural, but it looks terrible.
> >
> > Any suggestions???
> >
> >
>
>

[RichToyBox]

Some of the protein (DOC) can be removed by overflowing the pond as part of
the water change. The protein makes something like an oil slick and due to
its character, it causes the bubbles that you talk about.
--
RichToyBox
http://www.geocities.com/richtoybox/pondintro.html


"Lee Brouillet" > wrote in message
...
> It's probably DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon), or the visible results of
> overfeeding, perhaps the need to clean the pond or filters, etc. Water
> changes can help; I also know people that have used food grade liquid
> silicone to change the surface tension of the water so the foam goes away.
> This is a neat trick to use 2 hours before a house full of guests shows up
> and you want the pond to look its best, but the *best* way of taking care
of
> the problem is to, well: take care of the problem. Clean the pond/filters
if
> necessary, cut back on feeding and do some water changes. It's harmless,
but
> unsightly.
>
> Lee
>
> "ba5416" > wrote in message
> ble.rogers.com...
> > I live about two hours north of Toronto Ont. I have a 3 yr old pond
about
> a
> > 1000 gallons or so. Healthy from the beginning. There are about 10 fish
in
> > there and I have had successfull breeding since the first year. The
> deepest
> > part of the pond is about 46" deep and I leave the pump running
throughout
> > the winter as I leave the fish in year round. There is a fountain on the
> > pump and a water fall at one end. The waterfall rock is limestone that
I
> > collected from an old fence line.
> >
> > My problem is this year I am getting foam buildup from the water fall.
Did
> > not have the problem last year but this year it is bad. Water tests that
I
> > do indicate that everything is fine for all the important things like
PH,
> > nitrites, nitrates, hardness etc.
> >
> > The local store is at a loss why the foam. They have done tests as well
> and
> > have not found anything bad. I have seen foam on rivers which says to
me
> it
> > is something natural, but it looks terrible.
> >
> > Any suggestions???
> >
> >
>
>

[RichToyBox]

Some of the protein (DOC) can be removed by overflowing the pond as part of
the water change. The protein makes something like an oil slick and due to
its character, it causes the bubbles that you talk about.
--
RichToyBox
http://www.geocities.com/richtoybox/pondintro.html


"Lee Brouillet" > wrote in message
...
> It's probably DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon), or the visible results of
> overfeeding, perhaps the need to clean the pond or filters, etc. Water
> changes can help; I also know people that have used food grade liquid
> silicone to change the surface tension of the water so the foam goes away.
> This is a neat trick to use 2 hours before a house full of guests shows up
> and you want the pond to look its best, but the *best* way of taking care
of
> the problem is to, well: take care of the problem. Clean the pond/filters
if
> necessary, cut back on feeding and do some water changes. It's harmless,
but
> unsightly.
>
> Lee
>
> "ba5416" > wrote in message
> ble.rogers.com...
> > I live about two hours north of Toronto Ont. I have a 3 yr old pond
about
> a
> > 1000 gallons or so. Healthy from the beginning. There are about 10 fish
in
> > there and I have had successfull breeding since the first year. The
> deepest
> > part of the pond is about 46" deep and I leave the pump running
throughout
> > the winter as I leave the fish in year round. There is a fountain on the
> > pump and a water fall at one end. The waterfall rock is limestone that
I
> > collected from an old fence line.
> >
> > My problem is this year I am getting foam buildup from the water fall.
Did
> > not have the problem last year but this year it is bad. Water tests that
I
> > do indicate that everything is fine for all the important things like
PH,
> > nitrites, nitrates, hardness etc.
> >
> > The local store is at a loss why the foam. They have done tests as well
> and
> > have not found anything bad. I have seen foam on rivers which says to
me
> it
> > is something natural, but it looks terrible.
> >
> > Any suggestions???
> >
> >
>
>

[ba5416]

Thanks to everyone for the advise. I rarely feed the fish because of the
amount of food in the pond for them. Lots of baby fish and organic material.
So I eliminated that. I clean the filter regularly and there is not much
muck on the bottom so I dropped the water level a couple of times and
refilled. The foam is almost gone now and so I overfilled the pond and let
the surface water drain for an hour or so. That seems to have licked the
problem.
I will pass on to the shop here what I did and they can pass it on to
others.

Thanks again


"RichToyBox" > wrote in message
news:QLiVa.1597$uu5.508@sccrnsc04...
> Some of the protein (DOC) can be removed by overflowing the pond as part
of
> the water change. The protein makes something like an oil slick and due
to
> its character, it causes the bubbles that you talk about.
> --
> RichToyBox
> http://www.geocities.com/richtoybox/pondintro.html
>
>
> "Lee Brouillet" > wrote in message
> ...
> > It's probably DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon), or the visible results of
> > overfeeding, perhaps the need to clean the pond or filters, etc. Water
> > changes can help; I also know people that have used food grade liquid
> > silicone to change the surface tension of the water so the foam goes
away.
> > This is a neat trick to use 2 hours before a house full of guests shows
up
> > and you want the pond to look its best, but the *best* way of taking
care
> of
> > the problem is to, well: take care of the problem. Clean the
pond/filters
> if
> > necessary, cut back on feeding and do some water changes. It's harmless,
> but
> > unsightly.
> >
> > Lee
> >
> > "ba5416" > wrote in message
> > ble.rogers.com...
> > > I live about two hours north of Toronto Ont. I have a 3 yr old pond
> about
> > a
> > > 1000 gallons or so. Healthy from the beginning. There are about 10
fish
> in
> > > there and I have had successfull breeding since the first year. The
> > deepest
> > > part of the pond is about 46" deep and I leave the pump running
> throughout
> > > the winter as I leave the fish in year round. There is a fountain on
the
> > > pump and a water fall at one end. The waterfall rock is limestone
that
> I
> > > collected from an old fence line.
> > >
> > > My problem is this year I am getting foam buildup from the water fall.
> Did
> > > not have the problem last year but this year it is bad. Water tests
that
> I
> > > do indicate that everything is fine for all the important things like
> PH,
> > > nitrites, nitrates, hardness etc.
> > >
> > > The local store is at a loss why the foam. They have done tests as
well
> > and
> > > have not found anything bad. I have seen foam on rivers which says to
> me
> > it
> > > is something natural, but it looks terrible.
> > >
> > > Any suggestions???
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
>
>

[ba5416]

Thanks to everyone for the advise. I rarely feed the fish because of the
amount of food in the pond for them. Lots of baby fish and organic material.
So I eliminated that. I clean the filter regularly and there is not much
muck on the bottom so I dropped the water level a couple of times and
refilled. The foam is almost gone now and so I overfilled the pond and let
the surface water drain for an hour or so. That seems to have licked the
problem.
I will pass on to the shop here what I did and they can pass it on to
others.

Thanks again


"RichToyBox" > wrote in message
news:QLiVa.1597$uu5.508@sccrnsc04...
> Some of the protein (DOC) can be removed by overflowing the pond as part
of
> the water change. The protein makes something like an oil slick and due
to
> its character, it causes the bubbles that you talk about.
> --
> RichToyBox
> http://www.geocities.com/richtoybox/pondintro.html
>
>
> "Lee Brouillet" > wrote in message
> ...
> > It's probably DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon), or the visible results of
> > overfeeding, perhaps the need to clean the pond or filters, etc. Water
> > changes can help; I also know people that have used food grade liquid
> > silicone to change the surface tension of the water so the foam goes
away.
> > This is a neat trick to use 2 hours before a house full of guests shows
up
> > and you want the pond to look its best, but the *best* way of taking
care
> of
> > the problem is to, well: take care of the problem. Clean the
pond/filters
> if
> > necessary, cut back on feeding and do some water changes. It's harmless,
> but
> > unsightly.
> >
> > Lee
> >
> > "ba5416" > wrote in message
> > ble.rogers.com...
> > > I live about two hours north of Toronto Ont. I have a 3 yr old pond
> about
> > a
> > > 1000 gallons or so. Healthy from the beginning. There are about 10
fish
> in
> > > there and I have had successfull breeding since the first year. The
> > deepest
> > > part of the pond is about 46" deep and I leave the pump running
> throughout
> > > the winter as I leave the fish in year round. There is a fountain on
the
> > > pump and a water fall at one end. The waterfall rock is limestone
that
> I
> > > collected from an old fence line.
> > >
> > > My problem is this year I am getting foam buildup from the water fall.
> Did
> > > not have the problem last year but this year it is bad. Water tests
that
> I
> > > do indicate that everything is fine for all the important things like
> PH,
> > > nitrites, nitrates, hardness etc.
> > >
> > > The local store is at a loss why the foam. They have done tests as
well
> > and
> > > have not found anything bad. I have seen foam on rivers which says to
> me
> > it
> > > is something natural, but it looks terrible.
> > >
> > > Any suggestions???
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
>
>