What you cannot see may be a big problem!
Pond water testing is usually not necessary unless you keep fish... and you love them. We offer DIY kits and free testing at our shop. When we test the water we look at two important chemicals:
Ammonia - a deadly (for fish) chemical found in tap water and the result of fish waste. Ammonia is invisible.
Nitrite - an equally deadly chemical caused when bacteria breakdown ammonia. The bacteria will eventually breakdown nitrites into nitrates which can be used by plants in the pond.
pH- We are typically high pH here in Central Texas and we don't recommend attempting to control your levels. Adjusting pH too rapidly can cause a fish-kill. Our koi, goldfish and plants generally have no issues here.
Phosphates - usually linked to over-feeding or overcrowding, phosphates are harmless but can lead to eutrophication.
Salinity - In cases where plants are not preforming as they should, we'll test for accumulated salt levels. We do see cases where local municipal and well water sources have excessive salt content. Our koi & goldfish can tolerate higher salt levels but water lilies will turn to mush.
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