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The Best Way To Clean A Koi Pond And How To Keep It Clean

From the only Master Certified Aquascape Contractor in Central Iowa

Just Add Water · April 19, 2021 · Updated November 21, 2022

The Best Way To Clean A Koi Pond And How To Keep It Clean

This Is How We Clean Koi Ponds For Our Clients In The Des Moines Area

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How to clean a koi pond starts with inspecting it to make sure it all works. Then you drain the water, take out the fish, and start cleaning.

Discover the full process and more below-

This Is What Happens

“Well, now we know what happens when we miss pond maintenance,” sighs Angela.

“Whelp,” says Adam, “there’s no going back now. Let’s focus on what we can do to fix the problem. We need to know how to clean a koi pond and how to keep a koi pond clean.”

“Why the ‘how to clean’ part?” asks Angela. Adam shrugs. “I like knowing what’s happening with my investments. And while our pond is amazing, it is still an investment.” Anglea nods. “We can look it up on our pond contractor’s website,” she suggests.

“Great idea! They do have a blog that’s helped us before, like with how much it costs to build and maintain a koi pond,” says Adam. He gets his phone out and starts looking.

Here’s what the couple finds out-

How To Clean Out A Koi Pond

  1. Inspection
  2. Drain pond
  3. Relocate fish
  4. Clean debris
  5. Flush, Powerwash, Flush
  6. Check on lights
  7. Trim plants
  8. Refill pond
  9. Treat water
  10. Return fish

Then we clean up our stuff and go, only leaving behind a beautiful pond, grateful fish, and happy homeowners.

More Details On These Steps

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Inspecting the pond means looking it over to make sure it works. We’ll turn your feature on to make sure it works smoothly and doesn’t leak. We’ll use a solution on the pump to make sure it keeps working.

Draining the pond helps us really get it clean. We won’t clean it 100% because that’s not what nature intended. Ponds need some muck and algae, it’s part of the ecosystem!

Taking out the fish gets them out of the way. We put them in a large container we fill with their pond water. We also put an aerator in it. This makes sure they’re comfortable.

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Cleaning out the debris involves removing sticks, leaves, and other gunk.

Flush, powerwash, flush loosens the hard-to-reach and caked-on stuff. We flush all of that mess out too.

Checking the lights makes sure they all work and don’t have damage. We can also add in lights and other additions at this point (like an Ion-Gen water purifier).

Trimming the plants keeps them looking good and staying healthy.

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Refilling the pond happens with a garden hose.

Treating the water gets the chemical balance in line with what your fish need. They’ll feel more at home and are less likely to go into shock being in new water.

Returning the fish slowly helps make sure they don’t go into shock with the newer water.

How To Keep A Koi Pond Clean

Water feature by Just Add WaterThe best way to keep a koi pond clean is seasonal maintenance. Spring, fall, and winter pond maintenance keep your pond running smoothly and looking great. It’s all part of how often people clean their ponds.Water feature by Just Add WaterYou can also clean your pond water using these best ways to clean your pond water:

  1. Pond cleaning and maintenance
  2. Adding an Ion Gen
  3. Introducing more pond life
  4. Water treatments
  5. Adding or upgrading filters

You’ll also want to know how to control algae in your pond. It’s good to have some algae but you don’t want it taking over your pond.

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“Maybe we should look into hiring a pond maintenance service,” suggests Angela. Adam nods. “I agree. First, let’s see what their processes are for their pond maintenances.”

Who we are

Built by Iowans, for Iowans.

Just Add Water is a locally owned company that has been building water features across Iowa for over 20 years. Our team loves upgrading yards and properties for our fellow Iowans, and we have the experienced crew to do it.