Maintenance of your waterfeature can seem like a world of their own. It can seem a little daunting with a whole new language of plants, plumbing and water biology to learn about. However, with a little bit of knowledge, they can become easy to maintain throughout the year, giving you more time to sit back and enjoy.
Reduce the Nutrients to reduce your Maintenance
The most important thing for low maintenance water features is keeping nutrients out of the water. So where do they come from and what can you do about it?
Soil washing into your feature = make sure your liner is high and shape any flowerbeds around to direct the water away
Dead plant matter = cut back plants as they die to prevent them falling into the water. Clear your skimmer out regularly, particularly during Autumn, to remove floating debris that have been sucked in by your pump.
Dose regularly with Beneficial Bacteria = We want lots of beneficial bacteria in our waterfeatures as they breakdown the nutrients before algae can feed on it.
Clean your pond every 1-2 years = Ponds and waterfeatures are a closed system and so nutrients will accumulate. By giving your pond a drain down and thorough clean every 1-2 years will manually remove the silt (algae food) that the bacteria and filters are unable to reach. This can be messy and needs some equipment so feel free to get in touch and ask the professionals to take this one off your hands! Check out our Pond and Water Feature Cleaning Page
Maintenance on your plumbing should only need doing quarterly. The pipes shouldn’t need much attention however, you definitely need to check your pump. Turn it off and take it out of the pond, taking it apart to clean around the filters and propellor. A well working pump will take excessive pressure off the pipes and so will prevent popping plumbing or issues further down the line. If you think the plumbing is leaking, it may be after heavy frost when ice has popped pipes off the back of components. Dig gently behind the main components and perhaps secure the pipes with a jubilee clip.
Maintain your Planting
Maintaining aquatic plants are by nature more enthusiastic than many terrestrial plants. If a plant isn’t doing what you want, feel free to cut it back as much as you like.
If you want more flowers, remember to feed them. Aquatic plants are hungry and will show you their appreciation within a few weeks of a feed tab during Spring or Summer.
Following these three rules will make your maintenance so much lower and your water feature a more enjoyable place to spend your time. If you wish there was a garden butler, look no further! DU Waterscapes offers a VIP service which takes care of all of these maintenance problems and more. With quarterly visits, your garden is in a safe pair of hands. Get in touch and just sit back and enjoy.
