My Pond Is Fixed At Last!

[cs091]

Hi everyone.

We have a 10x6x3.5 foot deep pond in our garden with a filter and waterfall.

Last year we had a disaster and lost all the fish due to a malfunction with the pump. The whole thing blew and I think they must have been electricuted or the herons got them.

We had a new pump put in but didn't want to stock with winter approaching so we turned off the pump and waited. When it was switched back on recently it proceeded to empty the pond!

Now it's fixed so I have a pond with plants, tadpoles/froglets in and the filter has been running for about 6 hours.

How long should I leave it before putting the 2 small goldfish in who have been in a tank inside?

Is there anything I can do to make the transition easier? I presume you don't cycle ponds like tanks.

And how many fish should I add at a time up to how many? Goldfish and maybe small koi, as they are cheaper small and let them grow into it. I had about 10 medium size fish before.

CS

 

[cs091]

I've done tests and they read
Ammonia 0
Nitrate 0.2
Nitrate 20

The water is clear and is about 90% aged water (10% top-up done Wednesday)

The chap at the lfs said there would be enough dead leaves etc in to provide enough ammonia to build up the filter, and I should wait abou 3-4 weeks before adding any fish. I can see a bit of debris at the bottom of the pond and it should be pretty well decomposed by now so I'm not sure it's enough.

What do you think about me putting the two little goldfish in?

Or am I just in too much of a hurry?

CS