tips for a bottom feeder

rc wrote:
I've got a pond thats roughly 400-500 gallons. Plenty of fish(20) and
plenty of plants. the water is pretty clear but I'm beginning to get
concerned about too much sludge on the bottom, espescially with fall
around the corner. Does anyone have any tips on a good bottom feeder?

Derek Broughton replied:

What do lawyers have to do with the subject?

And I was thinking trolls. ;-)

What happens to the waste from the bottom feeders?

Are we truly talking critter waste here, or dirt and plant debris? Dirt
isn't going to be eaten or dissolved, but as George mentioned, a sludge
eating enzyme product will help with plant debris. The best way to get rid
of both is to have a bottom drain or uptake to remove it from the pond to a
filter (or even during partial water changes to waste outside the pond). I
added a retrofit, over-the-side bottom drain to my pond (diagram on my
website under *My Filter*). Otherwise shop vacs can do a pretty good job.
~ jan

~Power to the Porg, Flow On!~