Do Koi Fish Need Clean Water?

Koi fish are very hardy, which means they can survive some tough conditions.

Starting The Koi Hobby: A Step By Step Guide…

However, no fish can survive if the water they live in is to unhealthy. When you put a koi fish in a pond, you are taking them out of there natural environment with clean moving water and putting them in a still pond that will become dirty if you don’t do anything to it.

One of the most important questions you need to answer is, do koi fish need clean water?

The water quality of your koi aquarium is important to their survival. Water quality is the leading cause of death in koi fishes. Dirty water is highly contaminated from the fish’s waste products and the first contact with ammonia.” Koi fish need clean water to stay alive and healthy.”

Why do Koi Fish Need Clean Water?

Koi fishes love to swim below and stir up some dirt, making the water a bit murky, but this doesn’t translate to them wanting dirty water. Koi fish are acclimated to living in certain environments and with particular bacteria’s around them. This is why koi fish are quarantined and slowly introduced to a new pond. So, when they stir up all their dirt, they are simply creating a home-like feeling, not that they would love to stay in dirty water. Your filtration system and regular water change are two of the most important duties you have to perform when you have a koi pond.

Knowing what type of water koi fish need is the first step in creating a healthy Koi aquarium or pond. To create the ideal environment for your koi, you also need to find out other details, such as their habit or diet.”

Starting with the basics, koi is a freshwater fish, so you do not have to worry about adding salt to your pond. As you continue reading this article, you will learn more about koi fishes and what type of environments they prefer. Then, we will show you how to ensure your koi fish have a regular supply of fresh water.

What are the Ideal Water Conditions for Koi?

Wild koi fishes are native to the fresh waters around the black, Caspian, and Aral seas. Proper Koi care is a continuous process like with many things in life. And like with many other things in this world, there are probably a million and one opinions on the best water conditions for keeping koi. However, there is one universal opinion, which is that having poor water maintenance habits will only spell doom for your Koi. So, to avoid this, we do not only answer your question. But we give you the knowledge you require to keep your water perfect for the growth of your koi.

What Indicators Should I Look Out For In My Koi Pond?

1. Dissolved Oxygen

The oxygen levels of your koi ponds should be at 5.0 mg/l for koi. When handling such beautiful fishe, there is some variation with a level of dissolved oxygen that is tolerable, and 5.0 is a good baseline. As seasons change, you might experience some changes in the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water. During colder seasons, for example, the water holds more dissolved oxygen than warmer water. Or during the summer, when the aquarium or pond is warmer, the water holds lower dissolved oxygen, and during such times you need to pay attention.

Oxygen gets in your koi pond in several ways, and it isn’t something you’d have to be so worried about. At the surface of your pond, there is very little diffusion between the atmosphere and the water in the pond. This contributes only a small portion of the oxygen in the water.

Turbulence is another way oxygen finds its way into the water. As a tried and proven way to increase the dissolved oxygen in your Koi ponds, you can place an air stone at the bottom of the pond or a spout or if you have a fountain shooting water up in the air.

2. The Pond’s PH

Here, we would be going back to our days in the chemistry class (if you attended any). As you may recall, PH is used to indicate just how acidic or alkaline something is. In this sense when your tests 7.5 and then increases in its alkalinity to 9.5. Then your pond is becoming dangerously alkaline quickly. Such changes affect the PH level of your pond, which affects your fishes in negative ways. For the best acidity levels, your pond should maintain a PH between 6.8 and 8.2. It would help if you tried to keep the PH level as stable as possible.

If you conduct PH tests regularly, you will notice that there are fluctuations in the PH level. This is natural and occurs because of photosynthesis and the release of carbon by the fishes. Because your fishes are constantly breathing, they use up some of the dissolved oxygen and excrete carbon as waste. This will no doubt affect the PH of the pond. Nevertheless, you can add a long term PH buffer to the pond and protect your fish is by adding some carbon carbonate materials.

3. Ammonia, Nitrate and Nitrites

The circle of waste excretion and breakdown in your pond starts with the ammonia contained in Koi’s excretes. Once this happens, bacteria and oxygen begins to break it down. Ammonia is broken down into nitrites, which is broken down into nitrates before becoming free nitrogen. Before waste gets to become free, nitrogen, ammonia, nitrites, and nitrate levels all need to be kept in check. Because they can cause significant health challenges for your koi.”

For starters, ammonia is so dangerous, and it can burn your Koi’s gills. If this happens, it reduces the ability of their gills to extract dissolved oxygen from water. Having high nitrate concentration in the water can damage your Koi’s kidneys and nervous system. When exposed to a high concentration of nitrates for long, the Koi’s immune system may become compromised. When it comes to health problems for your Koi, ammonia and Nitrites rank as some of the top contenders.”

What Will You Need to Set Up Your Koi Pond or Aquarium?

• When setting up your tank, make sure it isn’t close to any doors, vents, or windows. This is to reduce the rate at which the outside environment affects your water temperature. Rapidly changing temperatures aren’t healthy for your KoiKoi.
• Ensure that your container is strong enough to carry the weight of the aquarium.
• There should be electrical outlets nearby so that you can easily plug in the filter equipment, lighting, heater, and more.
• There should be enough room between the tank and wall to house all your equipment.
• It would be best if you had a clean tank.
• Try to make sure your koi tank is even at all levels.

What Equipment Should I Get for My Koi Pond?

• Skimmers and Filters:

These come in an easy to set up manual, and you aren’t bound to come across any difficulties.”

• Substrate:

Substrate is a material used in the bottom of your aquarium. This is an important piece of equipment because it affects the filtration and chemistry of the pond’s water. Which influences your fish’s health.”

• The Heater:

During the winter, it is common to see the surface of the aquarium frozen. This isn’t a problem because during such periods, Koi’s stay at the bottom where the water is not yet frozen. Heaters are important because they stop the entire aquarium from freezing, which will only kill your koi. When you install your water heater, always aim to set it up as close as possible to the water flowing out of the filter if it isn’t summarized. If you are using a submissive heater, you should place it as close to where the water flows into the filter.”

• Thermometer:

This is easy to install and basic to understand. If installing, try, and place it away from the heater to get a more accurate reading.”

Now you know how important clean water is to your Koi fishes as well as how to manage the water better and keep it clean. Not only that but you’ve also learnt a whole lot about their origin, as well as how they feed. At this point, you have what it takes to keep your Koi fishes healthier and maybe, just maybe you can grow your Koi fish for over a hundred years.