Still water is not good for ponds used in your landscaping for any reason; this promotes stagnant water and provides the perfect environment for algae to thrive. Chemical free bio system ponds must mimic nature’s engineering to work. When you come upon bodies of water in nature, only those that have no fresh water inlet will be still and green with algae. Whether spring fed from the bottom, or refreshed by a stream or waterfalls, ponds created by nature will always have the proper circulation to maintain clean, clear water.

There are several things you should know about keeping the water in your garden pond clean and healthy. You not only need circulation, but proper circulation for koi ponds and water gardening without water quality issues cropping up. Both water plants and fishes need ample amounts of oxygen to thrive and prosper. Getting your pond water circulation set right will be a bonus to your success in having a clean, healthy environment for either of these backyard pond pastimes.

Getting your water habitat set up properly will mean carefully following certain steps in insuring the right water circulation in your garden pond. First you will want to maximize the water turnover rate. If you have more than one pond, this turnover rate will carry from one to the next. The turnover rate is how fast all the water in your garden pond can pass through your pond filter. Most especially with koi ponds, you will want to calculate the turnover rate very carefully.

It isn’t difficult to calculate the turnover rate for your pond’s total volume of water. Pumps for ponds have specified gallons per minute or hour exchanged. Just figure out the number of gallons you pump will move through the filter in 24 hours and then divided it by the number of gallons of water in your garden pond. For koi you will need to have at least X*24 because the ammonia concentration is determined by the water turnover rate.

A higher turnover rate also increases the oxygen level in your garden pond. With koi water quality must contain a steady oxygen supply. The higher oxygen levels from good turnover will also be a huge benefit to plants and the microorganisms that must reside in biologically correct backyard ponds. A higher turnover rate will always be most desirable because the fish, plants and other water inhabitants use the available oxygen. This causes your oxygen level to constantly fluctuate.

To get the right filter for biosystem backyard ponds is only possible if you know the water turnover rate. It is important that you select a filter that can handle the amount of water your pump is passing through the filter box. Having the wrong filter will mean that either water will pass to slowly or too quickly through the filtration system and either be harsh on your pump or deplete water quality. You will also need to know what the maximum amount of time the water of your garden pond spends in the filter box. This is known as ‘residence time’, and will determine how well the bio film and active bacteria can convert the harmful ammonia, nitrates and impurities produced by the things dwelling in you pond water.