I have a 2500 gallon pond with 5 koi, 3 orfes, 8 goldish, 3 rosy reds, and 7 tadpoles. I have algae all over my pumps tubes and would like to know if there is a good algae eater you can put in a pond that can survive the winter. i dont have the space for another tank or pond for it during the winter. I might try pool catfish. My neighbor has one and its very peaceful towards his other fish and the cat is about 2 feet long. Are there any other options? What is the proper ph for a pond?

No, there's not a fish that will eat that algae well and survive the winter. The fish you do have may nibble some of the algae if they're hungry but there's probably more to eat that interests them more than algae. A pleco might eat some attached algae but it won't survive the winter. Tadpoles may eat some algae. You might consider snails. There are many kinds with pros and cons. My snail species page is at http://www.fishpondinfo.com/snail2.htm
Some algae is good. I think your pond is new, right? If so, it may take a few years for the algae to settle down. My mature ponds still have some algae but like I said, some is good. My big pond hasn't had a suspended algae bloom though in maybe 5 years. By pool catfish, do you mean the channel catfish? They mostly eat animals and not algae. My pond algae page is at http://www.fishpondinfo.com/algae2.htm
A pond ideally would have a pH between 7 and 8 but 6 to 9 or so is normally okay. Outside of those ranges, and you'd need to adjust the pH.

the ph in my pond is good. Its 7.4. I will probably pick up some japanese trapdoor snails. I think the pool catfish are channel but dont get nearly as big.

I have a Chinese Algae Eater named Hop Sing in my pond. I didn't know they liked to hide. I don't think I'm going to be able to find him to get him out of the pond by winter. :(

why would you put a chinese algae eater in your pond? They will hide and attack the other fish when older. Im definetly going with the snails.

how many snails should i add in a 2500 gallon pond? will the japanese trapdoors survive the winter?

I've not heard of "pool catfish" which is why I asked. Margo, did you mean a Garra pingi pingi or an actual "Chinese algae eater?" Either way, you'll probably want to try to save him come fall. There will be less plants then. I think you'll be able to find him. They don't hide as well as plecostomus but they're a lot faster! We've all put an animal in our pond that we later regretted because we didn't know the proper information. Let him who has never had pond algae throw the first stone you might say. The first year of my pond, I put in apple snails. I found out for myself that they die over winter but did not read about it until it was too late.

I would plop in one or two dozen trapdoor snails in a 2500 gallon pond as long as there are plants and algae to eat. They will survive the winter. The problem I have is the raccoons love to toss them out of the pond.

i will add 2 dozen next time i go to the pond store. the pool catfish is the channel catfish. I guess we have different names for it around the country.

It's a Chinese Algae Eater all right. He's very pretty. I just can't enjoy looking at him because he hides. :D

margo how big is your pond? What types of fish do you have in it?

It's about a 3'-around concrete pond and 1' deep. It has 3 small goldfish, 1 algae eater and a trespassing turtle. :D

thats a nice little pond:). Mine is 20 feet long, 10 feet wide, and 3 feet deep.

Margo, your pond is small enough that you should be able to catch the CAE in the fall. What kind of turtle showed up at your pond?

my neighbor bought a turtle and it left his pond and never came back.

do you have any suggestions what i could get besides snails? I dont want them to eat all my plants! I spent alot of money on all my hardy lilies. Will they even eat the plants? The japanese trapdoor snails.

Trapdoor snails will not eat your plants to any noticeable extent. I've never seen one eating on any of my plants. The pond snails, ramshorn snails, etc. will eat some lilies. There's not an algae-eating fish that I know of that can 1. Survive a real winter, 2. Not hurt the other fish, and 3. Not eat your plants.

ok thanks for your help. Im definetly going for the trapdoors.

Here's the culprit:

Here he is in the act of getting into my pond:

nice turtle. i think its a mud turtle. i cant really tell. havent kept turtles in a LONG time. Whats wrong with it?

It's a box turtle. Nothing's wrong with it. It's just interested in my fish I think.

Ya know, with that turtle in there, forget the algae eater. I mean, he's the least of the goldfishes' problems. :D

box turtles probably wont hurt the fish. The chinese algae eater might. I read that you had platies in your pond. Why would you put platies in a pond, they are tropical.

I live in the panhandle of Florida. In the winter, I just cover the pond with a styrofoam lid that I made with a window cut out in it. I then run the well water through it at night since the well water stays warm throughout the winter. :)

Here's a pic:


The platties did quite well in the winter by doing this. Incidentally, I live on a bayou and Hurricane Ivan flooded my pond with saltwater. Luckily, platties can live in both salt and fresh water. :D

Here's a pic of my pond without the lid:

they cant live in salt water. They can live in lightly brackish. Nice pond:)

Oh, you were the one with a box turtle in the pond. Box turtles normally don't spend that much time around ponds, aren't great swimmers, and eat few fish. But, there are exceptions. I've heard of some box turtles that swim well and like to eat small fish. I think they're more likely to hang around a small pond like yours.

You are lucky to live in an area where you can keep tropical fish outside year round but not so lucky with those hurricanes. Platies like a little bit of salt but even with acclimation, probably couldn't live in 100% ocean water.

there are like no more box turtle s on long island.:(

Thanks Tom. :) I'd like to have a bigger one someday, though.

I thought platties, mollies, guppies, etc., could all live in straight saltwater. Hm. Well, then, I just hope they stayed in the bayou. :D

actually molies can be trained to live in 100% salt water. They do better in brackish though. the guppies, platies, and sword tails can live in brackish at the most.

maybe i will post some pics of my pond :D . It looks really nice. Me and my father triend to build it on our own but a side collapsed when it was almost done. So we hired an expert to finish it for us. It came out really well. How do you post pics? i have a digital camara.

I'd love to see your pond! I don't have a digital camera so I'm not sure how to post those. I just hit IMG and the URL to the pic. I think you have to have an FTP server, too. Robyn may know.

i have a scanner too.

To post a photo, when you post a reply, below the box that you write in, there are "post options" and "post icons." Below that is "File attachments." Click on "Browse" to the right of that to pick the photo you want to add from your hard drive.

I don't have File Attachments, Rob. :( I have Post Options and Post Icons but that's it. :(

i dont have file attachments either. Any other way?

I don't get why your screen is different than mine. I do see that others have posted photos in the midst of the text. I tried putting up photos using HTML but it didn't work so I don't know how they did it! Here I attached a file (just a work procedure, no photos on work computer) no problem but it appears differently than I've seen photos which show up as themselves.



Aha, that's it! While typing in this box your response, go up above and click on "IMG" It will prompt you for the URL of the photo which is then inserted! That's how I got my banner in here.

great im going to try to get some pics in soon.