Last Updated: 9/4/23

1. On 8/6/23 at 1:24 pm, the air temperature was 85 degrees F with near 100% humidity so it felt pretty warm. The 1800 gallon pond's thermometer read 76 degrees F as did the one in the 153 gallon pond. I squirted all the filter materials, put in additives, and added water.

2. It was 84 degrees F outside at 11:34 am on 8/13/23. The 1800 gallon pond was at 78 degrees F, and the 153 gallon pond was at 75 degrees F. I changed the PondMaster filters. The fountain bell has been lounging in all sorts of directions, everywhere but where it was supposed to be. The day before, the raccoons had knocked it partly out of the pond, and I had to add about 40 gallons of water to fill it back up! I squirted all the filter materials including the Matala in the Biosteps filter and the bioballs and lava rock in the main biofilter. I put in additives and water.

3. I started pond work at 11:26 am on 8/21/23. I stopped about half an hour later without having squirted the filter materials in the big pond because I was expecting my family to come over but they did not come over until 2 pm so I started pond work again at 1 pm. It was 80 degrees F at 11:26 am but closer to 90 degrees F by the time I was done. Both pond thermometers read 70 degrees F.

4. On 8/21/23, I had the day off. I got back in the big pond to upright the two hardy canna plants which the raccoons had knocked down. I forgot the day before. I also pulled three wheel barrows full of Japanese stilt grass from the waterfall area along with some multiflora rose bush that kept sticking me. If my mom were alive, she would tell me it was "Weed City."

5. When I came home on 8/23/23, I discovered that the main biofilter was dry, and the waterfall was not running! My first thought was that the big OASE pump was dead. I do not keep a spare because I got a spare when my pond was new, and 20 years later, when that pump died, the brand new spare was 100% dead. I checked it again, and that ~$400 pump (cost circa 2000) was still worthless. I kept it because it was so much money I lost! Anyway, I got in the pond to troubleshoot and found that the connector I have between the original tubing (that goes under the ground so I cannot change it out) which is super stuff and brittle (was originally "flex" tubing) and some newer tubing that I actually use to attach to the pump had just come off so I was able to fix it. The pond also was down a few inches in as many days so I'm worried about that but there is so much vegetation (and no rain) so I'm hoping it was just wicking. I put in more water.

6. I did pond chores on 8/27/23 at 12:53 pm. The air temperature was 84 degrees F. The 1800 gallon pond was at 77 degrees F, and the 153 gallon pond was at 76 degrees F. I squirted all the filter materials, put in additives, and topped off the ponds with water. It has been very dry lately. I put some fertilizer in the two waterlily pots.

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