How to use pond aerators during the high-temperature season

Using aerators properly can not only prevent and reduce gasping for air at the surface, but also improve water quality, strengthen the cycling of substances in the pond water, weaken or eliminate harmful toxins, and promote the reproduction of plankton. So, how should aerators be used correctly?

1. On sunny middays during the high-temperature period in summer and autumn, especially in fish ponds with fertile water and abundant phytoplankton, the paddle-wheel aerator should be turned on for aeration for 2-3 hours. This is because on hot sunny days, the photosynthesis of phytoplankton is especially strong and produces a large amount of oxygen; while in ponds with fertile water, light can only reach a depth of 20-30 cm, causing dissolved oxygen in the surface layer of the water to reach saturation, while dissolved oxygen in the bottom layer is relatively low. The paddle-wheel aerator has the effect of lifting water upward, and when turned on it can create vertical circulation and flow of the pond water, bringing dissolved oxygen in the entire pond water to a saturated state, and also playing a role in diluting, purifying and improving water quality.

2. In “south colliding with north” weather, the upper and lower layers of pond water rapidly convect, and the oxygen content in the pond drops quickly, so the aerator should be turned on early and for longer. If the sunlight is strong and the temperature is high during the day, and a thunderstorm suddenly occurs in the evening, the relatively cool rainwater entering the fish pond in large amounts will cause sharp convection between the upper and lower water layers, causing fish to gasp at the surface, so at this time the aerator should be turned on promptly for aeration.

3. When the “oxygen debt” is large, the aerator should be turned on more. When there has been a long period of clear weather without rain and the pond water temperature is high, heavy feeding can make the water too fertile, lower transparency, increase organic matter in the water, create a large oxygen difference between the upper and lower layers, and cause a large “oxygen debt” in the lower layer. If new water is not added for a long time, the water quality will become overly fertile and deteriorate, causing oxygen deficiency, gasping at the surface and fish deaths.

4. The paddle-wheel aerator should be turned on 1-2 hours before and after feeding. The paddle-wheel aerator can stir the pond water and make the water form circulating flow. On one hand, it can carry the smell of the feed to all parts of the pond, achieving a feeding-attraction effect; on the other hand, it can help fish form a conditioned reflex habit of eating feed.

5. In the evening, it is generally not suitable to turn on the paddle-wheel aerator. This is because at this time the photosynthesis of phytoplankton is about to stop and cannot add oxygen to the water. After the machine is turned on, dissolved oxygen in the upper and lower water layers is evenly distributed. After the dissolved oxygen in the upper layer decreases, it cannot be replenished, while the dissolved oxygen in the lower layer is quickly consumed. As a result, it instead accelerates the rate of dissolved oxygen consumption in the entire fish pond.

6. In summer, fertile ponds often suffer from oxygen deficiency due to overly dense fish stocking and oxygen consumption by other organisms, causing fish in part or all of the pond to gasp at the surface. Therefore, it is best to turn on the aerator at 1-2 in the second half of the night and keep it running until 7-8 the next morning, after the sun comes out and phytoplankton produce oxygen through photosynthesis, and stop the machine only after the fish are no longer gasping at the surface.