Neptune Aquatics

Anyone here dabble in the koi hobby as well?

jepoy

jepoy

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So I have my reef tank in the garage mainly because we live in a trilevel townhome and i dont want to put an aquarium on the second level of our house. Well recenlty we've been house hunting for a single family home because we want more space for our growing family. When we do find our new home, my wife still insists that my tank stays in the garage because she's seen the mess that i make with this hobby. That said, i was able to strike a deal with her that if we were to get a house with a big enough yard that i will put in a koi pond. So now ive watched hundreds of koi video on youtube and im a little obsessed. Just wondering if anyone here takes care of kois as well and your thoughts.

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Be prepared to have a large pond, koi’s will grow BIG

I think someone else here who was a koi convert to saltwater... that guy who has 200g tank and sold it off soon

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ashburn2k said:
Be prepared to have a large pond, koi’s will grow BIG

I think someone else here who was a koi convert to saltwater... that guy who has 200g tank and sold it off soon

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So you've tried it? Would you say its an easier or harder hobby than reefing? More expensive or not?

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Instead of hitch hiker pests killing livestock in a reef you deal with wild animals in the pond. Heron, Racoon, opossum, cat, fox all love eating koi. The more trees around the pond and more dogs you keep, the less netting you will need to fend off predators. Even with a net its tough to fend off. Tried electric perimeter wire (doesnt fend off birds) tried motion sprinkler (doesnt fend off anything lol). I think all the security really takes away from the ponds beauty.

My grandmother has had a pond for at least 50 years. Our entire family has helped maintain over the years. The last ten years she has not had a dog to protect the pond. We now fill the pond with the cheapest fish we can and enjoy the blue heron that lands in the middle of the pond for a meal.
 
Patio said:
Instead of hitch hiker pests killing livestock in a reef you deal with wild animals in the pond. Heron, Racoon, opossum, cat, fox all love eating koi. The more trees around the pond and more dogs you keep, the less netting you will need to fend off predators. Even with a net its tough to fend off. Tried electric perimeter wire (doesnt fend off birds) tried motion sprinkler (doesnt fend off anything lol). I think all the security really takes away from the ponds beauty.

My grandmother has had a pond for at least 50 years. Our entire family has helped maintain over the years. The last ten years she has not had a dog to protect the pond. We now fill the pond with the cheapest fish we can and enjoy the blue heron that lands in the middle of the pond for a meal.
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So your grandmother's pond is now technically a heron's feed? Lol thats hilarious. Yes ive seen plenty of videos regarding predators.. can i ask tho, is your grandmother's pond in the bay area? I was wondering if there are herons that fly around the bay because i dont think ive ever seen any. Maybe its because ive never really paid attention to local birds before lol.

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lol technically but not really. We just like having life in it and couldn't keep feeding the good stuff (expensive koi) to the birds and raccoons.Crane might be more accurate but its usually blueish/grayish. I see the white colored cranes or heron (i am not a bird person either) all over the waterways running alongside the 680 freeway through Pleasanton and up through San Ramon.

The pond is in Pleasanton. Raccoons give her problems as well. Keep in mind we never had a problem when she had a dog/s to defend the yard.
 
the only lesson i learned from this hobby is dig deep if you want fish to have place to hid from their predators without guard dogs. but then again, deeper you dig, colder water will get, u will need heater. and yet there you have cranes :/
 
deeper ponds protect against temperature and predators. If you are planning to get high quality koi (japanese purebreed), I would not go under 5 feet deep for a pond. Never do a cement pond. Do underlay with 5-7mm thick liner, gravity fed bottom drain.., etc. Its a fun and worthwhile hobby to pursue and costs however much you want to throw into it. I think ive spent a lot more on koi than saltwater.

When you see a heron, you will know. Those birds are fking huge and you cant kill them because they are federally protected.


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NelsonCh said:
deeper ponds protect against temperature and predators. If you are planning to get high quality koi (japanese purebreed), I would not go under 5 feet deep for a pond. Never do a cement pond. Do underlay with 5-7mm thick liner, gravity fed bottom drain.., etc. Its a fun and worthwhile hobby to pursue and costs however much you want to throw into it. I think ive spent a lot more on koi than saltwater.

When you see a heron, you will know. Those birds are fking huge and you cant kill them because they are federally protected.


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Why not a cement pond? Earthquakes? Ive seen ponds on youtube that are half underground and half above ground (they dig 3 feet and then add another 2-3 feet of cinder blocks anove ground). How big is your pond if you dont mind me asking? Also whats the reason for not going deeper than 5' for quality koi?

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Sorry I meant no less than 5 feet deep for the pond. I personally think electric wires, fences and all those counter measures for predators take away from the natural look I like to have for a koi pond. Theres a guy in Willow Glen that has a 20 foot deep pond. Its packed with huge koi, sturgeon, and hi fin banded sharks for algae. Herons cant touch them. I forgot his name but you can probably find him on craigslist selling japanese imported koi.

Ive only had 3 ponds and my biggest was 12’ by 24’ by 5’.

I strongly recommend liner because its proven to last longer. Cement will eventually deteriorate and crack, causing leaks and headaches. Liner can also deteriorate and leak but at a much lower rate than cement does. Plus we live in California, which is earthquake prone.

You are in the South Bay right? Theres great koi shops. I recommend checking out Evergreens Nishikigoi shop.




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There is a local (to me) koi seller who sells out of his backyard. It’s a family owned business ( that could probably use all the business they could get during these times) that I have heard lots of good stuff about. You may want to stop buy and talk to the owners.
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NelsonCh said:
Theres a guy in Willow Glen that has a 20 foot deep pond. Its packed with huge koi, sturgeon, and hi fin banded sharks for algae. Herons cant touch them. I forgot his name but you can probably find him on craigslist selling japanese imported koi.
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Wow! 20 feet deep pond??? Thats a lake not a pond! Lol. I'd like to see that for myself. Ill definitely hit the guy up when i do get started in the hobby. Thanks for all the pointers.. im definitely taking notes!

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Newjack said:
There is a local (to me) koi seller who sells out of his backyard. It’s a family owned business ( that could probably use all the business they could get during these times) that I have heard lots of good stuff about. You may want to stop buy and talk to the owners.
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Thanks for the tip! I'll definitely hit this guy up when i do get started with the hobby. First things first though, we need to buy a home with a yard.. hopefully by end of this year.

As soon as we get a house Im planning on setting up a kiddy pool for a pond and getting a few small kois to begin with. I know that a DIY pond is going to take me some time especially if im building by myself. Hoping by the time the actual pond is built, the tiny kois have grown a little.

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