Here We Go!!!!
The koi show is happening this month and I expect every club member to do their part to make this year's show a success. We are in a new venue (Bing Crosby Hall), new plumbing issues, but “The Buck” and I talked it through so it should be fine. Let me know (ASAP) if you are able to volunteer to help set-up/at/ tear-down the show. Contact me at showchair.kcsd@gmail.com if you can help ANYWHERE/ ANYTIME before/during/after the show
The biggest issue will be getting the show tanks from storage at San Diego Pond and Garden to the show site. I am asking for 4-5 people to meet Ben Adams at SDPG and assist in getting the first set of tanks on the truck and to Bing Crosby Hall. After the tanks are unloaded, it's back to storage to pick up a second set. Please step forward and help in this operation.
And this is only the tip of the iceberg, but many helping hands make the task light and more fun; so please sign up to volunteer for this big event ( help my peace of mind so I can sleep better at night). Again, my email is: showchair.kcsd@gmail.com
Thank you in advance for your help. All that you do is appreciated. Also remember, because of the show, there is no January general meeting.
For my personal pond situation, it got a little interesting at the start of December. So I went out to look at my fish and heard my RDF pump running long and the level of my pond had dropped 6 inches in depth. First thing I do is go over and shut off the RDF pump and look in to see if the problem is in the RDF. I noticed the draw-down was lower than the sensors that turn on/off the pump; so, I unplugged one of my main pumps to see the difference of draw-down. I did that and the water level was cut in half, and the sensor was covered halfway. That indicated to me that I had a possible blockage in my bottom drains. Now the pond has been up and running since June of 2017 and I have always had a phobia of midge fly larvae build up in my bottom drainpipes (think plaque in your veins makes for decreased blood flow). I said to myself “Well it has been over seven years and I do get swarms of midge flies at a certain time of year; so…”. I called Mr. Sunshine (aka Buck) and asked him to bring down his bottom drain pipe scrubber (or his dryer exhaust sweep kit) when he could. He told me he would be down tomorrow.
The next day he showed up and put his equipment down in the backyard. As the minutes ticked off and we stood there talking. I started thinking why isn't he putting his equipment together for use? After a few minutes I asked that question and the response I got was:
“I’m not doing anything until you go down there (pointing at a bottom drain) and move the bottom drain covers off the bottom drains so that we can clean all the way through”.
He wants me to go in there? I went and checked my pool/pond thermometer floating in the pond; 59 degrees. I used to go swimming in my youth, in the ocean no problem. But I’m no longer a youth. One look at Buck, for a way out, told me there was no way out. His eyes said: ‘Suck it up, Buttercup’. I went in and got on my swimsuit and planned my evacuation route from the pond in my mind. After a minute or two, I took the plunge, jumping in and going straight for a drain. I lifted it to find the whole drain blocked by umbrella palm leaves ( I love my back side neighbors' umbrella palms). I grabbed a handful and headed for the surface. Throwing that handful over the pond wall, I headed back for more. Two or three more attempts and moved on to the other two (middle one not clogged - end ones were). I crawled out (more like a seal jumped/rolled) and dried off/ covered up. We notice a large difference in flow after that. Of course, Buck hit me with “Why don't you clean your drains more often?” But I mentioned I did in late October (water around comfortable 64 degrees) and there was a windstorm early in the month. Moving on, since the stuff was there, we did a pipe cleaning of the bottom drains and skimmers. That’s that.
One thing I’d like to leave you with is some information. One: midge flies are not mosquitoes. They look like them, but they don’t bite. Two: Microbe-Lift has a product that eliminates midge flies and their larvae. It is called Microbe-Lift Biological Mosquito Control (BMC). Apply when necessary and it will take care of the problem (until next time). And lastly remember to do that maintenance in late summer/fall to prepare for the spring warm-up the next year. I already have my plan in my head regarding this, so I don’t have to take an early polar plunge again.
Matt Rhoades
Go kichi for koi
