July Pond Care: Everything You Need to Know

July is another great month to relax by your pond and enjoy the flitting fish and flourishing flowers.

Your finned friends will appreciate having plenty of shade and oxygen during these warm weeks. See Tip No. 1 below to learn more about summer aeration, or check out our July Deep-Dive for additional ways to keep fish safe in the summer heat.

3 Tips for July Pond Care

 1. Use an aerator to keep water oxygenated, especially on hot days

Water has a difficult time holding on to oxygen in hot weather. That’s a problem for your fish.

Keep your finned friends healthy by using an aerator to boost the oxygen level in the pond, and make sure to keep your waterfall running 24/7. (Our pumps have an energy-efficient design that keeps electric costs low).

> Find an Aerator at our Online Store

2. Green water? Add more bacteria

Green water is a common – but harmless – problem.

This unsightly condition happens when microscopic algae run amuck. While your first instinct might be to grab the nearest bottle of algaecide, we actually recommend trying bacteria first. Beneficial Bacteria eat excess nitrites in the pond – the main food source for green-water algae. It’s also a lot safer than algaecides, which can kill fish if not applied carefully.

Apply the bacteria two to three times a week, doubling the recommended dosage if needed, until water clears up. After the water looks crystal-clear, reduce treatments to once a week for maintenance.

> Find Water Treatments at our Online Store

If you have an Automatic Dosing System, make sure you’re regularly running the Maintain pouch per the instructions in the manual. If the Maintain alone doesn’t solve the problem, use the Clear pouch until water is clear. (NOTE: Clear contains a small amount of algaecide, so use only as-needed and as-directed).

Bacteria usually take a few weeks to establish themselves and make a noticeable difference in your pond. If the water is still green after that time, you may need to make some more significant changes to your pond setup. Check our Learning Center for more solutions.

3. Continue weekly doses of Beneficial Bacteria

Beneficial Bacteria is our go-to water treatment for keeping water crystal-clear and fish happy and healthy.

Bacteria do lots of helpful things for your pond, including consuming harmful ammonia and algae-causing nitrites. For best results, apply bacteria at least once a week throughout the season, or install an Automatic Dosing System that will do the work for you.

Pond Bacteria comes in lots of forms – so how do you know which one you need?

Just follow this guide:

• For water below 50 degrees: Cold Water Bacteria (Available at Splash)
• For water above 50 degrees: Beneficial Bacteria (Available at Splash)
• For new ponds, recently cleaned ponds or springtime ponds above 40 degrees: Pond Starter Bacteria (Available at Splash)
• For Automatic Dosing Systems: Maintain for Ponds Autodoser Pouch (Available at Splash)

In July, you’ll likely be using regular Beneficial Bacteria.

Liquid Beneficial Bacteria comes in an easy-to-use pump-top container. If you buy an 8 oz, 16 oz, or 32 oz bottle, simply add one pump of bacteria per 100 gallons of water in your pond once a week. If you buy a gallon bottle, use one pump per 600 gallons.

(Dry forms of bacteria are also available. See your container for dosing instructions.)

To Calculate Pond Size in US Gallons: Length (in feet) x Width (in feet) x Average Depth (in feet) x 7.48

All of the Beneficial Bacteria products listed above are completely safe for fish and plants – making them a great alternative to potentially harmful algaecides.