Save the Fishies ~ Part 1

My friend built a small pond in his backyard over 10 years ago.  The pond is really cool with the fish swimming in it! 

The pond liner has been leaking since last Fall...so the obvious was coming.  Eventually the pond liner would need to be replaced...which means draining the pond and temporarily relocating the fish!

Lately, the water level in the pond was getting much lower, so I volunteered to help with the project to save the fishies (Koi and goldfish).  The fish spend the winter in the pond, since it is deep enough for the fish to survive the cold Midwest winters by hunkering down in the bottom of the pond.  It was important that we completed the project before the temperatures get too hot.

Replacing the pond liner is a major project!  The fish needed to be caught with a net and relocated into another container (which has the original pond water and also an air pump to aerate the water).  The water content and water temperature need to be very similar to that in the pond so they don't die.

Then, over 2,000 gallons of water needed to be drained from the pond!!!  YIKES! 

The sediment had to be removed (yes! I was in the bottom of the pond dredging out the sediment) and then we removed the liner.  The pond has several different levels to allow for different types of water plants (which lives at different depths in the pond).  This is what is looked like after the liner was removed:

This is Part 1! Stay tuned for Part 2!

Please Note:  Fish need special conditions to survive while a pond is being fixed.  Please consult an expert if you are relocating fish for this type of project.

Carole
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