Basic Rules to Remember.
	Some Do's and Don'ts

1. Do not overstock your pond-- 10gal for each 1 in. of fish, less if you do not have a filter or pump. If you wish to exceed this level then you Must have a Top Line Filter similar to The Nexus or our Vortex Systems.

2. Do not overfeed your fish-cut the manufacturers recommendation by up to 50%  and only feed as much as the fish will take within a few minutes,  feed little and often.

3. Do not stop your pump and filter-except for cleaning, as you will lose aeration and may also loose that beneficial bacteria.

4. Do not place gravel or small rocks on the bottom of the pond-they will trap all manner of debris which could cause an aromonas build-up which could eventually lead to the death of your fish.

5. Do change 10% of the pond water monthly-this will flush out some of the harmful nitrates, ammonia, salt etc.. this is not the same as topping off your pond, this way you are actually exchanging water gallon for gallon. An even better idea if it is possible and if you have built in an Overflow into your system (which is always a very good idea) is especially during the start up process of your new pond, is to trickle water constantly into your pond 24 hours per day - allowing the excess water to simply overflow to waste ...

6. Do test your water once a week--this will alert you to the first sign of problems, there are many good and reliable water tests on the market and of course we can recommend the ones that we have generally found to be the best around.

Remember--Not all Ponds are the same - the Water will be different from town to town and County to County and certainly from Country to Country - almost every Pond is likely to be different, and because of the nature of the hobby almost every Pond Keeper will have different needs and ideas. What works for some pond keepers, might not work for others. Also different areas of the country require different approaches. If you are unsure then please contact us .. it is far easier to build the pond correctly in the first place - than it is to try to alter the system after ....

The East Riding Koi Co.  hopes our web pages will give you more insight into ponds, water gardens and that living jewel the Koi. There are other pages on our web site explaining filtration, plants, products, Koi and general techniques. These pages will be updated regularly as the hobby develops. Further questions WILL be answered by e-mail, telephone or on our message board.

Remember that we have regular contributions to our bulletin board .. so if you have any questions - or you wish to know the answer to about your Koi, or any other matter relating to Koi and their needs .. .then there are sure to be other Koi collectors around who would be only too willing to try to help you with your problem ..  click here to visit the bulletin board now and add this to your favourites .. you will be amazed at what you can learn by visiting the bulletin board on a regular basis ..

For further information please contact us at < info@koicarp.net >