walshie 2,804 Posted March 23, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 23, 2015 There's a massive pipe that gravity feeds the filter, but no apparent way of getting the water from the filter back into the tank. Anyhoo, it's only a stop gap till I get the pond built (with the help of a few locals.) I reckon putting the pump in the filter bay and putting some kind of ballvalve on it to slow the return rate down just a nidge should fix the problem for the moment. Heath Robsinson eat your heart out. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
albert64 1,882 Posted March 23, 2015 Report Share Posted March 23, 2015 if the water in the tank and the water in the filters is at the same height/level then its gravity fed, put the pump in the end chamber then put a valve on the hose before it goes into the uv, then you can control the flow of water that the pumps moving, always have your uv after the filters you don't want the water sterilized before it goes through the filters 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Limb 31 Posted March 23, 2015 Report Share Posted March 23, 2015 From what I understand you've got a gravity fed system, which is ideal for a koi pond. The water and fish waste (shit) go into the bottom drain travel through the pipe to your filter. The round part is called a vortex, it spins the water so that the heavy waste sinks to the bottom. The should be some kind of valve at the bottom to flush out the waste. The cleaner water goes over a lip or similar into the brushes, these should take out anything that hasn't settled in the vortex. Brushes aren't used so much these days, not because they don't work, but because they are a pain to clean. Sounds like the next stage is jap matting, this allows good bacteria to colonise, they in turn will take out ammonia and the like out of the water before it is returned to the pond via the pump in the last chamber. The uv unit will kill the algae spores and stop your water turning green provided it has enough wattage to cope with the water flow. Also the bulbs only last 6 months i.e. a summer season. As far as the water not coming out of the flexi pipe, your pump could be blocked or the impellor ( a propeller type thing) could need changing, or it's knackered. The pump should be capable of turning the whole volume of pond water every 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Because the system is gravity the water finds it's own level in both the pond and filter so as water is pumped from the filter into the pond water goes down the drain in to the filter continually cleaning the water. Your filter will need cleaning weekly at the moment, but when the fish start feeding in the warmer months you'll find it needs cleaning as much as daily with your stock levels. you'll have to drop and change 20% of the water weekly ( about 10% in winter). Hope this helps. Cheers Limb 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Limb 31 Posted March 23, 2015 Report Share Posted March 23, 2015 The other thing I'd highly recommend would be join the Koi Mag Forum, there will be people on there who live locally to you that would happily come round and help you. There is a chap calls himself Tommy 2ponds who runs a fish consultancy business, he'd advise you on your pond check out your fish health and help you avoid expensive mistakes on your new build. Would be money very well spent. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
walshie 2,804 Posted March 23, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 23, 2015 Thanks for the advice. It seemed to be the logical answer, but it's nice to hear it from proper fishkeepers. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Malt 379 Posted March 23, 2015 Report Share Posted March 23, 2015 Thanks for the advice. It seemed to be the logical answer, but it's nice to hear it from proper fishkeepers. Oi, I own a koi carp I'll have you know! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
walshie 2,804 Posted March 29, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 29, 2015 Well my amateurish tinkering seems to have helped a bit. I found out the little uv/pump combo wasn't working at all so took it out. The main pump I put in the end chamber of the filter and put a valve on the outflow to tame it down a touch as it was emptying faster than gravity could fill it. I changed 10% of the water too. It already looks a bit clearer. Next stop is to buy a tube for the uv filter. The fish seem to love it. They are floating round on their backs sunbathing. Not really, but they seem a lot more active and eating like horses. That should do for now till I get my pond built. I'm enjoying this fishkeeping lark. I can only assume the woman who lived there hasn't seen these carp for a long time. There are a couple of monsters in there! Forgot to ask - how do you know how much to feed them? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
walshie 2,804 Posted April 18, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2015 It's taken a few weeks of partial water changes, cleaning the filter and installing a UV filter, but I can finally see the fish! The water used to be so green that once they were a few inches under the surface, you couldn't see them at all. It's not perfect, but 100 times better than it was before. Fish seem happier too. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tiercel 6,986 Posted April 18, 2015 Report Share Posted April 18, 2015 It's taken a few weeks of partial water changes, cleaning the filter and installing a UV filter, but I can finally see the fish! The water used to be so green that once they were a few inches under the surface, you couldn't see them at all. It's not perfect, but 100 times better than it was before. Fish seem happier too. DSCN0500.JPG There are a couple of monsters in there. TC Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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