Fifth Club Meeting of 2018

Meeting Date	Thu, Aug 9, 2018 7:00 PM - Thu, Aug 9, 2018 9:00 PM

The Pikes Peak Water Garden Society meetings are held every 2nd Thursday from April to September. Most meetings start at 7:00 PM and wrap up around 9:00 to 9:30 PM.

This year our meetings will once again be held at the Mountain View Church of Christ located at 1080 East La Salle Street. This is at the west end of Constitution Avenue on the southwest corner.

Enter through the east door on the north side of the church.

To see a map for the meeting location, click on the Link Below

Mountain View Church of Christ

Meeting Minutes

Pikes Peak Water Garden Society Club Meeting Minutes
August 9th, 2018

Meeting called to order 7:05 pm Adjourned 9:35pm

PEOPLE IN ATTENDANCE: 23 members and 4 guests

Bob kicked off the meeting and gave and opportunity for new members to introduce themselves.

Bob went over the open positions for the Board that will be available at the end of this year.
Bob ask if there were any nominations for the board positions.
Nominations were made for
• Shirley Weaver
• Bev Kratzer
• Tom Taylor
• Gena Nelson

TREASURERS REPORT: Shirley went over the treasurer’s report.

• Checking balance $4,286.49
• Savings $2,684.52
• Cash on Hand $45.00
• Total ending funds $7,016.24

Bob starting the question and answer portion of the meeting.

• Why do fish hide during a lightning storm? The barometric pressure changes during a storm.
• Is rain bad for my pond? Rain can raise the PH in your pond to a dangerous level.
• What about Hail? A large amount of hail can lower the temperature in your pond to quickly for the fish to adjust and kill your fish.
• Are fish affected by how long you leave pond lights on in your pond? Does the intensity or color of the lights matter? Could night find a definitive answer.
• What happens when you put game fish in you pond? Most game fish will eat koi and gold fish not a good idea about putting game fish in your pond.
• What percent of tap water can you add to your pond without adding declor. Anything more than 10%.
• When performing a water change where should I add my water? Add water to your water fall so it will mix with the pond water and not shock your fish with the sudden temperature change.
• When cleaning the filter media can I spray it off with the Garden Hose? No, it will kill the good bacteria from the chlorinated water that you are using.
• How often should I clean my filter? Only when it restricts the flow of the water.
• How often should I test my water chemistry? Depends (number of fish or number a gallons) in your pond but as a rule of thumb every two weeks would be a good idea.
• What can I do to stabilize the PH? Use baking soda. Make sure you raise you PH slowly. Fish will die if PH moves to quickly.
• I went out in the morning and this was foam on the water. What caused it? It could be that your Koi had spawn which has raised the protein. This will cause the foam on top of the water.
• My tree has changed color in less than six hours from green to yellow. ?
• I have fish can I shut down my pumps at night? What if I don’t have fish? No this will starve you fish of Oxygen. If you have no fish leave it on as well to keep the water circulating so the good bacteria will stay alive.
• Do I need aeration in my pond? This has many benefits to add aeration to your pond.
• How can I control String Algae? Barley straw or barley extract.
• Why is my water pea green? It is floating algae.
• How do I clean it up? Add water plants and make sure there is not water running of your yard into your pond adding fertilizer.
• Should I cover the bottom of my pond with stone. This makes the pond hard to clean and gives a place for rotting leaves to hide.
• Is there a way to make a bog filter in a small area for a small pond? Yes, there are several ways to make a bog filter with bared tanks or barrels.
• What do I do about that Blue Heron. String fishing line around the perimeter of your pond or above the pond. Heron do not like to hit fishing line with their wings or their legs. For Raccoons electric fence or make sure there are no low spots in you pond for them to get in a wait for you fish.
• Do I need filtration? Yes
• Do I need a skimmer? No but it is a good idea it will help leaves and debris from rotting on the bottom.
• Should I add salt to my pond? Koi like low levels of salt but some pond plants will not survive.
• How deep should my pond be? A minimum of 30 inches.
• How often should I feed my fish. Two times a day. Do not overfeed.
• Why do my fish hang around my water fall? It could be that there is not enough aeration in your pond they could be looking for Oxygen.
Door prizes

• Meeting was adjourned at 9:35 pm.