Pond with aquatic plants and fish

Pond Springtime Start-Up

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Perfect Pond

To thoroughly enjoy your pond season, proper pond care when starting out is important for a low-maintenance pond season and a flourishing, healthy pond ecosystem.

Are temperatures starting to rise? Do you notice your fish moving around more? Then it’s time to get your pond ready for the season! Here is a checklist of tasks to get your pond start-up going:

  • CLEAN| Clean around the perimeter of your pond removing debris around the edges and/or remove the cover.  Next, service the filter or change out pads before starting the filter up. Start the pond filter, scrub around the pond edges, and perform a partial water exchange using API POND STRESS COAT™ water conditioner. NOTE: Add in POND-ZYME SLUDGE DESTROYER™, POND ECOFIX SLUDGE DESTROYER™, or POND SIMPLY CLEAR at the spring specific dosage Double dose twice a week for two weeks (there are no low temperature restrictions when using these products if the pond is not frozen over). Got Algae? We would recommend using API POND ALGAEFIX™ treatment every 3 days (72hrs) until the algae is gone and add in POND-ZYME SLUDGE DESTROYER at the double dose. You may use any of the API products together and there is no low temperature restriction when using these products, if the water is not frozen over. Make sure to follow label instructions carefully.
     
  • PLANTS | Prune and fertilize any of your pond plants with API AQUATIC PLANT FOOD TABLETS.
     
  • WATER TESTING | Make sure to test your pond water with the API POND MASTER TEST KIT. It’s not uncommon for an established pond to go through the Nitrogen cycle after maintenance. Keep an eye out for high ammonia or high nitrite spikes. Monitoring your fish health and behavior is important as well. 
     
  • FOOD | When do you feed the fish? When the water temperature is above 60°F you may start slowly feeding your fish the API POND FISH FOOD. We would recommend gradually starting to feed small amounts of food every couple of days as they are starting to come out of their semi-dormant stage. As the weather warms up, you may eventually feed them every day, enough they will eat in 5-10mins.