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Baking soda slowly depletes in a pond with a high stocking density of fish. This is because the bio-filtration function has to consume pond alkalinity to convert the ammonia which the fish gives off. How slowly, or how fast, baking soda levels, or pond alkalinity, depletes depends on several factors:

1. How much you added to start with.
2. How high the alkalinity was before you added it.
3. How many and what size fish you have in your pond.
4. The kind of filtration system you use.
5. Whether there are any other sources of alkalinity in the pond.
6. Whether you have both green water algae and stringy algae under control - either of them can play havoc with the pond alkalinity balance and pH control.

I need to add 10 pounds of baking soda every two weeks to my two koi ponds to maintain a given level of alkalinity, each of them 4000 to 5500 gallons in capacity. Griff reports a similar number. We both have huge fish loads for our pond size. With smaller fish loads, and smaller ponds, less baking soda is needed, and at a less frequent addition schedule.

Roddy Conrad

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