Spring cleaning time...

Spring is the best time to get a jump start on your pond care for the year. Try to think a head and order what you need before it is a problem so you are ready.

Remember that any organic material in your pond will turn into food for algae if it is left untreated. Biological treatments go a long way to helping to break down muck and other organica materials on the pond bottom. However, do not forget to remove any left over algae, dead stems and other plants from last year that may turn into decaying items later this year.

Lastly, removing those unwanted stems will make your pond look better while allowing easier treatment of any new unwanted plants that pop up.

A blue in any season!

Well, I was impressed that after a year of rain and dry period, warm to cold, lawn mowing and leaves falling that the products used to treat the pond near my home were working wonderfully well. The pond still has a nice blue color, the bacteria products were keeping the leaves that blew in from becoming algae food and the last shots of shoreline treatments was keeping the shore looking like a winner.

In the end the actual brands you purchase means little as compared with the use of the right products at the right time. Prevention in ponds will actually save you money and keep your pond ahead of the problem curves. Dye can be added at any time, even in the north, to prepare for spring weather and so when the ice melts you have good color and protection. Bacteria can be added if your water is still above freezing to help break down the waste that has gathered through the year. If you are in colder areas of the country, wait and apply it early in the spring. Lastly, PLEASE DO NOT add copper products if your water is below 60 degrees as it's just not effective and kills bacteria that help to break down the waste in your pond.

If you are in warmer parts of the country or if you want to buy at last years pricing, please visit us at www.pondcaredirect.com today. We look forward to your business and should you have any questions on our products, pricing or special orders contact us.

Version 2.0

We would like to inform all of our customers of the changes coming soon to PCD.

We have a couple new suppliers lined up to help us increase the products we can offer at great prices. New items that will be available starting next year include fountains, pond lighting, aeration units and even pontoon boats.

In addition to those changes we are happy to announce our first retail location will open on January first of 2011. Visit us at the "Shops on the Square" in downtown Auburn, Indiana.

Lastly, we have started a facebook page and hope to be able to network with our customers in order to gain a good name as well as be able to assist others with pond care questions. In the future we'll offer special products or listings on facebook as well!

More information to come on the blog as well as the facebook page and website. We look forward to a new and exciting season next year. As always, we appreciate your business.

Treating anything takes time...

This is just a friendly reminder to make sure you allow products you use on your pond time to work. Rushing things along by adding additional chemicals can be risky to your pond and the life in and around it. Remember that sometimes slower is better anyway. Like with almost anything a slow change over time to anything tends to be better than a rapid change. When it comes to any form of plant/algae in a pond, killing all of it and in a quick manner can cause unsafe oxygen levels.

So the best methods to treatment are usually have lapses in time and variation of area that is treated. Some products, such as White Cap, have a built in chemical reaction that releases slowly over time and automatically kills off the problem weeds slowly.

One last note is that weeds and algae are normally a sign of a larger issues that are causing the growth. It could be from springs feeding nutrients to your pond, run off water carrying waste or chemicals and even debris that have built up on your ponds bottom. The first two issues may require some changes to your pond or land. The last one can be handled by use of bacteria products. These products contain high doses of bacteria that help to break down the debris that are decaying in your pond that feed algae and weeds.

Treat that algae and more options to buy!

While an copper is a great start to killing off algae in most any pond it is not by any means the best way to take care of algae issues.

Always start with a good dye used at the proper level. This will lower sunlight penetration and will keep down the amount of algae that forms. However, dye has no active ingredient and does not kill or stop algae growth.

Bacterial products are made to help lower algae counts by eating/destroying the waste found in ponds which lowers the food the algae has to feed on. Note that you should never treat with this product right before using any copper based product. It's always best to apply this a day or two after copper is applied.

The third product that should be used is a copper based product that can be used to help lower and kill algae over time. There are several copper based products in liquid and dry form that can do this. In general these products will be effective for about a month and will need to be reapplied in a timely manner to help.

The last part of the mix should be dry products like copper sulfate or other similiar products that are great for spot treatment or to help aid the other treatments when issues occur. Another reason to limit the use of this product as a primary solution is that it kills off beneficial bacteria in your pond which help to keep waste levels down as well as the bottom of the pond cleaner.

Following the steps above will keep algae down, the pond cleaner and nicer to look at all the time. It will also limit the amount of copper sulfate or other simliar products from being used which can be costly and time consuming to apply.

Visit us today and see the new product variations we've created. Many of our most popular products are now available in options other than by the case. As always, you can contact us by email at with any questions, to suggest new products or inquire on special pricing.

Do you Ebay?

So why do many companies sell on the web, locally and on Ebay? Like any business it's all about reaching your customers. This is not just the ones you know but even more so the ones you have not yet had an opportunity to serve.

However, keep in mind that many companies, especially my own would gladly work to give you a better price outside Ebay to avoid the high fees Ebay charges for auction purchases.

If you are in the market for pond care goods, please contact our company directly over the phone or through email and we will try our best to give you a very good price.

Remember to stay in front of pond problems as that is much easier than trying to catch up. I can state this from my own ponds treatment this year which was at the bottom of my to do list and now is being treated to fix problems with both algae and duck weed.

Don't waste that copper!

Well it should be common knowledge for pond owners that copper is not effective in ponds that are below 55 degrees. I've been told and followed 60 myself. There is more than one reason for this. Not only does it waste money but it is also more likely to cause issues of contamination and contact with other things that may not be able to handle contact with copper. This can be a real problem with invertabrates in your pond such as snails. When algae is heavy or using up the copper then it breaks down more before coming in contact with other things or before it can leave your pond.

Copper is a great help in controlling algae but if we keep wasting it and using it improperly then all states will follow the ones that have banned the use of copper products in ponds. It will also continue to drive prices up due to higher demands and larger use of a commodity.