4 Things That Can Throw Your Pond off Balance

Unlike swimming pools and hot tubs, ponds have aquatic life to support around the clock throughout the year. Therefore, maintaining a healthy pond requires a balance of internal and external care. While chemicals found in fertilizers and other outdoor products can disturb water quality through runoff and leaks, there are quite a few troublesome factors that may already be causing harm from the inside. If you’re worried about your aquatic area, check out the main factors that could be throwing your body of water off balance. 

Overgrowth of Weeds

Weeds tarnish more than just the visual appeal of your pond. While crowding out native plant and animal species, these harmful aquatic plants feed on excess amounts of chemical elements, like phosphorous and nitrogen. As more and more invasive vegetation spreads over your pond, certain species can eventually cluster over the surface and deplete oxygen to dangerously low levels.   

To restore oxygen and re-balance nutrients, consider mechanical weed removal partnered with long-term aquatic weed control. These services will help regulate invasive species and maintain a healthy environment for native wildlife.  

Too Much Pond Algae 

It’s natural for ponds to hold minerals, chemical elements, and aquatic organisms such as algae. Excessive amounts of any of these substances, however, can quickly throw a pond out of regulation. Once algae start to overrun your pond and turn into algal blooms, fish, plants, and other life suffer almost immediately. That’s because excess algae, just like excess minerals, take up space that would otherwise hold oxygen. 

If algae is becoming an issue in your pond, consider an algae control strategy involving inspection, removal, treatment, and maintenance. A comprehensive system like this will give you consistent control to remove any current algal blooms and prevent more from forming in the future. 

Lack of Water Movement 

Still ponds are much more likely to experience nutrient overloading. Without circulation, minerals and chemical elements gather at the pit of these aquatic areas. Over time, this sedimentation can cause excessive amounts of nutrients to throw your pond way off balance.  

Therefore, the most effective way to give your pond 24/7 protection is to install a fountain for continuous circulation. You can even combine this multi-functional addition with an aeration system to add and distribute oxygen all throughout your body of water.   

Changes in Fish Population 

Nutrient level changes are a leading cause of fish kills. When there is a significant increase or decrease in minerals and other elements in your pond, native wildlife struggles to survive. While fish kills can be the result of nutrient-depleting organisms, such as weeds and algae, they can also be a cause of nutrient deficiency, because fish help to regulate algae by feeding on aquatic organisms.   

Maintaining a healthy fish population is essential to recovering from and preventing a nutrient imbalance within your pond. To regulate the aquatic wildlife in your pond, consider fish stocking services tailored to your water’s pH, size, and general environment.  

Balance Your Pond With Sorko 

Whether your pond needs quick rescue or consistent maintenance, contact the aquatic management team at Sorko Services. With our comprehensive water quality tests, we can monitor nutrient levels and create a corrective system to keep your pond on the right path. Furthermore, our team can remedy any pond imbalance through aquatic weed removal, algae control, or fish stocking services. To learn more about aquatic management with Sorko Services, call us today at 407-878-4492.