hi, need some advice, thinking of treating my pond with a very low salt dosage, to help keep fish healthy
my question is i have a 2000 gallon pond so how much should i add ,bearing in mind i will be treating it all year round , and i will be purchasing a salt tester ,so i dont over salt , and i flush my filter out weekly and daily in the summer , so pond is topped up regular , so any advice of % of salt content to be used. thanks.

if you will be treating with stuff all year round then 0% salt should be present.

hi, i meant in senstive times ,spring & autumn,

Hi there,

To be really honest, why treat it at all. The salt just irritates the koi skin making their slime coat thicker. Yes, I know that it can help in certain treatments, as in a salt bath to aid wounds and to help with some parasites. But personally I wouldn't recommend having it in your water even in spring/autumn because if something does go wrong and the fish get something, certain treatments then might not work at all.

I'd keep salt for treating when you need too, the benefits then would be much better for the koi.

I would have lost my mum ghost koi last year if I hadn't been able to dose the qt pond with a high concentrate of salt.

Of course, just my opinion.

Dawn

Hi gazcop i will echo what Kanundra as said. only use salt when you have to as its a magic treatment on times

alot of koi keepers swear by it, but think i will take your advice ,and only use for sick fish in a seprate tank,for a short period, thanks.

I can concur that, I've had a few friends treat with a mild dose of salt all year. But then when it came to treat for something bad... they had to do major water changes to get the salt out before they could put the real treatment in. This put their fish at more risk.

Maybe some other more 'experienced' keepers can help weigh in on this thread. I'd like some more answers too. To see how things have changed over the years.

D

the level of salt in which you would be adding is 1/2 ounce per gallon.

i know somewhere on the site i have wrote a piece on salt and ponds.
i will try and find it for you thou theres a lot of confusion here mainly from aquatic outlets ( the supermarket type , shelves stacked high with all sorts of rubbish ) selling and promoting "tonic " salts .these are sold on the premise that they improve the health of the koi , where in fact koi that are fed a correct diet and kept in fresh water will get all the salts they need .if you really want to add a usefull additive to your water then add a clay product ie kusuri klay , refresh etc to replace the minerals that tap water is devoid of.

i already use kusuri klay, iam now going to feed with medikoi weatgream with added garlic to help koi imune system , so hopefully my fish will be healthy for years to come, as they cost lots. as i said earlyer will leave salt alone, or until i find out if there is any benifits, thank for all your advice. cheers.

Kusuri Clay is really good, I use Sansai Biorex, which is amazing stuff, a little in their food and in their water if something isn't quite right. Poof, gone.

check out the read up from my local stockist.

http://www.holmeswoodkoi.co.uk/Pages/Pr ... iorex.aspx

Yes, some koi do cost a fair bit, as do their set ups. And if anything is worth doing, you gotta do it right, right? Would love some pics, you can check mine out in the gallery along with recent pics of the baby koi we've bred this year.

Here to help anytime.

Dawn