The Green Monster
Its the time of year where the sun is shining, it’s warm outside, and the terrible green algae starts to creep its way into your water feature that just got cleaned. Unfortunately algae is unavoidable. Have no fear! We have the exact products you need to help you clear out that green slime and reduce maintenance!
If you haven’t used it already, we have Aquascape’s liquid Algaecide and Aquascape’s Ecoblast granular in stock. Aquascape’s Algaecide is fast acting, controls string algae, clears green water, and is safe to use in water features with plants and fish. When using an algaecide, you’ll want to pour it according to the directions on the bottle. Make sure to add the algaecide in an area of your pond that has a lot of water movement. Good water flow allows the algaecide to evenly move throughout the water. Find it here at Action Water Gardens in a variety of sizes. Another product of ours is Ecoblast. Ecoblast helps control algae and is fast acting, we recommend using Ecoblast on areas where algae has formed to the rocks on your waterfall, pond, streams, and fountains. When using Ecoblast just turn off your pump, sprinkle the granular on the problem areas, let it sit for a few minutes and turn your water feature back on. What’s great about Ecoblast is that it adds beneficial oxygen back into the water improving the overall health of the ecosystem. This treatment, like all of our treatments, is safe to use if you have plants and/or fish and is noticeable within a few hours of application!
If you are not comfortable with using either of these products and you rather kill algae without chemicals, try using a UV sterilizer or the IonGen™ Water Clarifier. Aquascape UltraKlear UV Sterilizer comes in three available models to effectively work according to how many gallons your pond is. It works by using a technologically-advanced T5 high output UV bulb, making it more efficient than traditional UV clarifiers. The Aquascape UltraKlear UV Clarifier features a swirl sleeve that helps direct the water around the UV bulb, creating more contact time and increasing UV efficiency up to 50% over traditional UV clarifiers! Using this will help clear that terrible “pea soup” looking water and algae blooms.
As for the IonGen™, it effectively kills algae without the use of traditional liquid chemicals. It is designed with a microprocessor that sends a signal to its ion producing probe helping to control algae throughout the entire water feature. The probe works by releasing a calculated mixture of copper ions into the path of flowing water. The IonGen™ Control Panel sends signals that slowly dissolve the replaceable probe. The ions produced by the probe treat the water and reduce string algae as well as drastically reduce maintenance for your water feature.
The last thing to keep in mind is how much sunlight you’re pond is getting. The more sunlight you have, the better chance you will have an algae problem. It’s best to keep about 60-70% of your pond or water feature shaded. A great way to do this is with plants! Plants compete with algae for nutrients and by adding plants throughout your pond this will naturally decrease the amount of algae in your water feature. Add some floaters such as water hyacinth and water lettuce in your pond and Biofalls; they naturally filter the water and reproduce rapidly to give it some extra shade. Also, don’t be scared to physically remove any string algae clumps that are stuck to the rocks. Just put it in a waste bucket and you’re good to go!
Any other questions you have about keeping your pond or water feature clear of algae please give our shop a call at 860-875-2359 or e-mail us at pondclinic@actionwatergardens.com