Barley Straw turned my pond water brown

No. Nothing but fish in the pond...

That is the problem. You need lots of plants and enzymes.

You missed my early post.

It is the barley straw pellets, that I put in my SKIPPY Veggie Filte
(which is full of plants), that have caused the water to turn brown.

Granny Grump wrote:

No. Nothing but fish in the pond...

That is the problem. You need lots of plants and enzymes.

You missed my early post.

It is the barley straw pellets, that I put in my SKIPPY Veggie Filte
(which is full of plants), that have caused the water to turn brown.

I use real barley straw, a whole bale of it, and don't have this problem.

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I use real barley straw, a whole bale of it, and don't have this problem.

I have just gotten 6 1# pound bales, so will use these from now on.

In the meantime, a partial water change will be done, and I think I
will hang a charcoal filter from my aquarium in front of the drain
hole.

"Newbie Bill" wrote:
Then why do some people speak of 'crystal clear' water in their ponds? -
question not an arguement.

Because it is not in balance. It is forced to be clear by filtering,
not by natural balance. My pond is in natural balance with no filtering
at all. The water is extremely clear, but has a slight yellowing-brown
cast. It is 3' to 4' deep.

"Stephen M. Henning" wrote:
A well balanced pond is like a fine beer and
the same color.

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"Newbie Bill" wrote:
Then why do some people speak of 'crystal clear' water in their ponds? -
question not an arguement.

Because it is not in balance. It is forced to be clear by filtering,
not by natural balance. My pond is in natural balance with no filtering
at all. The water is extremely clear, but has a slight yellowing-brown
cast. It is 3' to 4' deep.
"Stephen M. Henning" wrote:

They may not be balanced "naturally" but they are still balanced. The
filters add the additional surface area for the higher fish load, to make
them so. There is no "forcing" because a pond that is filtered isn't always
balanced, clear or quality-wise. ~ jan


See my ponds and filter design:
http://users.owt.com/jjspond/

~Keep 'em Wet!~
Tri-Cities WA Zone 7a
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