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Water Gardening Direct Blog

  1. Reducing Energy Costs Of A Pond

    With the cost of electricity currently rising rapidly we are seeing an increasing number of customers looking at how they can reduce the running costs for their ponds.

    The most common products which consume electricity in a pond are pond pumps and the UV in filter systems.

    If you have a pond without fish then a pump and filter are not necessary. They will help keep the water fresh, clear and can reduce mosquito larvae, but the other inhabitants do not need them to be running.

    If you keep fish, then during the feeding season circulation through a filter is vital twenty-four hours a day. Oxygen in a pond is vital for all fish and bacteria in your filter. The oxygen levels in a pond are primarily kept high through circulation, although waterfalls, fountain and air pumps will also help. The worst time for low oxygen levels in the pond is at night when underwater plants including oxygenators and algae stop producing oxygen but continue consuming it. Thus, running the pump at night is as important as running it through the day.

    Filters also need to be run continuously during the feeding season, the bacteria in the filter are living organisms which require food, water and oxygen, without this they can begin to die off within 3 hours. If this happens the fishes waste could build up to dangerous levels and cause your fish harm. In addition, most filters strain the waste material out in foam. If a filter is switched off and on, the surges will dislodge the waste and flush it out, if this happens too often it will not produce clear water.

    The UV light in the filter affects single cell algae allowing it to be caught in the filter. This is not a health issue for the fish but will affect water clarity, so could be sacrificed if you are happy for green water.

    The property of water means that as it cools it holds more oxygen. As winter approaches the fish become less active and the need for the same high circulation levels drops. This can mean that a smaller pump could be used and if the fish stop feeding for an extended period the pump and filter could be switched off completely. If you do switch your filter off, it is important to remember not to feed the fish until the filter has been switched back on for a while. Obviously replacing your main pump with a smaller pump has an initial cost. Whether this is worthwhile will depend on the savings you can make between the power consumption of each pump, but a second pump brings added benefits. It should prolong the life of the main pump and is very useful to have a standby for when and if the main pump fails.




  2. Pond Pump Cleaning Advice

    Dirty Pond Pump
    Slow flow rate from your pump?
    Make sure your pump is clean with our
    Pond Pump cleaning advice

    A pond pump is the heart of your ponds life support system and the flowrate it achieves will dramatically affect the health and clarity of your pond. To ensure your pump is in tip top condition for the new season we strongly suggest examining it to clean and check for wear and tear. To help with this we have created a simple guide to help you along.

    ………Continue reading “Pond Pump Cleaning Advice”




  3. Green Water – Make sure your UV Quartz is Clean

    Green Water?
    Make sure your UV Quartz is Clean

    During the start of the season with everybody undertaking pond spring cleans we sell a huge number of replacement UV bulbs, but changing your bulb is only part of the job. All UV bulbs are protected from the water by a quartz sleeve, these come in lots of different shapes and sizes, but are common to all units and are there to keep the water away from the electrics. They are made out of quartz glass because the UV light used in out systems does not travel well through normal glass, unfortunately, this does make them delicate and prone to damage. In the same way that the UV light produced by the bulb will not pass through normal glass, it will not penetrate in to the water if the quartz sleeve is dirty. After a faulty bulb the second most common reason for poor UV’s performance is the quartz sleeve being coated in limescale. This limescale build up can be so extreme that you can’t even see your finger through the quartz, so the light has no chance.

    ………Continue reading “Green Water – Make sure your UV Quartz is Clean”




  4. Spring Time Feeding Advice

    Spring Time Feeding Advice

    Garden Pond Feeding Advice

    “To feed or not to feed, that is the question”

    Ok that’s not quite be how people are wording it, but it is the crux of the comments we are receiving at the moment. With the weather warming up nicely, the fish will soon be interested in feeding and whilst it is good to get some food down them you need to be wary. It is not only the physical activity of the fish which stops when the temperature drops in the autumn, it is also their digestive system. As such if you feed them now and the temperature drops to the point where they become inactive again, the food can sit in their gut and begin to decompose, which as I am sure you will understand is not good and so you need to be confident when feeding them that the temperature will be high enough over the next few days to fully digest the food and if the forecast says the weather is going to change stop feeding. The best food to feed them in the cooler temperature is Wheatgerm, which has been specifically designed to meet the fish’s needs at this time of year.

    ………Continue reading “Spring Time Feeding Advice”




  5. Fresh Marginal Pond Plants – Now In Stock

    Pond Plant Multi Buy Special Offer

    As the availability of Fresh Pond Plants is very dependent upon the time of year and weather conditions. We continually update our web pages to list the plants we actually have in stock. All of our Fresh Pond Plants come from the biggest grower in the UK who has over 45 years of cold water plant growing experience. We store all our Fresh Pond Plants outdoors and only supply Fresh Pond Plants that HAVE NOT been grown using forced growing techniques, such as heated greenhouses. So we can be sure that the plants we supply will be strong and healthy.

    Fresh Marginal Pond Plants – Now In Stock

    Get 20% DISCOUNT on every set of 12 plants (single type or mixed) To help with larger plant purchases, we will give you a £7.89 (equivalent to 20%) discount for every 12 plants you buy




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