Nice Koi Pond Equipment and Supplies You Cannot Do Without

Your koi pond is an entire ecosystem for your koi to live in. As such, you need certain indispensable equipment and supplies to create and maintain this ecosystem. Each type of equipment and supply serves its purpose. Simply knowing the function of each item can help you understand why they are needed.

There are certain items that you need to have on hand at all times.

The most essential items to have are filters and pumps. The two basic filters you must have are the Biological Filter that removes dangerous nitrogen compounds and the Mechanical Filter that removes physical waste and debris. Without these filters, your koi will get stressed and fall sick or die. You would also need a water pump to keep the water moving in your pond. If your water is not moving, there is no way the filters can process the water. Most koi owners would also utilize a pump to run waterfalls, fountains and other water features. This serves to aerate the pond, providing oxygen to your koi.

Having good quality water is an important part of maintaining the proper ecosystem for you koi. To achieve this, you would need a few items, namely a dechlorinator to remove chlorine and other potentially harmful chemicals in the water, pond salts and baking soda to regulate the pH and nitrate levels and a test kit to check on the levels of ammonia and other toxic nitrogen compounds. Such water tests should be done at least once a week.

There are times you would need to move your koi such as when they are sick or need to be quarantined. A trip to the vet entails transporting your koi in special bags filled with water and oxygen. Do not use normal plastic bags or rubbish bags. You will need to buy specially designed koi bags to put your fish in. Besides that, you will also need a net and a bucket to catch your koi without hurting it. Just make sure your bucket is large enough to hold your koi in so that you do not injure it while trying to catch it.

Last but not least, you need a constant supply of koi food. Most likely, you will be feeding your koi with koi pellets. When buying these pellets, choose those which float on the water. This makes it easier to remove leftover pellets so that they do not make the water murky. Also, the size of the pellets should be the size that the smallest koi can eat.

Like any other pets, koi love eating treats and will respond in a playful manner when being fed. Specific koi treats are available at your local pet store. Alternatively you may even consider feeding your koi veggies, fruit and bread. But avoid white bread as they contain chemicals that may be harmful to koi. Give your koi brown bread instead.